ginger

see also:

• anti-emetics
• hyperemesis gravidarum

• ginger is the rhizome of Zingiber officinale) and is commonly used in foods and for motion sickness and as an antiemetic
• in Turkey and nearby regions, ginger has also been used to enhance milk production in women who had vaginal births however, its use as a galactagogue has not been well studied

• ginger is generally deemed safe up to 1g/day in pregnancy, however, it may cause increased bleeding and should be avoided if either:
  • labour
  • history of miscarriages
  • bleeding in pregnancy
  • bleeding disorders
• avoid ginger concentrates which may have potentially harmful contaminants
  • apparently due to this risk, the Finnish Food Authority has issued a recommendation against the use of products containing ginger concentrate or extract, ginger tea and food supplements containing ginger by pregnant and breastfeeding women, infants and toddlers, schoolchildren, elderly and individuals with weakened immunity ¹⁾
• there are very limited studies on the safety of ginger in pregnancy see:
  • UK 2021 draft paper on "The potential effects that ginger and ginger supplements may have during pregnancy and lactation"

• may affect bleeding via:
  • inhibition of eicosanoid biosynthesis
  • possible ginger-phenprocoumoun interaction causing higher INR in patients taking coumarin (eg. warfarin)
  • possible effect on platelet aggregation
• high intake levels may cause:
  • exacerbation of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and peptic ulcer disease (PUD)
  • exacerbation of gastro-oesophageal reflux
  • hypotension
    • possibly mediated through blockade of voltage-dependent calcium channels
• very large doses of 6 g are reported to possibly lead to gastric irritation and loss of protective gastric mucosa
• large doses in rats also seem to increase implantation failure, early pregnancy loss and increase testosterone levels in male offspring
  • it appears that ginger exposure could affect hormonal levels in animals thus interfering with reproduction, fertility and resulting in early embryonic loss
• there are no large, clear studies in humans on fetal effects or pregnancy outcomes - most studies are small with under 100 women.

• over 100 compounds have been identified:
  • most of them being terpenoids mainly sesquiterpenoids (α-zingiberene, β-sesquiphellandrene, β-bisabolene, α-farnesene, ar-curcumene (zingiberol) and smaller amounts of monoterpenoids (camphene, β-phellandrene, cineole, geraniol, curcumene, citral, terpineol, borneol)
  • the main organic acids found in ginger include included citric, malic, oxalic, succinic, and tartaric acids
• the ginger rhizome contains two main classes of constituents:
  • the essential oils responsible for the aroma
  • the main pungent principles:
    • gingerols make up 4-7.5% of the pungent principles eg. 6-gingerol, 8-gingerol, 10-gingerol
    • shogaols eg. 6-shogaol