Health Benefits of Ginger: 7 Reasons This Wonder Spice is Great for Your Whole Body

June 28, 2018

Ginger is a potent spice that’s been used for many, many years in alternative medicine and food dishes. Not only is it delicious, it’s extremely healthy.

Ginger provides a dietary source of potassium, magnesium, phosphorus, vitamin C, and more. But besides the health benefits of ginger nutrition, it has other potent properties that make it a naturally medicinal plant food.

7 Proven Health Benefits of Ginger

Here are the top seven reasons to make ginger a more regular part of your life.

1. Effective for Nausea, Perhaps More than Some Medications

Ginger has long been used as a remedy for seasickness because of its effectiveness against nausea. Some evidence even shows it can work as well as some prescription medications [1]! That includes dimenhydrinate, which is also known as the anti-nausea drug Dramamine.

This also applies to motion sickness and nausea in pregnancy [2].

It helps reduce symptoms associated with nausea and motion sickness like vomiting and dizziness.

Note: If you are pregnant, speak with your doctor before using large amounts of ginger.

2. Raw Ginger May Have Anti-Cancer Properties

Ginger contains 6-gingerol and 6-paradol, two pungent substances contained in high amounts in raw ginger. Lab studies on various experimental models have shown ginger-derived compounds like gingerol and paradol may have inhibitory effects on various types of cancer cells [3,4].

Gingerol specifically has been shown to have anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and anti-tumor promoting characterics [5].

Gingerol is also what gives ginger it’s strong flavor!

More research is needed to confirm effective uses of ginger against various forms of cancer, but what we know so far shows promise. That includes applications against pancreatic, prostate, and ovarian cancers [6,7,8].

3. Ginger Has Anti-Inflammatory Bioactive Compounds and Antioxidants

We know that chronic levels of inflammation and oxidative stress can contribute to faster aging.

This includes aging-related cognitive decline.

Some animal studies have suggested ginger’s bioactive compounds and antioxidants may inhibit inflammatory brain responses [9,10,11].

A study published in Evidence Based Complement Alternative Medicine in 2012 looked at the effect of ginger extract on 60 middle-aged women. The researchers found the ginger enhanced working memory, reaction time, and attention, commonly reported problems in this population, without any reported side effects [12].

4. Gingerol Can Help Buffer Infections and More

The gingerol in ginger has also been shown to help lower infection risk. It also has powerful anti-fungal properties.

Ginger may even prevent bacterial growth and provide anti-bacterial activity against multi-drug clinical pathogens [13].

For these reasons, ginger has been used as an alternative remedy for infections, including the common cold and respiratory and oral infections [14,15].

5. Ginger May Influence Cholesterol Levels and Heart Health

As you’ll know from reading the Keto Zone diet book, what we eat has a huge influence on our health, including heart hearth.

There is some evidence that ginger may have a positive effect on high cholesterol levels:

A 45-day double blind controlled clinical trial study on 45 patients with high cholesterol found ginger had a significant lipid lowering effect compared with a placebo [16].
Another study on rats found ginger extract lowered LDL cholesterol in a similar way to a statin drug [17].

6. May Ease Muscle and Menstrual Pain as Effectively as Drugs

The anti-inflammatory health benefits of ginger go even further!

Ginger may be helpful for pain relief, including exercise-induced muscle pain, joint-related pain, and menstrual pain [18,19,20].

In one study, 150 students with painful menstruation took one gram of ginger powder per day for the first three days of their period. Ginger was found to be as effective as ibuprofen in relieving menstrual pain [21].

7. Acts as a Superfood Along with Turmeric

Ginger is a close plant cousin of turmeric, as they’re both in the Zingiberaceae family. Like ginger, turmeric has many medicinal properties that make it popular in alternative medicine.

When ginger is combined with turmeric, the benefits of both greatly increase!

To fully experience the health benefits of ginger, use this incredible spice in cooking, ginger teas, and other naturally remedies.

Try some of our meal recipes using ginger:

Drinks with Ginger

Meal Recipes with Ginger

Healthy Desserts with Ginger

We use ginger (as well as turmeric and other potent plant compounds) in our Protein Supremefood, a clean, keto-friendly plant protein powder!

Protein Supremefood is non-GMO, gluten free, soy free, USDA-certified organic based, and contains 100% of the essential amino acids. It’s a great addition to the Keto Zone diet or any healthy lifestyle.

Learn more about Protein Supremefood here.

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