Herbal Ginger, the Potential Dietary Antioxidant, Scientists Find

By Kyle J. Norton


Antioxidants are stable atoms which inhibit oxidation. Antioxidants in our body are either produced by the host or dietary intake.

The aim of antioxidants is to balance the levels of free radicals. Free radicals are highly unstable atoms with an unpaired electron in the outermost ring. Therefore, in order for them to become stable, free radical is ready to donate or intercept an electron from another atom, leading a chain reaction that can not be stopped until all electrons in the outermost ring are paired or inhibited by antioxidants.

This chain of domino's effect can lead to overexpression of free radicals or oxidative stress, the major cause of proteins, lipid and cells damage in the initiation of several chronic ailments, such as cancers.

Free radicals can be generated from the air we breathe, the foods we eat. In other words, any chemicals containing oxygen atoms can cause the development of free radicals.

Internally, free radicals are produced by cells metabolism in the generation of energy for body needs.

In a healthy individual, free radical is always balanced by the antioxidants enzymes produced by the host and dietary antioxidants.

In an aging population, decreased the production of antioxidant enzymes accompanied with the weakened of the immune system is worrisome, as overexpression free radical can cause a buildup of damaged proteins and other molecules that can be toxic to cells.

Therefore, change of lifestyle by eating healthy foods with high antioxidants and moderate exercise may be necessary for the elderly to reduce the negative effect of free radicals overexpression.

Ginger (Zingiber officinale) or ginger root, the second superfood used for thousands of years by mankind, is the genus Zingiber, belonging to the family Zingiberaceae, native to Tamil.

The root has been used in traditional and Chinese medicine for the treatment of dyspepsia, gastroparesis, constipation, edema, difficult urination, colic, etc.

Researchers in the concern of abnormal metabolism that leads to the increase of reactive oxygen species (ROS) production in the initiation of cancer examined the ginger antioxidant activity.

The study included 2 types of kombucha tea with or without ginger administered to BALB/c mice before and after inducing breast tumor.

Administration of kombucha ginger tea showed a significantly decreased catalase activity which has been found to induce production of free radicals and the levels of antioxidant produced by the tumor.

Markerly, the kombucha ginger tea also decreased Malondialdehyde (MDA) level in tumor homogenate.

The results suggested that ginger inhibited tumor cell expression through antioxidant effects.

Dr. said, " The consumption of kombucha prepared from ginger could exert minor antioxidant impacts by balancing multi-antioxidant factors in different tissues in the breast cancer models".

In order to reveal additional information about the ginger antioxidant activity, researchers examined a ginger extract (GE) against lipid oxidation.

GE and the constituent components showed to exhibit antioxidant properties associated with their hydroxyl groups and suitable solubilizing side chains.

Interestingly, 6-Shogaol and 10-gingerol exhibited higher antioxidant activity at 60°C compared to 6-gingerol and 8-gingerol.

Overall, GE displayed the strongest dose-dependent antioxidant properties, especially at high temperatures, compared to its constituents.

Taken altogether, ginger may be considered a functional remedy for the prevention and treatment of diseases associated with oxidative stress, pending to the confirmation of larger sample size and multicenter human study.

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Author Biography
Kyle J. Norton (Scholar, Master of Nutrition, All right reserved)
Health article writer and researcher; Over 10.000 articles and research papers have been written and published online, including worldwide health, ezine articles, article base, health blogs, self-growth, best before it's news, the karate GB daily, etc.,.
Named TOP 50 MEDICAL ESSAYS FOR ARTISTS & AUTHORS TO READ by Disilgold.com Named 50 of the best health Tweeters Canada - Huffington Post
Nominated for shorty award over last 4 years
Some articles have been used as references in medical research, such as international journal Pharma and Bioscience, ISSN 0975-6299.

References
(1) Evaluation of the antioxidant impact of ginger-based kombucha on the murine breast cancer model by Salafzoon S1, Mahmoodzadeh Hosseini H2, Halabian R2. (PubMed)
(2) Antioxidant activities of ginger extract and its constituents toward lipids by Si W1, Chen YP2, Zhang J3, Chen ZY4, Chung HY. (PubMed)