ginger

Image Source: Flickr – heymrleej

Many mothers and natural healthcare providers have long known the benefits of ginger. It is now catching on in popularity with more of the population at large using ginger as a medicinal herb.  Here are some of the benefits:

  • Reduces and/or stops nausea.
  • Helps with digestive problems.
  • Improves circulation.
  • Reduces the pain and symptoms associated with osteoarthritis.
  • For expectant mothers, ginger is beneficial in countering the nausea.
  • Ginger has the ability to relax and calm young women experiencing stomach cramps brought on during menses.
  • Ginger oil may be added and mixed with a lubricate such as a neutral base massage oil, lotion or cream and then used in the application of massage therapy.

Some of ginger’s therapeutic properties include:

  • Reducing and relieving pain associated with arthritis.  The pain arises largely in part due to the inflammation which ginger oil helps to counter, thus reducing the painful symptoms.
  • Ginger acts as a herbal decongestant and antihistamine. As such, it may help in diminishing the symptoms of several seasonal type ailments such as flu, colds, allergies and respiratory congestion.

More positive effects include:

  • Support of a healthy cardiovascular system.
  • Improvement of circulation may be witnessed.
  • Similar to red wine, ginger brings about an effect causing the blood platelets to be less sticky which may result in a decrease in circulatory problems.

The video below from Kevin Rose, the founder of Digg and tea enthusiast, provides a simple recipe for making fresh ginger tea.

Ingredients: water, fresh ginger, honey

Even with the numerous beneficial effects of ginger, there still remains a need for additional research to further discover the great potential of this multifaceted herb.