There is a popular saying, "ginger cures all illnesses." This is because ginger contains oily volatile oils such as gingerol, zingiberene, phellandrene, and citral, as well as gingerol, resin, starch, and fiber.
Therefore, ginger has effects such as invigorating the spirit, promoting perspiration, and lowering body temperature in hot weather. It can alleviate symptoms like fatigue, listlessness, loss of appetite, insomnia, abdominal bloating, and abdominal pain. Ginger also has the effect of strengthening the stomach and increasing appetite.
In hot weather, the secretion of saliva and gastric juice decreases, which affects a person's appetite. If you eat a few slices of ginger with your meal, it can increase your appetite.
There are many ways to eat ginger, such as drinking ginger soup, eating congee with ginger, adding shredded ginger when heating oil for stir-frying, adding ginger slices when stewing meat or pan-frying fish, and adding minced ginger when making dumplings or wonton filling. This not only makes the food more delicious but also helps to awaken the stomach and spleen, refresh the mind, promote appetite, aid digestion, and help the gastrointestinal tract absorb nutrients.
However, since ginger has pharmacological effects, some of its uses and contraindications should be noted. The following points should be paid attention to:
● 1. Do not peel the skin
Some people like to peel ginger when they eat it, but doing so prevents ginger from exerting its full effects. Fresh ginger should be washed before being sliced or shredded.
● 2. Those with yin deficiency and excessive internal heat, or suffering from carbuncles, sores, pneumonia, lung abscess, tuberculosis, stomach ulcers, cholecystitis, pyelonephritis, diabetes, or hemorrhoids should not consume ginger long-term.
● 3. From a therapeutic perspective, ginger brown sugar water is only suitable for patients with colds due to wind-cold or for those with a cold stomach and fever after being caught in the rain. It should not be used for summer heat colds or wind-heat colds, nor for treating heatstroke.
Fresh ginger juice can be used to treat vomiting caused by cold exposure, but it is not suitable for other types of vomiting.
● 4. Do not eat rotten ginger
Rotten ginger produces a highly toxic substance that can cause degeneration and necrosis of liver cells, inducing liver cancer, esophageal cancer, and others. The saying that "rotten ginger doesn't lose its flavor" is unscientific.
● 5. Eating ginger is not always better
In the hot summer weather, people are prone to dry mouth, irritability, thirst, sore throat, and excessive sweating. Ginger is pungent and warm in nature and belongs to the category of "hot" foods. According to the principle of "treating heat with cold," it should not be eaten in excess. A few slices of ginger in cooking or soup are sufficient.