The Health Benefits of Ginger; with a Ginger Honey, Lemon Tea Recipe!

When you were a sick kid, did your mom give you ginger ale? If so, she was a wise woman. She knew how effective ginger is at correcting nausea and digestive irritation. But research has proven ginger can be effective in relieving inflammation and pain, reducing cholesterol levels and stabilizing the body’s sugar levels, too. These factors help with overall cardiovascular health and diabetes wellness. Your mom may have been giving you ginger to help your tummy, but maybe she knew it was just an all-around healthy spice.

Ginger is part of the Zingiberaceae family, as are the spices cardamom and turmeric, and is extensively researched for its medicinal properties. The oleoresin, oily resin, from the rhizomes, roots of ginger contains at least fourteen bioactive components: gingerol, paradol, shogaol, dehydro-gingerdione, hexahydrocurcumin, tetrahydrocurcumin, gingerenone, bis-hydroxyl-methoxyphenyl, and variations of each. The proportion of each individual component in a sample of ginger depends on country of origin, commercial processor, and whether the ginger is fresh, dried, or processed. Ginger has long been known to be helpful in aiding digestion and reducing nausea before research validated its effectiveness. But ginger also relieves cold and influenza symptoms, reduces pain and inflammation, and may even improve cardiovascular health.

Research has determined that the phenolic compounds in ginger are known to help relieve gastrointestinal irritation, stimulate saliva and bile production, and suppress gastric contractions as food and fluids move through the digestive tract. At the same time, ginger also appears to have beneficial effects on the enzymes trypsin and pancreatic lipase, and to increase motility through the digestive tract. This suggests ginger could help prevent colon cancer and reduce constipation.

Ingesting ginger is a common home remedy for motion and morning sickness, and because of its anti-nauseous capabilities, is now used during cancer treatments, as it squashes nausea. Additionally, a study involving seventy-four volunteers carried out at the University of Georgia found that daily ginger supplementation reduced exercise-induced muscle pain by twenty-five percent.

Ginger has been used for centuries to reduce inflammation and treat inflammatory conditions, such as osteoarthritis. Anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant compounds found in ginger that are beneficial to our health include gingerols, beta-carotene, capsaicin, caffeic acid, curcumin and salicylate. There’s a reason ginger has been used for millennium; it’s so much more than just tummy soother.

The root or underground stem (rhizome) of the ginger plant can be consumed fresh, powdered, dried as a spice, in oil form, or even as juice. It’s available fresh, dried, as ginger extract and ginger oil, and in tinctures, capsules, and even lozenges. Many produce departments in grocery stores may carry fresh ginger already cut and ready for use. But one of the best ways to enjoy ginger is infused in honey, and Bear Hug Honey Company has the best Ginger Infused Honey. Try this recipe:

Ingredients

• 4 cups water
• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup grated ginger root
• 3 tablespoons of loose-leaf tea or 3 tea bags
• 2 lemons, juiced
• 3 tablespoons Bear Hug Honey Company Ginger Honey

Directions

1. Stir water, brown sugar, and grated ginger root together in a saucepan; bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low, and cook at a simmer for 20 minutes.
2. Remove saucepan from heat and add tea bags; steep tea to desired strength, 3 to 5 minutes. Remove and discard tea bags.
3. Stir lemon juice and honey into the tea; strain into a pitcher.

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Ware RDN LD, Megan, Ginger: Health benefits and dietary tips, Monday 11 September 2017

https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/265990.php

edition, CRC Press, 2011

michellebelle61. “Honey-Lemon Ginger Tea,” https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/239811/honey-lemon-ginger-tea. Accessed 21 Sept. 2018