Used in cooking and herbal medicine around the world, ginger is the rhizome (underground stem) of Zingiber officinale, which grows in warm climates. It contains many interesting compounds.
The best known of these are called gingerols, which produce the hot sensation in your mouth, as well as the pungent flavor and aroma. Fresh or powdered, pickled or candied, ginger adds a unique zest to any dish.
Like many herbs and plant-derived foods, ginger
does great things in the lab (in animals or isolated human cells), but its
proven medicinal effects, in real life, remain limited. Studies usually use
ginger extracts, which can vary in their chemical composition.
Some
findings:
Ginger may have anti-cancer properties. For instance, a lab study from the University of Michigan, published in BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine back in 2007, found that ginger keeps ovarian cancer cells at bay—in a test tube. Similarly, at 2013 lab study in Nutrition and Cancer found that compounds in ginger extract may inhibit the proliferation of prostate cancer cells. Other studies suggest that ginger may have beneficial effects on breast cancer and colon cancer cells. This is a long way from saying that ginger can prevent or treat cancer in humans, however.
Ginger may have anti-cancer properties. For instance, a lab study from the University of Michigan, published in BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine back in 2007, found that ginger keeps ovarian cancer cells at bay—in a test tube. Similarly, at 2013 lab study in Nutrition and Cancer found that compounds in ginger extract may inhibit the proliferation of prostate cancer cells. Other studies suggest that ginger may have beneficial effects on breast cancer and colon cancer cells. This is a long way from saying that ginger can prevent or treat cancer in humans, however.
