Ginger, which is found in the kitchen of nearly all Indian homes made news in the leading medical weekly of the world – The Lancet – published from England. It was stated in its August 14, 1993 issue that Zingiber officinale or ginger has a strong beneficial effect in treating nausea. One of the most powerful medicines used today for treating nausea is a drug called metoclopramide. Scientific studies carried out have now shown that 1 gram of ginger powder has the same beneficial effect as 10gram metaclopramide.
One of the uses of ginger could be in treating the mausea caused by drugs used for treating cancer. Ginger is also used in the post surgery treatment and in treating the sickness caused while travelling long distances. In fact ginger has been used for centuries as a simple and effective medicine against nausea and for treating other disturbances of the gastrointestinal tract in several countries of the world. Commonly the rhizomes of the plant are used. These are scraped, and dried in the sun and used. It has been used as a carminative in India to counteract nausea, indigestion and flatulence.
In China, according to the World Health Organisation publication Medicinal Plants in China, ginger is used for treating common cold, (vomiting and cough). It is also used to treat vomiting and diarrhoea. The standard book on Thai medicinal plants published in 1992 by Farnsworth and Nuntavan mentions several uses of the roots of the ginger. Ancient books dealing with Thai traditional medicine state that the roots of ginger are used to treat abdominal discomfort and dyspepsia caused by flatulence. After extensive experimental studies, scientists in Thailand claim that ginger also has an anticholesterol effect.
The powdered ginger root also had beneficial effect in reducing vertigo which is often linked with disturbances in the functioning of the apparatus in the ear – which again in responsible for ear sickness or air sickness. In addition, extensive studies documented the antiemetic or anti nausea effect of ginger. The Indonesian book How to Use Herbal Medicines by Doris Esche mentions clearly with pictures that the roots of ginger cure an upset stomach and increase appetite. Literature of four countries have been quoted – India, China, Thailand and Indonesia but, in fact, ginger has been and is being used to treat gastrointestinal disturbances in nearly all countries which have heritage in the use of traditional medicines.
Several interesting points of thought and discussion arise out of this small write-up. If ginger is so widely used in the treatment of nausea, would it be possible to use it in out allopathic hospitals as well for this condition? It could certainly be recommended as a home remedy for nausea. The scrapings from dried ginger could be powdered and taken or the scrapings could be chewed-the juice taken and to those prone to air sickness. Finally, the question that has been raised several times in the previous times in the previous chapters is asked again.
Are there many other substances like ginger in out traditional armamentarium, of drugs which could be used for
Treating simple conditions that are neglected today?
Something, perhaps, needs to be done to document, in a simple ways, ten to fifteen of such home remedies. These could then, if effective, be provided for use instead of powerful allopathic medicines. Incidentally The Lancet article states that metoclopramide has side effect while ginger reduces such side effects.
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