Is Raw Ginger Safe to Eat?

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The short answer to your question is yes, you can eat raw ginger and it’s actually quite good for your health. It contains anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties, as well as various nutrients, which makes it a wonderful source for different treatments. In this blog post, we discuss everything you want to know about raw ginger, along with its benefits, and more.

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Is Raw Ginger Healthy?

Despite its strong taste, eating ginger is actually really good for you — ginger’s health benefits include cutting down constipation, bloating, gas, and fermentation around the gut. Ginger also has antioxidant properties, which help to reduce free radicals; compounds that damage our cells when their numbers grow out of control. However, ginger can do so much more for the human body, all of which are listed below.

Health Benefits of Ginger

Ginger’s health benefits cover a wide range of conditions and diseases, which is why eating raw ginger has become a popular solution to illnesses such as:

Vomiting and nausea: People who experience morning sickness and symptoms of nausea only need to eat raw ginger to alleviate these problems.
Flu: Ginger can prevent the spread of bacteria, and can be a helpful aid in reducing the risk of developing respiratory infections.
Indigestion: Those who have trouble with their upset stomach can rely on ginger to help push out content from the digestive tract which can also improve chronic indigestion.
Weight loss: Scientific research suggests that a lot of anti-inflammatory properties of ginger, along with its antioxidants can help fight obesity, and can aid with safe weight loss.
Menstrual pain: Women experiencing menstrual cramps can eat ginger to help ease their discomfort. Pain relief will be highly effective when ginger is eaten when their menstrual cycle begins.
Acid reflux: Ginger can prevent the production of too much acid in the stomach, and can bring relief to pain. You can also eat ginger if you’re experiencing heartburn.
High blood pressure: Ginger is known to lower blood pressure, acting as a natural calcium channel blocker that dilates blood vessels.
Boost brain function: The anti-inflammatory properties of ginger can help to increase dopamine and serotonin levels which help the brain.
Heart disease: Scientific research has shown that ginger could play a role in keeping your heart healthy. For centuries, ginger has been used to treat a wide range of cardiovascular conditions, and could reduce the risk of stroke and heart attack.
Blood thinning: Ginger supplements can help prevent blood clots from forming inside the veins by thinning the blood. These blood thinners can be purchased in drug stores, online, or in many food health stores.
Other symptoms: Ginger has also been known to prevent seasickness, motion sickness, morning sickness, and arthritis.

Because it possesses a wide variety of health-supporting properties, eating raw ginger or cooked ginger is one of the best ways to provide the immune system with a natural boost.

Disadvantages of Eating Raw Ginger

In general, there is no scientific evidence to suggest that eating raw ginger has health risks. But just like everything else, it should be consumed in moderation. If you want to use raw ginger to treat an illness, be sure to ask your healthcare provider first. However, there are a few disadvantages to eating too much raw ginger, such as:

Gas
Heartburn
Mouth irritation
Skin irritation
Upset stomach
Diarrhea
Burping

How Much Raw Ginger Should You Eat?

If you want to try eating raw ginger, you may take up to two grams of ginger up to three times each day. Alternatively, you can drink up to four cups of ginger tea each day. If you end up eating too much ginger may lead to oral allergy syndrome. Moreover, many people could be allergic to ginger without them knowing.

If this is the case, they could experience irritation or pain after consuming ginger, along with mouth swelling. As such, you will need to look for such symptoms to determine if eating raw ginger will affect you negatively. Taking doses higher than five grams per day could increase the risk of side effects.

When ginger is applied directly to the skin, there won’t be adverse side effects if used short term. However, it could cause skin irritation in some people.

Eating Ginger Every Day for a Month

People who eat ginger every day for a month may experience lower “bad” cholesterol levels in the body. Triglycerides (a type of fat found in the blood) can be reduced by the compounds found in ginger. Moreover, its anti-inflammatory properties make ginger the perfect support for a strong immune system.

Even if ginger is safe to eat every day, experts recommend limiting consumption between three to four grams per day but if you’re pregnant, it’s best to stick to one gram each day. Taking anything over six grams of ginger each day can lead to gastrointestinal issues like diarrhea, heartburn, and reflux.

How to Consume Raw Ginger

Raw ginger can be used in a variety of ways and can be added to food and drinks to get more nutrients out of your meals. While raw ginger can be taken as it is, this won’t be suitable for everyone’s taste. However, you can also use ginger water, ginger powder, ginger extract, and ginger tea to get the most out of this spice.

You may also take a sweeter option by adding fresh ginger to golden milk; you may even learn how to create homemade candied ginger. If you’re not a fan of fresh ginger, you may also opt for ginger in its dried, liquid, or powdered form. One of the most popular ways to consume ginger is to take a fresh ginger root and make tea with it.

Drinking ginger tea may help cure the common cold and provide benefits for inflammation, congestion, and digestion. To make the most out of ginger, it’s best to eat it raw while it’s still fresh. Unfortunately, cooking ginger will result in losing many of its natural sources of nutrition. The best time to eat raw ginger is before having a meal, which can help to soothe digestive issues.

This is especially helpful because the body absorbs and processes the nutrients of food items in the same order that you ingest them. Ginger tea is perfect for any time of the day but will work best when taken within 30 minutes after you wake up. This will help your body quickly end your overnight fast, prevent nausea, and charge your metabolism.

If you wish to use a teaspoon of fresh ginger, research says that 250mg of ginger, or around ½ teaspoon of ginger is allowed for consumption each day.

Is Ginger for Everyone?

Ginger shouldn’t be consumed by people on medication for high blood pressure or diabetes. Furthermore, consuming ginger with drugs such as insulin, anticoagulants, and beta-blockers can be harmful to your health. Because ginger helps to lower blood pressure and thin blood, there are a lot of things that can go wrong with these drugs.

FAQs

Below are some of the most widely-asked questions about raw gingers.

Is it OK to eat ginger on an empty stomach?

Ginger tea is one of the most beneficial beverages you can drink, which you can appreciate even if you haven’t eaten yet. It can help to strengthen your digestive system, provide relief from a scratchy throat, and soothe nausea.

Do you swallow or chew ginger?

Swallowing the root as it turns into pulp is fine, or you can also spit out the pump if it’s irritating. To get relief from a variety of symptoms, be sure to chew on a piece of ginger root two or three times a day. Because you will taste the herb’s spiciness, this is one of the most effective and intense ways to take ginger.

Should you peel ginger before eating it?

According to experts, the ginger peel is completely safe for consumption. Many people will opt to slice off some coins of unpeeled ginger, which they then boil in hot water to create a tasty tea. The peel is also healthy because it contains more fiber than the actual ginger root.

Should I refrigerate raw ginger?

You may store unpeeled ginger inside the refrigerator or at room temperature inside airtight zip-lock bags or containers. It will do well inside a crisper drawer and if properly stored, your fresh ginger may last for many weeks. If you’ve already peeled your ginger, be sure to store it in the fridge to slow down the oxidation process.

Try Raw Ginger Today!

If you’ve always wanted to try ginger but are afraid of its unique taste, there are plenty of ways to work your way around raw ginger. Whether you want to use it in its liquid form, powdered form, and others, you can be sure to reap many benefits from this spice. However, remember that ginger isn’t necessarily without its risk — those who are allergic to ginger should consult their doctor to find out how they can safely use this great ingredient in their meals.

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