Ginger

One of my favorite spices that I have consumed for over a decade is ginger. Why? Because ginger soothes your digestive system, it helps to eliminate gas and cramps, is a excellent anti-inflammatory and can help with diseases like arthritis. Ginger is beneficial for your heart and circulatory system and is one of the best spices to sooth heartburn and curb nausea. The most convenient way to use ginger is in capsule form, best to take with at least 8 ounces of water! Ginger is delicious as a tea too and is most effective if eaten as a whole food. To make your own cup of tea boil about 2 Tablespoons of freshly chopped ginger root for about 5 to 10 minutes and add a little sweetening with stevia or honey. If you want to keep fresh ginger root at hand, take the roots, peel, chop in a blender and store in a plastic bag in the freezer, only takes 10 minutes or so to thaw.

FOR IMPROVED MENTAL HEALTH, studies have shown that consuming ginger produces excellent results in treating and preventing dementia. A study done in 2011 showed that when healthy middle-aged adults were given dried ginger supplements {400 and 800 mg daily for one month}, they showed improvements in working memory, reaction time, and attention. 1.

GINGER AND CANCER There was a clinical study done by Georgia State University that showed ginger extract induced growth of healthy cells and promoted the death amongst cancerous cells. 2.

ARTHRITIS is a debilitating disease so many suffer with and research shows us that consuming approximately 3000mg of dried ginger taken twice a day can make a difference in the lessening of arthritic joint pain and inflammation. 3.

1.Saenghong et al. Zingiber officinal Improves Cognitive Function of the Middle-Aged Healthy Women. Evid based Complementary Altern Medicine; 2012 383062

2.Karna P, et al. Benefits of Whole Ginger Extract n Prostate Cancer. US National Library of Medicine National Institute of Health. February 2012; 107(4):473-84

3.Arthritis foundation. Ginger for Arthritis. Publication date unavailable. Available at: http://arthritis.org/living-with-arthritis/treatments/natural/supplements-herbs/guide/ginger.php, accessed May 8, 2016