Posts Tagged ‘digestion’
By Kathleen Roberts
Ginger is probably best known for its uses in cooking and baking, adding a sweet yet spicy note to foods. But did you know, ginger is much more than just a versatile kitchen spice? Aside from its culinary attributes, ginger also possesses various health benefits that make it even more valuable to have in your pantry.
What Can Ginger Do for You?
According to the University of Maryland Medical Center, ginger has been shown to possess a myriad of health benefits. It is helpful for both motion sickness and morning sickness. It is even helpful in treating nausea and vomiting after chemotherapy or surgery.
Ginger is also a natural anti-inflammatory and has proven useful in the treatment of osteoarthritis. If you have pain related to inflammation, you may find that ginger helps you feel better.
There are also studies that show ginger to have promise in treating high cholesterol, heart disease and even cancer, though more research is still needed.
Using Ginger
Ginger can easily be found where you buy your kitchen herbs and spices. You can get it in either powdered or crystallized form. If you suffer from motion sickness, try keeping a bottle of crystallized ginger in your car to help easy your nausea. You may find the candy-like spicy-sweetness addictive!
Ginger can also be purchased fresh, to be peeled and used as needed in your meals. It can be grated or sliced for use in stir-fry, soups and various other dishes. Fresh ginger root should not look shriveled or dirty. It should always be firm and plump. Store it the way you store your onions or garlic, in an open container on the counter. You can also peel it, wrap it and put it in the freezer if you don’t think you can use the entire root before it goes bad.
Ginger tea is a wonderfully warming drink that helps ease aches and pains as well as aiding in digestion. There are many varieties of ginger tea on the market, so feel free to experiment and find which one you like best. You can also thinly slice fresh ginger into a pan of water and simmer for 20 minutes. Try adding cinnamon and honey for a tasty treat.
Finally, you can purchase ginger in capsule form. This is a great alternative if you want the benefits of ginger but don’t especially enjoy the flavor. Whichever way you choose to use it, ginger is a must-have in any kitchen!
OTHER ARTICLES
Detoxify Your Liver with Sassafras, the Main Ingredient in Root Beer
A Cup A Day – The Benefits of Drinking Tea
REFERENCES
- Ginger – http://www.umm.edu/altmed/articles/ginger-000246.htm.
- Effects of ginger capsules on pregnancy, nausea, and vomiting – http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1925000.
- 6-Shogaol, an active constituent of ginger, inhibits breast cancer cell invasion by reducing matrix metalloproteinase-9 expression via blockade of nuclear factor-κB activation – http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20718733.
- Anti-inflammatory effects of [6]-shogaol: potential roles of HDAC inhibition and HSP70 induction – http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21864631.
- Using Fresh and ground Ginger – http://oldfashionedliving.com/ginger.html.
“Death Dwells in the Bowel”
This somber household saying from ancient Europe warns of the dangers of faulty digestion; but even today, many health experts give credit to this statement. Perhaps a more optimistic way to get the point across would be “Life Begins in the Digestive System”…
Around 80 percent of Americans have digestive disorders of one form or another, such as gastric/duodenal ulcers, colitis, diverticulitis, GERD/acid reflux, gastritis, bloating, Celiac Disease, constipation, diarrhea, Crohn’s Disease, dyspepsia, and indigestion. These health problems are very challenging. With an ailing digestive system you are unable to properly digest and absorb vital nutrients, even if you eat the healthiest foods. When you have a digestive disorder, your overall health and well-being become challenged as well.
Digestion 101
Digestion starts in your mouth, where saliva and enzymes prepare food to enter your stomach. Your taste buds are also involved in this process, not only telling you if the food you’re eating tastes good or bad, but also sending messages to your stomach about which enzymes to activate. When the chewed food enters your stomach, the proper enzymes are ready and waiting to further break down the food. Cooking raw foods destroys their enzymes; when this happens, your body has to “steal” enzymes from elsewhere in your system to help process your meals. Most people could probably use a few supplemental enzymes, but after age 40, it’s especially important to begin helping your digestion by taking enzymes and eating more ‘live’ or raw foods and herbs with meals.
Combining Foods for Optimum Digestion
If you eat different kinds of foods in one sitting, they must all be broken down to the same consistency before your stomach will actually begin to empty. Fats and proteins take longer to digest than do carbohydrates. Simple fruits may take ten to twenty minutes, while meats might take forty-five to ninety minutes – depending on how well they are chewed. If fruit is eaten at the same time as meat, the fruit may have to stay an extra hour in your stomach waiting for the meat to digest. During this time, fermentation will begin to take place, introducing gas into your system and causing indigestion, belching, and/or cramps. Fruits are the easiest to digest and take the shortest amount of time. Next in line are vegetables, then grains, beans, seeds, nuts, dairy products, and at last, meat.
Tips for Healthy Digestion
- Chew your food well
- Eat in the middle of the day, because at this time the amount of hydrochloric acid available is at its peak.
- Avoid eating heavy meals before going to sleep.
- Get familiar with acid/alkaline balance. Alkaline-forming foods should make up 75 to 85 percent of your diet.
- Eat locally-grown foods to help avoid allergies.
- Combine your foods well: When you eat protein, eat it without starchy vegetables. Eat fruits alone; fruit may easily cause acidity problems if mixed with other foods. Sugar with any food easily causes fermentation.
