Eight prong health benefits of using ginger in daily life

Many Health Benefits of Ginger

Ginger has it has been used for treating sicknesses for many centuries in China, India, and the Middle East. Scientists and medical experts alike are starting to endorse raw ginger as treatment for illnesses, as studies prove the benefits of ginger root in decreasing cell growth in cancers, curing nausea during pregnancy and chemotherapy, and preventing illnesses during motion sickness.

The National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine has classified the use of ginger in two different ways, mixed and suggestive. “Suggestive” uses of raw ginger are for more mild illnesses such as nausea and headaches. “Mixed” uses of ginger are for treating nausea for more serious illnesses, and it can be used in surgery, chemotherapy (for treating nausea), and in motion sickness related ailments. Below are its most common uses and benefits (and how to obtain them), most of which have been utilized for many years

1. Ease Stomach Aches

Eating raw ginger can help ease stomach pains and aches as well. This is because of its oils, known as gingerols and shogaols, which induce your stomach to produce digestive juices. The increased production help neutralize stomach acids, and the improved balance can help reduce stomach pain. You can take tablet forms or ginger products, but to help jumpstart pain relief, you can also chew an ounce piece of ginger.

2. Decrease Nausea

As stated earlier, ginger root can be used to treat various types of nausea. Women sometimes eat raw ginger to help decrease nausea from morning sickness. Other times, ginger can be given to patients experiencing extreme nausea from chemotherapy treatments. Lastly, take some fresh ginger with you on a cruise, and have a few slices before the ship leaves! Ginger can help cure motion sickness symptoms, like nausea and unease.

3 Relieve Heartburn Pain

Raw ginger has been used in tea to relieve pain and discomfort from heartburn.

Usually, recipes call for anywhere from 4-6 slices of ginger per tea cup, but you can add more water if you wish to dilute its overwhelming flavor. Add some honey and lemon juice to the tea, along your favorite natural sweetener.

4. Alleviate Pain from Menstrual Cramps

Europeans have used raw ginger to alleviate menstrual cramps for many years. Recently, this alternative medicine is becoming more popular in America as well. You can eat raw ginger or steep it in water to help bring out its flavor. Most medical guides recommend eating it in its raw form, when both its flavors and oils are at their peak

5.  Immune Boosting Action

Ginger can not only be warming on a cold day, but can help promote healthy sweating, which is often helpful during colds and flus. A good sweat may do a lot more than simply assist detoxification. German researchers have recently found that sweat contains a potent germ-fighting agent that may help fight off infections. Investigators have isolated the gene responsible for the compound and the protein it produces, which they have named dermicidin. Dermicidin is manufactured in the body's sweat glands, secreted into the sweat, and transported to the skin's surface where it provides protection against invading microorganisms, including bacteria such as E. coli and Staphylococcus aureus (a common cause of skin infections), and fungi, including Candida albicans.

6. Ginger Induces Cell Death in Ovarian Cancer Cells

Lab experiments presented at the 97th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer, by Dr Rebecca Lui and her colleagues from the University of Michigan, showed that gingerols, the active phytonutrients in ginger, kill ovarian cancer cells by inducing apoptosis (programmed cell death) and autophagocytosis (self-digestion).

Ginger extracts have been shown to have both antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and anti-tumor effects on cells. To investigate the latter, Dr Liu examined the effect of a whole ginger extract containing 5% gingerol on a number of different ovarian cancer cell lines.

7. Protections against Colorectal Cancer

Gingerols, the main active components in ginger and the ones responsible for its distinctive flavor, may also inhibit the growth of human colorectal cancer cells, suggests research presented at the Frontiers in Cancer Prevention Research, a major meeting of cancer experts that took place in Phoenix, AZ, October 26-30, 2003

8 Anti-Inflammatory Effects

Ginger contains very potent anti-inflammatory compounds called gingerols. These substances are believed to explain why so many people with osteoarthritis or rheumatoid arthritis experience reductions in their pain levels and improvements in their mobility when they consume ginger regularly. In two clinical studies involving patients who responded to conventional drugs and those who didn't, physicians found that 75% of arthritis patients and 100% of patients with muscular discomfort experienced relief of pain and/or swelling.