The health benefits of ginger, from preventing nausea to cancer

The benefits of ginger are not only as a plant that can warm the body. Ginger is a plant originating from Southeast Asia. This ginger plant then spread to various countries. Famous for its distinctive aroma, ginger is used as an ingredient in cooking as well as alternative medicine in China, India and the Middle East. When choosing ginger, especially if you want to use it for medicinal purposes, you can choose ginger that is fresh, the structure is sturdy, smooth, and not moldy. What are the benefits of ginger that you can get for health?

Ginger uses and benefits

Fresh ginger has a stronger taste when compared to powdered ginger, the content of gingerol which is good for health is also still abundant in the benefits of fresh ginger. To take advantage of fresh ginger, you can mix ginger with dishes such as processed food seafood, salad toppings, and mixtures smoothies or your juice.

However, if you choose ginger in powder form, make sure you choose pure ginger powder. Powdered ginger drinks that are sold in the market usually contain added sugar. Store ginger powder in a tightly closed container and store in a dry, dark place, and not stuffy or hot.

Health benefits of ginger

1. Overcoming digestive problems

Ginger has a long history of dealing with digestive-related problems. Known from generation to generation, ginger is one of the alternative ingredients to smoothen the digestive system. Content phenolic in ginger serves to relieve symptoms of gastrointestinal irritation, stimulates saliva, prevents contractions of the stomach, and helps the movement of food and drinks while in digestion. Ginger is also referred to as carminative, a substance that can help flush out excess gas in your digestive system. Digestive problems such as colic and dyspepsia can be treated with ginger.

2. Reducing nausea

The benefits of ginger can relieve nausea caused by morning sickness, vertigo, and the side effects of cancer treatment. You can eat ginger raw or make it a drink, ginger in the form of candy can also work well, especially in dealing with nausea suffered by pregnant women.

3. Reduce pain

A study conducted at the University of Georgia states that taking ginger supplements every day can reduce muscle aches caused by exercise by up to 25%. The benefits of ginger can also reduce pain due to dysmenorrhea, pain during menstruation. In one study, it was stated that 60% of women felt less pain due to menstruation after consuming ginger.

4. Helping the detoxification process and preventing skin diseases

Ginger is a type of food called a diaphoretic, the benefits of ginger can also trigger sweating. Sweating is beneficial for you especially when you have a cold or flu. Apart from helping the detoxification process, sweating also protects you from microorganisms that can cause skin infections. The experts researched a type of protein called dermicidin, is produced in the sweat glands and functions to protect the body from bacteria such as E. coli, staphylococcus aureus, and fungi that can cause skin diseases.

5. Protect you from cancer

One of the ingredients in the benefits of ginger that plays a role in preventing cancer is gingerol, a phytonutrient in ginger which also gives ginger its unique taste. Gingerol can prevent the growth of colon cancer cells. The University of Minnesota conducted experiments on a group of mice, in the group given gingerol there were 4 mice that had colon tumors, while in the group that were not given gingerol there were 13 mice that had tumor growth. Until the 49th day of the study, all mice that were not given gingerol were finally injected to death because the tumor growth was too large, while the mice given gingerol had half the size of the mice that were injected with death.

The same researchers then tested whether apart from preventing tumor formation, gingerol could also prevent the spread and reduce the severity of tumor cells. The research gave positive results. Gingerol is considered capable of preventing the spread and worsening of inoperable tumor cells.

6. Anti-inflammatory

Gingerol also has anti-inflammatory properties. This explains why those suffering from joint diseases such as osteoarthritis and rheumatism report less pain after consuming ginger regularly. Consuming ginger not only relieves pain but also reduces swelling of the affected area. Ginger is thought to inhibit components that play a role in the inflammatory process in the body, such as cytokines, chemokines, chondrocytes, and leukocytes.

Benefits of ginger for weight loss

In a study conducted by researchers from the Institute for Human Nutrition at Columbia University found that consuming hot ginger for your diet can make you feel fuller for longer. As a result, you are less likely to eat more later.

Not only that, this study also found that ginger can help suppress your appetite. This happens because ginger can increase the body's metabolic rate and calories burned.

Other studies have also found similar things about ginger

Meanwhile, a new study, published in the Annals of New York Academy of Sciences, examined more than 60 findings of previous research conducted on cell cultures, experimental animals and humans. Overall research says that ginger and the various compounds contained in it have beneficial effects on obesity, diabetes and heart disease.

Not only that, ginger has also been shown to be able to inhibit oxidative stress (a form of cellular aging), has anti-inflammatory properties, lowers cholesterol levels and blood pressure. In fact, ginger can reduce atherosclerosis, which is the buildup of harmful fats in the arteries.

In this study, it was explained how ginger spices play a role in fat burning, carbohydrate digestion, and insulin production. When fed to mice, ginger has been shown to significantly reduce body weight and systemic inflammation, lower cholesterol and blood sugar and protect the liver from the harmful effects of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.

Even so, until now researchers still do not understand about the proper formulation and dosage to get the clinical benefits of ginger for weight loss.

There are also types of red ginger that are no less useful

What is red ginger? Red ginger is a family of ginger, but has different characteristics from other ginger. Red ginger or Zingiber officinale var. rubrum has reddish skin with a pink to yellow interior, different from regular ginger. The size of red ginger is also smaller than usual ginger. Not only that, the content and taste are different. This type of ginger has a more bitter and spicy taste than usual ginger.

Red ginger is found growing in Southeast Asia, including Indonesia. Many people use ginger as a traditional medicine to cure various diseases. The abundant content of ginger, such as gingerol, flavonoids, antibacterial agents, anti-inflammatory agents, and others, can have a positive impact on health.

What are the health benefits of red ginger?

The high content of active ingredients in red ginger makes red ginger can provide health benefits for you. Some of the benefits of red ginger are:

1. Prevent digestive problems
Red ginger oil extract can protect your digestive system from bacteria, thus preventing you from digestive problems, such as stomach aches. The antibacterial agents present in ginger can fight bad bacteria, such as Escherichia coli, Salmonella enteriditis, and Staphylococcusaureus.

When added to food, ginger can be used as a natural preservative and can prevent you from bacterial food poisoning. Not only that, the warmth provided by ginger can also soothe your digestion. The warmth provided by ginger is also widely used to treat flu and colds.

2. Helps overcome muscle inflammation
Various ingredients in ginger can act as anti-inflammatory so that it can help you fight acute and chronic inflammation. Active components in ginger, such as gingerol, gingerdione, and zingeron can inhibit the enzymes cyclooxygenase and lipoxygenase. So that it can reduce leukotrienes and prostaglandins as triggers of inflammation. Red ginger also contains oleoresin which is higher than other ginger, where oleoresin can also work as an anti-inflammatory.

Several studies have also been conducted to prove the effects of ginger on inflammation. A study conducted on Sepak Takraw athletes proved that giving ginger extract for 10 days can reduce muscle pain in Sepak Takraw athletes. Other research published by the American College of Rheumatology has also proven that ginger extract can help reduce symptoms of osteoarthritis, such as muscle aches.

3. Helps increase male fertility
Ginger contains antioxidants and has androgenic activity. So, in several studies it was found that ginger can increase the amount of the hormone testosterone so that it can increase male fertility.

In a study conducted on mice, it was shown that giving ginger extract combined with the mineral zinc to male albino mice increased the hormone testosterone, sperm count, and sperm quality in mice. So, this can improve testicular function in mice. Even so, further research is still needed to strengthen these findings.

Add ginger to your diet

For those of you who are on a diet and cravings sweet foods, of course, you have to rack your brain to reduce the desire to eat sugar. Don't worry, you can replace the sugar in your diet with ginger.

By using ginger, your dish will have a strong aroma, slightly sweet taste, and slightly spicy. Use ginger in food by ground, grated, or grilled first before mixing it into cooking. Are you interested in adding ginger to a healthy diet for your diet? Here are a variety of ways you can try at home.

Drink ginger tea two to three times a day to help smoothen your digestive system.
Chew the ginger slices a few minutes before eating. If you don't like chewing ginger raw, alternatively you can mix a little grated ginger with lemon juice and salt. Then, eat a pinch of the mixture before eating. Apart from smoothing the digestive system, eating a small pinch of ginger mixture before eating can also lower your appetite so you don't overeat.
Drink two to three times a day of ginger juice mixed with honey to taste.
Add your food to this one spice as often as possible.

The benefits of ginger to increase metabolism can indeed help you lose weight, including fat in your body. However, regular exercise and paying attention to healthy food intake are the best ways to burn fat in order to lose weight.

How to make ginger drink for health?

To get the optimal benefits of ginger, you should choose fresh ginger. Common ways to make ginger water at home are as follows:

Grate 1.5 teaspoons of fresh ginger
Boil 4 cups of water
Add ginger to the water
Let the ginger soak for about 5-10 minutes
Strain the water to separate the grated ginger
Ginger water can be drunk both hot and cold.

If the taste is too strong, you can add a squeeze of lemon juice. The reason is, lemon is widely used as one of the natural ingredients for weight loss because it is believed to help increase the body's metabolism. The faster your metabolism works, the faster and more stored fat is burned.

In addition, lemon has natural diuretic properties that can help cleanse the intestines of leftover food that triggers constipation. Logically, the more hardened leftovers accumulate in the intestines, the more weight you gain.

Another theory is that lemons are a very low-calorie food source so they won't lead to weight gain, because their acidic properties help reduce hunger.

So it is with ginger. An article in the British Journal of Nutrition reports that ginger can control blood sugar and cholesterol levels, and burn fat, thereby helping reduce appetite. Dr. Len Kravitz in the Biological and Pharmaceutical Bulletin article states that ginger can suppress the production of the hormone cortisol.

Be aware of the side effects of drinking ginger water

Drinking ginger water to get the benefits of ginger is generally safe. However, when consumed in excess, ginger can cause stomach upset, flatulence feels hot, to heartburn and diarrhea. You are not recommended to consume more than 4 grams of ginger per day.

It is also feared that the consumption of ginger in any form will cause dangerous interactions if you are taking blood thinners. So if you are one of them, consult your doctor before drinking ginger water.

Likewise for pregnant women. Although drinking ginger water is not dangerous, let alone increase the risk of pregnancy complications, you should still consult your obstetrician before drinking ginger water while pregnant.