Natural Healing: 8 Health benefits you didn’t know about ginger

Do you have friends that have extreme feels about the spice – either they hate it or love it? Either way, ginger is one of the healthiest spices on Earth. From being a common ingredient in the kitchen, to it being used in cosmetics, gingerol (main bioactive compound in ginger) has powerful anti-flammatory and antioxidant properties.

Here are 8 beneficial effects of ginger you would be happy to know:

TREATING NAUSEA

We’ve had our mothers breathing down our necks when we were younger to drink up a cup of hot ginger tea whenever we feel nauseous right? Usually, children do not like the strong taste of it but now that we’ve grown and accustomed ourselves to the taste – be sure to drink it often. From treating early morning sickness to relieving nausea and vomiting after surgery and post-chemo, 1-1.5 grams of ginger alone is enough to prevent nausea.

ASSISTING DIGESTION

If you’ve got stomach discomfort, sip slowly from a cup of hot ginger tea and you will feel better almost instantly. Ginger also appears to have sped up emptying of the stomach, which is helpful when you have indigestion or any related stomach discomforts.

REDUCING MENSTRUAL PAIN

The ladies would be thrilled to know this. Ginger has been known for its traditional medicinal uses in relieving pain, including mentrual pain. Do away with drugs like mefenamic acid and ibuprofen—and go for natural healing with ginger. Note: Take ginger during the start of your menstrual period for maximum effect.

LOWERING BLOOD SUGAR LEVELS

Though this area of research is relatively new, it turns out that ginger has been shown to lower blood sugar levels and improve heart disease risk factors in people suffering from type 2 diabetes.

LOWERING CHOLESTEROL LEVELS

Increased risk of heart disease can be linked to high levels of lipoproteins LDL (bad cholesterol). Well, the food we consume has a direct effect on the LDL levels. There are evidences of how ginger can lead to reductions in LDL cholesterol and blood triglyceride levels.

PREVENTING CANCER

Anti-cancer properties can be found in a substance called 6- gingerol, in a raw ginger. Though more research could be done, evidence has it that ginger may have protective effects against some types of cancer, including pancreatic cancer, breast cancer and ovarian cancer.

  IMPROVING BRAIN FUNCTION

Aging can be scary, both mentally and physically. It is believed that ginger can enhance brain function including improved reaction time and working memory. Ginger extract has protective properties against age-related damage to the brain.

FIGHTING INFECTIONS

The ginger extract can stop the growth of many forms of bacteria that includes preventing gum diseases. Fresh ginger may also be effective against respiratory infections.

After knowing this, we figured it’s time to hit the market and keep a chockful of raw ginger or ginger tea powder at your house and office.

 Sharon Salim