Ginger Gingerol

About Ginger Gingerol

Ginger, Zingiber officinale, is a flowering plant whose rhizome is used as a spice and in folk medicine; it originated in Maritime Southeast Asia and has been cultivated for thousands of years. The pungency of fresh ginger comes mainly from gingerols, which on drying or heating are converted into the more pungent shogaols and on cooking can break down into the milder zingerone. Ginger is among the most studied natural remedies for nausea, and clinical trials have examined it for nausea and vomiting of pregnancy, motion sickness, and nausea after surgery or chemotherapy, with generally supportive evidence of variable quality. Proposed mechanisms include antagonism of serotonin 5 HT3 receptors. In laboratory studies ginger compounds inhibit COX and lipoxygenase enzymes, and trials have explored ginger for osteoarthritis pain, menstrual pain and blood glucose, with modest and mixed results. Side effects can include heartburn and digestive upset, and ginger has antiplatelet activity that may add to the effect of anticoagulant medicines, though the clinical significance is uncertain.