Ginger Helps to Improve Circulation

Ginger Helps to Improve Circulation

30 November, 2009

Digestive Health, Food & Diet Therapy, Women's Health

Most people know of ginger as being a very important ingredient in our kitchens, however many people don’t know that ginger also is very helpful in our general health and in balancing our bodies yin and yang.

1) Ginger helps the body in dispelling the cold. Chinese medicine considers ginger as being a mild sweet spice, and having warm characteristics. Due to this it’s function is to help warm the bodies circulation and remove the cold from the body. Ginger is suitable for people who suffer from cold hands and feet, loose stool, and those who have stomach pain after eating cold things. Especially in the winter, eating a little amount of ginger with your food is good for raising your qi and yang energy.

2) Ginger has the function in improving the intestine contraction. One ancient books called <‘Be Cao Jin Ji Zhu’> records ginger as ‘helping digestions, to strengthen the spleen and stop vomiting and nausea, also warm the stomach and to stop the stomach spasming from the coldness.’

Thus chinese medicine considers that people who overeat cold foods or raw foods, it is best to have ginger and the same time, as it will help your digestion and to avoid stomach pain and bloating from the coldness.

3) Ginger also one of the Chinese herbs which can calm down and relax the stomach which will stop nausea. Such as using ginger tablets for sea sickness.

4) Ginger is also beneficial in helping the lower abdomen and is suitable for women who have period pain, those who have symptoms of dark bleeding, blot clots, stomach pain, and cold sensation.

How to eat ginger:

Chop ginger and add to your soup or stir fry, and even into your porridge to balance your food and balance your body.

A cup of ginger tea.

Also you can use ginger drinks, half a teaspoon of ginger chopped finely, and placed it a cup of boiling water. It is a great drink, to drink when you are cold. If you like, add a teaspoon of brown sugar will be better for taste and circulation. ( If you have diabetes, it is best to avoid the added sugar.)

Precautions:

Because ginger has warm characteristics, if your body constitution is hot or yin deficient, with symptoms of constipation, dry skin,very thirsty, red face and eyes, and lots of perspiration it is best to avoid or reduce the amounts of ginger you eat.

People who have high blood pressure, or hyperactivity of the thyroid, or menopause it is also best to avoid or reduce the amounts of ginger you eat.

Ginger is very good for certain type of people, if you are unsure if it is suitable for you please visit an experienced practitioner to find out.Most people know of ginger as being a very important ingredient in our kitchen, however many people do not know that ginger is very helpful for our general health, circulation and in balancing our body’s yin and yang.

Most people know of ginger as being a very important ingredient in our kitchen, however many people do not know that ginger is very helpful for our general health and circulation.

Causes of cold hands and feet

There are many causes that result in cold hands and feet. Anxiety, stress and excessive sweating can lead to acute cold extremities. In my clinic, the most common case of cold hands and feet is due to Spleen Yang Deficiency syndrome.

Chinese medicine considers Spleen Yang to help spread circulation to the limbs, hence those with Spleen Qi and Blood Deficiency will have decreased circulation to these areas and possibly have cold hands and feet or even pain.

Symptoms of cold limbs

Most cold hands and feet are due to Spleen Yang Deficiency as we mentioned above and may also be associated with the following symptoms:

Lack of energy
Puffy and heavy legs and arms
Puffy eyes and face
Bloating after eating
Sluggish bowel movements or loose stools
Sensitivity to cold environments or foods
Some may experience under-reactive thyroid (hypothyroidism), overweight or difficulty to lose weight

Health Effects of Ginger

The following are health benefits of ginger known to traditional Chinese medicine diet therapy.

Ginger can improve circulation

Ginger helps the body to dispel cold. Chinese medicine considers ginger as being a mild sweet spice, and having warm characteristics which help to improve the Spleen and digestive systems to raise Spleen Qi and Yang. This can therefore warm the limbs by improving circulation to the extremities. Ginger is suitable for people who suffer from the symptoms above. Especially in the winter, eating a little amount of ginger with your food is good for raising your Qi and Yang energy.

I suggest that you can drink ginger tea or spring onion and ginger porridge, especially in the winter. Please see the recipes below.

Ginger can regulate digestion and reduce nausea

A traditional chinese medicine text Ben Cao Jin Ji Zhu states ginger as ‘helping digestion, to strengthen the Spleen and stop vomiting and nausea, also warm the stomach and to stop the stomach spasming from the coldness.’ Many pregnant women suffer from nausea in the early stage of pregnancy, and drinking ginger tea can help to calm down your stomach.

Many people also suffer from motion sickness, ranging from airplane, cars and boats. I remember a few years ago I went to Cairns and spent a day on the boat and suffered from sea sickness. A few minutes after taking ginger tablets my symptoms subsided. It is suggested by many people to take ginger to overcome this feeling. Ginger is also known to calm down and relax the stomach which will stop nausea.

Ginger and Period Pain

Ginger is also beneficial in helping circulation of the lower abdomen and is suitable for women who have period pain, dark bleeding, blot clots, stomach pain, and aversion to cold. I suggest you can drink ginger and brown sugar tea. This tea is very popular in cold areas in China for period pain.

Recipes

Ginger and spring onion porridge

This is a very traditional porridge, cooked at home and also available for dim sum or yum cha.

Small handful of rice (if you like oats, you may use these instead)
2 cups of water
2cm Piece of ginger chopped very fine
2tblsp Spring onion

Boil the rice and water until the rice is soft. Add the ginger and spring onion and cook for another minute. You can add soya sauce to taste.

Effects: Tonifying digestion and warms the circulation.

Ginger and brown sugar tea

Chop two teaspoons of ginger into small pieces
Add one tablespoon of brown sugar
Add boiling water

Slowly drink the tea while it is warm.

Effects: The tea will result in a warm abdomen area to improve circulation, clears blood clots and reduces period pain.

Ginger and lemon tea

Chop two teaspoons of ginger into small pieces
1 slice of lemon
1 cup of boiling water

Add the ginger and lemon to a cup and add boiled water. Wait for 2 or 3 minutes and you can drink the tea.

Effects: Helps to reduce nausea and regulate the stomach.

Precautions

Because ginger has warm characteristics, if your body constitution is hot or yin deficient, with symptoms of constipation, dry skin, thirst, red face and eyes, and excessive sweating it is best to avoid or reduce the amounts of ginger you eat.

For people who have high blood pressure, or hyperactivity of the thyroid (hyperthyroidism), elevated pulse rate, or suffer from menopause, it is also best to avoid or reduce the amounts of ginger you eat.

Ginger is very good for certain body types, if you are unsure if it is suitable for you please ask your Chinese medicine practitioner for more advice.

Food as medicine (A disclaimer)

Our “food as medicine” articles share knowledge about health foods in the context of traditional Chinese medicine diet therapy and practices often dating back thousands of years. We also support this knowledge with references to published scientific research. Please keep in mind that scientific research into the health benefits of foods is still emerging and human research is limited.

Consuming a wide variety of natural foods as part of a balanced diet is most beneficial for health, however, we don’t advise using food alone to treat diseases. Please consult with your doctor or health professional about which foods are suitable for your body or health issues.

What Does The Research Say?

The following insights are obtained from scientific studies, systematic reviews and analysis of clinical trials investigating the efficacy of Ginger.

2021 Cureus Journal of Medical Science

Based on beneficial effects and minimal side effects, ginger may be a potential adjunct treatment for primary dysmenorrhea.

This review has shown that ginger can minimize pain in one or two periods. The present analysis provides compelling proof of the impact of ginger on relieving menstrual pain.

The finding in this study has verified the possibility of ginger efficacy in the treatment of primary dysmenorrhea, though no/small side effects have been identified and its use is associated with health benefits. Ginger is easily accessible due to its low cost. It can also be commonly used in the treatment of primary dysmenorrhea. The use of ginger is very useful and effective as NSAIDs because of the increasing trend in the use of traditional medicine and herbal medicine, particularly for people who do not want to use chemical drugs with more side effects. We strongly recommend that further research be performed with a greater number of patients regarding the effectiveness and protection of various doses of ginger.

Efficacy of Ginger in the Treatment of Primary Dysmenorrhea: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis Rizu Negi, Suresh K. Sharma, Rakhi Gaur, Anupama Bahadur, Prasuna Jelly

2021 Cureus Journal of Medical Science

A systematic analysis indicates that ginger has a higher safety profile than NSAIDs for pain relief, with a smaller number of gastric side effects and fewer kidney risks.

The use of ginger is very useful and effective as NSAIDs because of the increasing trend in the use of traditional medicine and herbal medicine, particularly for people who do not want to use chemical drugs with more side effects.

Efficacy of Ginger in the Treatment of Primary Dysmenorrhea: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis Rizu Negi, Suresh K. Sharma, Rakhi Gaur, Anupama Bahadur, Prasuna Jelly

2020 Nutrients

Ginger has been effective in a majority of studies, including those that examined the alleviation of nausea and vomiting of pregnancy, digestive function, improvement in the expression level of markers for colorectal cancer risk, and anti-inflammatory functions.

Ginger is a natural spice that is used in diverse regions to add a pungent flavor to food. Furthermore, ginger has been used as an herbal medicine for common health problems. This systematic review is the first study that has exclusively collected RCTs regarding the efficiency of ginger in several human health conditions. The clinical effects of ginger have been introduced as six subsections: nausea and vomiting, gastrointestinal function, pain, inflammation, metabolic syndromes, and other symptoms. Reportedly, ginger has been effective in a majority of studies, including those that examined the alleviation of nausea and vomiting of pregnancy, digestive function, improvement in the expression level of markers for colorectal cancer risk, and anti-inflammatory functions. Several other functions have also been regarded as beneficial in trials, with some confronting results. However, a few drawbacks regarding the quality of the trials, inconsistent evaluation systems or parameters, and the generally small size of the studies need to be noted. Therefore, systematically designed research with detailed descriptions of methodology and a sufficient pool of participants is necessary for future clinical trials to address the functional characteristics of ginger.

Ginger on Human Health: A Comprehensive Systematic Review of 109 Randomized Controlled Trials Anh NH, Kim SJ, Long NP, Min JE, Yoon YC, Lee EG, Kim M, Kim TJ, Yang YY, Son EY, Yoon SJ, Diem NC, Kim HM, Kwon SW.

2019 Complementary Therapies in Medicine

Our study found ginger is a promising herbal medicine for health care, which is beneficial for nausea and vomiting, metabolic syndrome and pain.

In our overview, most of systematic reviews suggest ginger is a promising herbal medicine for health care, which is beneficial for nausea and vomiting, metabolic syndrome and pain. However, considering the limited quality of included evidence and heterogeneity of different clinical trials, more well-design studies are required to confirm the conclusion further.

Ginger for health care: An overview of systematic reviews Li H, Liu Y, Luo D, Ma Y, Zhang J, Li M, Yao L, Shi X, Liu X, Yang K.

2016 Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine

Oral ginger could be an effective treatment for menstrual pain in dysmenorrhea.

Ginger appeared more effective for reducing pain severity than placebo. The weighted mean difference on a 10â€‰cm visual analogue scale was 1.55â€‰cm (favoring ginger). No significant difference was found between ginger and mefenamic acid (an NSAID). The standardized mean difference was 0 (95% CI -0.40 to 0.41). Available data suggest that oral ginger could be an effective treatment for menstrual pain in dysmenorrhea. Findings, however, need to be interpreted with caution because of the small number of studies, poor methodological quality of the studies, and high heterogeneity across trials. The review highlights the need for future trials with high methodological quality.

Efficacy of Oral Ginger (Zingiber officinale) for Dysmenorrhea: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis Chen X. Chen, Bruce Barrett, Kristine L. Kwekkeboom,

2014 Nutrition Journal

Ginger could be considered a harmless and possibly effective alternative option for women suffering from nausea and vomiting during pregnancy.

This review suggests potential benefits of ginger in reducing nausea symptoms in pregnancy (bearing in mind the limited number of studies, variable outcome reporting and low quality of evidence). Ginger did not significantly affect vomiting episodes, nor pose a risk for side-effects or adverse events during pregnancy. Based on evidence from this systematic review, ginger could be considered a harmless and possibly effective alternative option for women suffering from nausea and vomiting during pregnancy.

A systematic review and meta-analysis of the effect and safety of ginger in the treatment of pregnancy-associated nausea and vomiting Viljoen, E., Visser, J., Koen, N. et al.

2011 Pain Medicine

Ginger can reduce the direct activation of type 3 and 4 afferent nerve fibers by substances such as bradykinin and sensitization of afferent fibers by prostaglandins and cytokines.

Due to a paucity of well-conducted trials, evidence of the efficacy of Z. officinale to treat pain remains insufficient. However, the available data provide tentative support for the anti-inflammatory role of Z. officinale constituents, which may reduce the subjective experience of pain in some conditions such as osteoarthritis. Further rigorous trials therefore seem to be warranted.

The Use of Ginger (Zingiber officinale) for the Treatment of Pain: A Systematic Review of Clinical Trials Rohini Terry, PhD, Paul Posadzki, PhD, Leala K. Watson, BSc (Hons), Edzard Ernst, MD, PhD

Scientific References

Browse our collection of scientific research on Ginger. It includes recent and reputable papers published by peer-reviewed journals within the last 10 years.

2021, Mar

Efficacy of Ginger in the Treatment of Primary Dysmenorrhea: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

Cureus Journal of Medical Science

Rizu Negi, Suresh K. Sharma, Rakhi Gaur, Anupama Bahadur, Prasuna Jelly Full Article

2020, Jan 6

Ginger on Human Health: A Comprehensive Systematic Review of 109 Randomized Controlled Trials

Nutrients

This study showcased that ginger has been effective in digestive function, improvement in the expression level of markers for colorectal cancer risk, and anti-inflammatory functions.

Anh NH, Kim SJ, Long NP, Min JE, Yoon YC, Lee EG, Kim M, Kim TJ, Yang YY, Son EY, Yoon SJ, Diem NC, Kim HM, Kwon SW. Full Article

2019, Aug

Ginger for health care: An overview of systematic reviews

Complementary Therapies in Medicine

This study concluded the high efficacy of ginger to reduce signs and symptoms of nausea and vomiting, decrease metabolic syndrome and alleviate pain.

Li H, Liu Y, Luo D, Ma Y, Zhang J, Li M, Yao L, Shi X, Liu X, Yang K. Full Article

Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine

2016, May 5

Efficacy of Oral Ginger (Zingiber officinale) for Dysmenorrhea: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine

The academic review highlights that ginger significantly reduced dysmenorrhea related pain such as gastrointestinal pain, heartburn and headaches.

Chen X. Chen, Bruce Barrett, Kristine L. Kwekkeboom, Full Article

2014, Mar 19

A systematic review and meta-analysis of the effect and safety of ginger in the treatment of pregnancy-associated nausea and vomiting

Nutrition Journal

The systematic reviewed academic articles highlight the efficacy of ginger for treating nausea in pregnant women. Ginger in low dosage of <1500 per day are found to have reduce effects of morning sickness or vomiting. Thus making it a safe treatment with less side effects for nausea symptoms in pregnancy.

Viljoen, E., Visser, J., Koen, N. et al. Full Article

2011, Dec 11

The Use of Ginger (Zingiber officinale) for the Treatment of Pain: A Systematic Review of Clinical Trials

Pain Medicine American Academy of Pain Medicine

The systematic review highlighted the efficacy of ginger to alleviate pain in osteoarthritis patients. Patients reported to have reduced symptoms and less side effects compared to drug-usage group. The study also indicated that ginger may have anti-prostaglandin effects similar to those of mefenamic acid found in ibuprofen.

Rohini Terry, PhD, Paul Posadzki, PhD, Leala K. Watson, BSc (Hons), Edzard Ernst, MD, PhD Full Article

By Nature, Chinese Medicine is Personalised Medicine

Although well-conducted clinical research can help members of the public to make better-informed decisions about their healthcare, we do not make any claims that any particular treatment may be efficacious for any individual person.

When you consult with our Chinese medicine practitioners, you'll receive personalised advice and treatment based on your symptoms and Chinese medicine diagnosis.

Your practitioner also takes into account your environmental and social living environment, work, lifestyle and diet, when giving you any advice relevant to your illness and treatment plan.

Sometimes your practitioner may recommend that you follow-up with certain medical checks, blood tests or scans. If you have any further questions, you are welcome to contact our clinic to book an appointment.

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Ginger Helps to Improve Circulation