GARLIC
GINGER
Garlic is a member of the lily family closely related to onions and leeks. Garlic has been cultivated for thousands of years for its therapeutic benefits by the ancient Egyptians, Greeks, Romans, Indians and Chinese. Primary use of Garlic was as a treatment for tumors, headaches, weakness and fatigue, wounds, sores and infections. It was regarded as a physically enhancing tonic, and was used by the first Olympic athletes as an energizer.
The scientific community has long respected Garlic as a plant possessing impressive therapeutic activity. Louis Pasteur first demonstrated Garlic's anti-bacterial properties in 1858, and later Albert Schweitzer used Garlic to treat amoebic dysentery. More recently, researchers have demonstrated that Garlic helps protect against heart disease and cancer, and possesses remarkable antibiotic effects. Garlic juice and its constituents can slow, or kill, more than sixty fungi and twenty types of bacteria, including some of the most virulent known to man.
Researchers really began studying Garlic after results of an epidemiological study were published about ten years ago. The long-term study compared three groups of vegetarians in India who:
1. Consumed little or no Garlic at all;
2. Consumed moderate amounts (10 grams per week) of Garlic, or;
3. Consumed large amounts (50 grams of Garlic per week).
The mean fasting cholesterol levels for those ingesting large amounts of Garlic was 159 mg/100 of serum. For those ingesting moderate amounts, the level was 172 mg/100 of serum, and those ingesting no Garlic serum cholesterol levels were 208 mg/100 of serum.
The diet of all three groups was virtually identical except for the difference in Garlic intake. Researchers also reported that those who abstained completely from Garlic and onions had blood that clotted more quickly than did those who consumed Garlic and onions.
In a another study, two sets of patients suffering with coronary-artery disease were enlisted in a ten-month study. One group got Garlic supplements while the other group did not. Those who received Garlic had steadily declining levels of lipoproteins associated with heart disease, while the group that didn't get Garlic showed no decline in these lipoproteins.
Researchers concluded: "The positive reports appear to be overwhelming. The reviewers were surprised by the scarcity of negative reports." Scientists also reviewed a variety of animal studies, many well controlled, in which Garlic clearly exhibited a statistically significant lowering effect on cholesterol. The effect in most studies was found to be "dose-related," meaning that the higher the daily dose of Garlic, the greater the reduction in cholesterol.
Various sulfur compounds contained in Garlic appear to account for this favorable effect on cardiovascular health. Some of these are known to have significant impact on the biosynthesis of fatty acids, cholesterol, triglycerides and phospholipids. Ajoene, a Garlic compound, has a potent anti-clotting effect and appears to be the crucial component in a number of Garlic's therapeutic actions.
Other compounds in Garlic have exhibited anti-tumor effects in animals. Epidemiologic studies in China show that eating a lot of Garlic can protect against stomach cancer. Those who ate an average of seven Garlic cloves a day had an incidence of gastric cancer ten times lower than those who rarely, if ever, ate Garlic. The Garlic, in this case, seemed to work, at least in part, by preventing dietary nitrites from converting to cancer-causing nitrosamines.
Animal cancer research with Garlic is impressive. Researchers recently proved that a Garlic compound, diallyl sulfide, given to mice prior to exposure to a colon-cancer-inducing agent, has a potent protective effect. The Garlic-treated animals got 75 percent fewer tumors than control animals not given Garlic. In a similar experiment, Garlic completely protected mice against esophageal cancer. In other animal research, sulfur compounds of Garlic have inhibited stomach and skin cancers.
These compounds seem to work by enabling the liver to detoxify cancer causing chemicals before they can do harm. Additionally, Garlic contains bioflavonoids and antioxidants, both known anti-carcinogens. Allicin is another of the active sulfur compounds in Garlic, and is the substance that gives garlic its antibiotic qualities.
There is one study which suggests that high doses of Garlic might also increase physical endurance. Researchers wanted to see if Garlic could protect heart muscles against a toxic drug. They injected rats with the heart-damaging drug isoproterenol. One group of these rats got Garlic in their diet for a week prior to the injection with the drug. Another group got the drug, too, but no Garlic. The Garlic-fed rats withstood the effects of the drug far better than the rats that didn't get Garlic. The Garlic-protected rats showed their greater physical endurance by swimming an average of 840 seconds before and 560 seconds after the drug injection. The rats that didn't get Garlic could swim only an average of 480 seconds before and only 78 seconds after injection. At autopsy, far fewer lesions were found in the heart muscles of the Garlic-supplemented rats than in the muscles of the control rats.
GINGER
Ginger is derived from the tuberous rhizome (underground root) of the perennial plant Zingiber officinale of the family Zingiberaceae. Also referred to as Jamaica Ginger, African Ginger, or Cochin Ginger, Ginger has been used as a spice, condiment and flavoring agent. For nearly 2,500 years, Ginger has also played an important role in Asian medicine as a folk remedy to promote cleansing of the body through perspiration, to calm nausea, and to stimulate the appetite. Ginger tea was also used as a carminative (agent which expels gas from the intestines) and in the symptomatic treatment of colds when given at their onset. It has been used in China and other countries for many years as a tonic.
Ginger Root is a time-proven remedy for upset stomach, indigestion, cramps, and to dispel chills. Ancient Indians used it to treat digestive problems and as a spiritual and physical cleanser. Circa 3000, B.C., the Chinese used it for colds, fever, chills, tetanus, and leprosy. Chinese sailors chewed on Ginger Root to combat seasickness. Chinese women drank ginger tea to alleviate the onset of the menstrual period and other female discomforts. The Chinese also considered Ginger Root to be an antidote to shellfish poisoning, explaining why it is found in so many seafood dishes. The Greeks, after a large meal, wrapped bread around a piece of ginger, and ate it to ease indigestion. This gave rise to ginger bread. In England, ginger was added to beer, forerunner to ginger ale, as a remedy for diarrhea, nausea, and vomiting. Ginger is also a circulatory stimulant, relaxes peripheral blood vessels, promotes sweating, eases cold symptoms, stimulates the flow of saliva, soothes a sore throat, and is an expectorant and antiseptic.
Ginger contains gingerol, a Ginger oleoresin (combination of volatile oils and resin) that accounts for the characteristic aroma of Ginger, and explain its therapeutic properties. Components of gingerol (zingiberone, bisabolene, camphene, geranial, linalool and borneol) have recently been studied and found to possess beneficial properties for the treatment of poor digestion, heartburn, vomiting and preventing motion sickness.
A report appearing in the English medical journal Lancet in 1982 concluded that powdered Ginger helped with motion sickness. Researchers conducted a double-blind study on 36 college students with a high susceptibility to motion sickness. Reporting on Ginger's ability to control motion sickness and alleviate nausea, they concluded that 940 mg. of powdered Ginger was superior to 100 mg. of dimenhydrinate in reducing symptoms when consumed 25 minutes prior to tests in a tilted rotating chair.
On the basis of this and other studies, German health authorities have concluded that Ginger, at an average daily dose level of 2 to 4 grams, is effective for preventing motion sickness, and is also useful as a digestive aid. Any anti-emetic effects of Ginger are due to its local action in the stomach, and not to any central nervous system activity.
Ginger is ordinarily taken in the form of capsules, each containing 250 to 500 mg. of powdered herb. It may also be consumed as a tea or in the form of candied Ginger that is readily available in Oriental food markets. There are no reports of severe toxicity in humans from eating Ginger, but recent pharmacological studies indicate that very large overdoses might carry the potential for causing depression of the central nervous system and cardiac atrhythmias. It is also a blood thinner so can cause bruising in overdose...especially if used with other herbs like garlic which also has a thinning effect on the blood.
Additionally, the whole Ginger plant has been found to cause liver damage in animals. It is interesting to note that an alcoholic beverage prepared from Jamaican Ginger, popular in some parts of the U.S. in the 1930s, caused a serious neuralgic problem called "the Jake Walk."
CAUTION: If suffering from gallstones, or if pregnant or nursing, consult a professional before taking large amounts of Ginger. The German Commission E monograph opposes use for morning sickness during pregnancy. Daily consumption of Ginger root may interfere with the absorption of dietary iron and fat-soluble vitamins, as well as tetracycline derivatives, oral anticholinergics, phenothiazines, digoxin, isoniazid, pheytoin, warfarin, lincomycin, digitalis, nalidixic acid, sulfonamides, and phenothiozines or other psychoactive agents which are poorly absorbed in the gastrointestinal tract. Ginger may mask the toxicity caused by aminoglycoside antibiotics such as neomycin. It may inhibit urinary excretion of alkaline drugs, such as amphetamines or quinidine.
Ginger contains protein, calcium, phosphorous, iron, sodium, potassium, and magnesium
