Ginger?

[Jabberwocky]

I've always worked under the assumption that ginger (ginger ale, ginger candies, candied ginger, ginger tea, pickled ginger, etc) is good for upset stomachs. As I've known I have had IBS since I was a wee little First Grader, this is important for me.

I have two questions:​

1. Do ginger products help with certain stomach issues?
2. Which type of ginger products work best for this?
3. Is ginger good for anything else when it comes to our health?
4. Is raw ginger better than other ginger products, as some (*cough-from-China-contaminated-w/-heavy-metals-cough*) certainly are kinda shady...
5. Nutritionally speaking, is ginger good for you?
6. My FAV ginger product has always been ginger candies. I like those Vietnamese/Chinese ones that are wrapped in plastic and then rice paper or something, the rice paper being edable along with the candy itself. I got some ginger candies from Trader Joes today - they're good and strong, but they lack the rice paper I now realized I love
7. What is your favorite ginger candy?
8. How bad are ginger candies, especially in terms of your teeth; like are they worse than pepper mints? Wouldn't surprise me given how chewy, sticky they are when they get warmed up, but then again I prefer to just suck on 'em ...
9. I've found a lot of ginger teas range from dehydrated ginger powder mixed with (A LOT) of sugar to more traditional tea bags containing ginger and whatever else. What is your favorite ginger drink/tea?
10. Any good ginger drinks out there (aside from the Ginger Ale crap you find at major supermarket outlets like Canadian Dry or Vernors (Vernors is my preference, but it's still kinda meh). Reed’s is okay, but I only really like to drink it mixed with some strong spirit... I found this link helpful in exploring Ginger Ale varieties, but I want to try some non-ginger ale ginger drinks. Or beer. Actually, I'm not sure I've ever had ginger beer (or alcoholic ginger ale!! OMG

I bet that dehydrated ginger with all that sugar would be amazing as an iced tea replacement (after all, it has so much sugar in one individual package that it could flavor one to two liters of iced ginger tea).

Oh yea, and I do realize that pickled ginger you get at Japanese places is to cleanse your product, but I love to eat it for it's own sake too

Other than "Asian" stores (mainly Chinese and Vietnamese ones, at least in terms of those I had access to) are the best for getting your choice ginger candy/product/tea/something else?

 

[bingey]

2 questions?

Yes ginger is great. It also soothes certain types of joint pain. also try laos or galangal it's basically a white /pink ginger root relative with a more piny flavor.


Best ginger beer is the jamaican brand.


ALso killi gold ginger tea.

 

[Foreigner]

Weird that you mention Asian stores for ginger. In Canada you can get fresh ginger at most markets, Asian or not.

Candied ginger probably has a conflicting health effect on the body. The only sweet thing I've combined ginger with is honey, because it harmonizes digestion a bit better, especially if the digestive upset is due to a dry stomach.

There is not much point in buying processed ginger products. The health benefits mainly come from the whole root. Powdered ginger in capsule form tends to be wussy. If you use it fresh, then you can use it to cure the common cold. You boil a couple teaspoons worth in a cup of water for 10 minutes, then drink. It will induce sweating, so get under covers to help the sweat come out more. It has to be the 'cold' type of common cold though... no fever, mainly chills, achey joints, a subjective feeling of being cold, and no sweating. Ginger will fix that.

Fresh ginger also calms the stomach, stops vomiting, and warms the lungs. Sailors have used it for centuries to this effect.

Dried ginger root is much stronger, and its main effects are on wet phlegm in the lungs (defined as: profuse and easily expectorated), or on people who have a cold constitution. These people are always colder than everyone else, and their digestion is sluggish. They either have no appetite or they eat very little throughout the day. They are averse to cold food and drinks. You can combine it with cinnamon sticks when you boil it, and it will bring back the metabolic heat of their body.