Benefits of Gingerol To Health & Wellbeing

Ginger has been used medicinally for at least 200 years, with more people than ever discovering the health benefits of its extracts, like gingerol. Ginger root has also been used as an immune system booster and with the recent spread of viral diseases, might be able to improve immunity. Extracts of ginger root contains various minerals that could have health benefits including magnesium and potassium.

Root extracts of ginger are classed as a spice, often used in cooking. Ginger root has a spicy taste and has become really popular as a result of the potential health benefits coming from ginger extracts.

Gingerol

One of the most abundant phenolic compounds in ginger roots is 6-gingerol. Gingerols are well known for their antioxidant, anti-tumor and anti-inflammatory abilities. Here we are referring to 6-gingerol. This polyphenol has specific -OH groups, which is how gingerol gets most of its effects within the body. Gingerol is thought to be responsible for most of ginger root extracts medicinal properties, including arthritis or joint inflammation.

Many regard gingerol as the major bioactive plant compound within ginger, which contains up to 60 constituent bioactive ingredients. Gingerol might be able to deter the growth of certain microbes too, this is how it may be able to provide an added immunity boost. Gingerol is not just linked chemically to capsaicin, one of the main spice molecules in chillies, but also piperine, found in black pepper.

We’ve discussed some health benefits of gingerol briefly before, as a potent antioxidant and immunity booster. Let’s look at gingerol in a little more detail and how it could be of benefit, or could have benefits to your health.

Anti-Microbial benefits of Gingerol

Gingerol has been seen to inhibit or supress viral replication, including respiratory viruses. Ginger is used in traditional medicines across the globe to treat influenza or flu viruses, including the common cold.

As the main bioactive compound within ginger root extract, gingerol has been studied and shown to inhibit certain flu virus activities, while also boosting specific T-immune cell responses to infections. This boost in specific T-immune cells is quite large and they are very important in managing immune responses to new infectious diseases. Ginger extracts also seem to have anti-bacteriophage action.

In terms of anti-bacterial activity, ginger root extracts are thought to be at least as strong as garlic extracts. These effects are again attributed to the polyphenol compounds within ginger root, such as gingerol. Ginger root extracts have been seen to be effective against pathogenic and also multi drug-resistant bacteria. Gingerol might have effects against cholera bacteria produced toxins and other toxins too, improving outcomes from diseases that cause diarrhoea symptoms.

The antioxidant effects of gingerol might be able to protect and enhance the immune response to infection, through conserving levels of key vitamins for the immune system. This includes vitamin C, which contributes to optimal immune system functioning. These plant compounds are known as immunomodulators.

Gingerol As Antioxidant

Extracts of ginger are well known as one of the most potent herbal antioxidants available. Gingerol is a polyphenol and a known antioxidant, being a very potent compound within in ginger extract. Antioxidants like gingerol will stand in the way of free radicals wanting to disrupt the cellular structures and DNA, potentially causing cancer events.

Key studies show that specific gingerol concentrations can dramatically reduce DNA strand breakage, demonstrating its effectiveness as an antioxidant. This polyphenol also seems to boost the levels of glutathione, a key antioxidant within the body, essential to maintaining optimal cell conditions. Gingerol has been extensively studied for antioxidant and free radical scavenging abilities and is proven to be a really good antioxidant against other molecules. This plant polyphenol has been touted as a natural replacement for synthetic food additives currently being used.

Gingerol has been shown to reduce overall oxidative stress within the body and possibly improve kidney functioning as a result of this activity. Another key study has presented the potential benefits of gingerol to the kidneys, through both urea and creatinine level regulation. These activities protect the optimal functioning of the kidneys.

Anti-Tumorigenic Benefits Of Gingerol

Antioxidants, like gingerol, are also really important for the prevention of cancers. Gingerol concentrates have also been targeted as a potential anti-cancer or anti-tumorigenic drug, which is in clinical trials.

Gingerol targets specific cascades of the cell signalling pathways responsible for tumors. As a mild apoptotic agent, gingerol can encourage malfunctioning cells to destruct. Essentially, gingerol can cause some cancer cells to stop growing and then die off. With breast cancer cells, gingerol has also been seen to prevent cancer metastasis. This is where cancer spreads within the body to other tissues.

The anti-tumorigenic effects observed with gingerol also extend to liver, pancreatic and gastrointestinal cancers. Gingerol has even been presented as a potential therapeutic drug for cervical cancer. It seems that gingerol could one day get official approval as an anti-cancer drug and may well be able to support cancer prevention. This would be a massive reason as to why gingerol could benefit anyone’s health.

Gingerol Benefits On Hyperglycemia

Hyperglycemia is a major contributing factor in the development of diabetes complications. This is where blood sugar levels become irregularly high and not well regulated. This happens in diabetics who experience issues with insulin levels, a hormone that is required to regulate the levels of sugar in the blood.

There are many health issues that can arise from consistently elevated blood glucose levels and gingerol has been shown to help potentially treat high blood glucose in some studies. Oxidative stress seems to be a key influencer on the progress of hyperglycemia. Clearly gingerols demonstrate antioxidant action, while also being shown to have a role in regulating intercellular glucose movement. Gingerol also improves the body’s use of glucose in muscle cells. This effect of lowering blood glucose also improves the dysfunction of the heart that happens in diabetics.

Ginger extract, containing gingerol but not concentrated, has been seen to be able to reduce weight gain and lowers glucose levels when consuming high fat diets. This is an understated potential health benefit of ginger root. Extracts of ginger root might be able to reduce weight and help to manage blood glucose levels.

Conclusion

Ginger root extract has been used for at least 200 year in traditional medicines. Root extracts can be quite spicy in taste. Gingerol is a polyphenolic compound with the highest bioactivity and abundance within ginger root extracts.

Gingerol might be responsible for most of the health benefits seen with ginger root extracts. Some of these include anti-microbial, antioxidant and anti-cancer abilities. Ginger root extracts, containing gingerol as the main active ingredient, might benefit one’s health through anti-viral action. With the spread of viral diseases recently, this might be a game changing potential health benefit for some people.

In relation to cancer prevention, gingerol concentrates seem to have an ability to stop both the spread and growth of cancer cells, while also activating cancer cell destruction. These are interesting insights that are being studied in more detail in relation to cancer treatments. Gingerol might be able to assist with cancer prevention, having potential health benefits through antioxidant activities and other properties.

Key studies have shown gingerol to be able to assist with the lowering of blood glucose levels and this might also help with weight loss. Gingerol seems to be able to help to improve glucose uptake and use by the muscles. This is another important and understated potential health benefit of gingerol from ginger root extracts.

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