The Spice with Wonders: Dry Ginger and its Amazing Health Benefits

Dried ginger is nothing more than new ginger that has gone through a drying process. The fresh rhizomes are soaked overnight in water, after which a knife or a peeler is used to carefully remove the outer peel. They are washed again and then for around a week they are sun-dried on mats.

We all are aware of several health benefits of ginger and as well as that of ginger peels. What’s unknown is that the dried ginger which is used as an important spice in Indian cuisine has tremendous health benefits too.

Here are 7 such major health benefits of dried ginger which one should know about:

1. It helps in weight loss: By boosting digestion, which aids in burning accumulated fat and processing glucose in the blood, dried ginger promotes weight loss. It also speeds up metabolism and regulates fat consumption, due to its thermogenic properties. Another value of dry ginger is the ability to curb malnutrition and overeating.

2. Reduces cholesterol: Clinical evidence has found that dried ginger leads to lower levels of overall cholesterol and triglycerides. When participants ate about three grams of dry ginger powder a day, a 45-day long study reported substantial decreases in cholesterol markers.

3. Reduces menstruation pain: Traditionally, for various aches and pains, including menstrual pain, dried ginger has also been used for relief. A survey of 150 women demonstrated substantial change in menstrual pans when participants ingested 1 gram of dry ginger powder per day within the first 3 days of their periods.

4. Inflammation Inside: Dry ginger mixed with salt, especially with swollen joints and fingers, also tends to relieve inflammation in the body. It has also shown to provide recovery from injury-induced inflammation.

5. Helps in reducing nausea and illness in the morning: In pregnant women, dry ginger is also beneficial at reducing the effects of nausea and morning sickness. For those suffering from these effects, drinking even half a teaspoon of dry ginger powder combined with honey and warm water gives immediate relief.

6. Provides relief during Indigestion: Dry ginger frequently relieves chronic indigestion-induced pain and nausea in the stomach. It is said that a delay in emptying the stomach induces indigestion, and ginger has been seen to relieve this problem. A research of 24 healthy subjects found that the intake of one to two grams of dry ginger powder before a meal accelerated the stomach emptying by 50%.