Research has now proven that ginger can combat a number of viral infections. While virus research has thus far focused on using pharmaceutical interventions, ginger continues to prove that it is a potent antiviral plant medicine.
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| Ginger has proven antiviral properties |
With so many viruses now plaguing humans, it makes sense to employ whatever antiviral agents nature can provide. Especially when it has been proven safe.
Ginger’s safety is unquestionable given it is regularly consumed by billions of people around the world in foods and as a spice. It also known to add flavor to various dishes.
Ginger root’s antiviral prowess is not just real: It has been proven out in the research.
This comes in addition to ginger’s centuries-long reputation for treating a number of medical conditions.
Ginger (Zingiber officinale) has also been used in traditional medicines around the world to reduce pain and fever. For example, research shows that ginger matches NSAIDs for reducing pain.
We can add to these the use of ginger for fighting viruses of different kinds, including colds and flu. But how about other viruses such as Chikungunya virus, H1N1 influenza, Herpes simplex and Human respiratory syncytial viruses? Let’s take a quick look at the science.
Ginger antiviral against Chikungunya Virus
In a 2020 study from India’s Maharshi Dayanand University, researchers tested animal cells infected with the Chikungunya virus.
The Chikungunya virus is vectored by mosquitoes and results in limb and joint pain, along with fever, nausea and other symptoms. It sometimes results in death (about 1 in 1,000 cases).
The infected cells were treated with ginger extracts. The researchers found the ginger extracts significantly inhibited growth of the virus.
The researchers found the ginger extracts inhibited viral replication and were not toxic to the cells. They stated:
“The rhizome extracts of Z. officinale have high potential to treat CHIKV. “
Ginger inhibits Herpes viruses
Researchers from Germany’s University of Heidelberg studied essential oils from various herbs against herpes simplex virus type 2. Other than ginger, these included anise, hyssop, thyme, chamomile and sandalwood.
The researchers found that the ginger essential oil significantly inhibited the HSV-2 virus replication within RC-37 cells. The researchers found that plaque formation was halted by 90 percent by the ginger essential oils and the thyme oil.
The researchers tested this inhibitory effect at different stages of infection, and concluded that the ginger essential oil somehow interacted with the viral envelope.
Another study from the University of Heidelberg studied herpes simplex-1 against oils of ginger, thyme, hyssop, and sandalwood. The research found that all of these oils inhibited HSV-1 growth. Furthermore, they inhibited the growth of acyclovir-resistant strains of HSV-1. That means ginger can inhibit antiviral-resistant strains of herpes.
In a 2019 study from Italy’s University of Aldo Moro of Bari, researchers tested ginger against the animal version of herpes virus 1, also called Caprine alphaherpesvirus 1.
Alphaherpesvirus 1 is a common herpes virus that now infects some 60 percent of the adult population, causing canker sores on the lips and genital regions.
The researchers found that a ginger extract inhibited the infection of infection-free cells when coming into contact with the virus. They concluded that the ginger likely collapsed the viral envelope.
They did not find that the ginger would stop the infection after the cell was infected. But it protected healthy cells from infection. They also found the skin readily absorbed the antiviral ginger extract. They stated:
“These findings open several perspectives in terms of therapeutic possibilities for a number of human and animal alphaherpesviruses. “
Ginger inhibits Norwalk virus
In a 2016 study, researchers from the University of Minnesota tested ginger against the norovirus, feline calicivirus. This calicivirus is a type of norovirus. It is frequently used in research as a surrogate to study the human norovirus version – also called the Norwalk virus.
The norovirus can cause gastrointestinal upset, fever, nausea, headaches and can result in death in some cases. Some 200,000 deaths a year are the result of Norwalk virus.
The researchers tested ginger along with cloves, fenugreek seeds, garlic, onion, and jalapeño peppers. The researchers found that the ginger extract significantly inhibited the virus. They also found that ginger inactivated the virus in a dose-dependent manner. Dose-dependency confirms ginger’s specific antiviral potency.
In addition to the ginger extracts, the clove extracts also inhibited the virus.
Ginger combats human respiratory syncytial virus
Human respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is one of the most common contagious virus infections that occur in children. Symptoms include fever, stuffy nose wheezing and runny nose. Many RSV illnesses are confused with the common cold. However a bout of RSV will typically last for longer, and will typically include wheezing. In younger children this can turn fatal.
Medical researchers from the College of Medicine at Kaohsiung Medical University determined that fresh ginger is an effective treatment against human respiratory syncytial virus.
The researchers tested both fresh and dried ginger against RSV-infected human liver and lung cells. They found that the fresh ginger inhibited the attachment of the virus on to the cells. They also found ginger stimulated the INF-beta secretions that help counteract viral infections among the cells of the mucous membranes.
The inhibition of the virus occurred more readily among the alveolar (lung) cells – illustrating the potential for the ginger to inhibit RSV infections of the lungs.
Notably the researchers found that dried ginger did not have the same effectiveness upon the virus as the fresh ginger had. This indicates that some of the antiviral constituents of fresh ginger are lost during drying process.
Ginger fights influenza A
Researchers from Japan’s Toyama Medical and Pharmaceutical University tested ginger against an influenza A strain in the laboratory. They found that the ginger extract stimulated the production of TNF-alpha expression by the immune system. This provided the means for the ginger to inhibit replication of the virus.
Researchers from India’s Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Medical Sciences also studied ginger along with other natural compounds for inhibiting H1N1 influenza A. They found ginger helped inhibit the virus by interacting with its binding capacity.
Ginger versus the common cold
As mentioned, ginger has been a go-to remedy among traditional medicine for centuries. This has been supported by modern research as well. In 2015, researchers from the University of Minnesota Twin Cities tested a product called Phytorelief-CC. This contains a combination of Turmeric, Pomegranate and Ginger.
The researchers followed 124 people, half of whom took the combination when they had initial symptoms. The researchers found 27 percent of the group that took things other than the ginger had a full cold episode, while only 8 percent of those who took the ginger combination got colds. This means about a third of the colds.
Researchers from the UK’s Wellcome Research Laboratories tested ginger root against rhinovirus (common cold virus) in the laboratory. They found the ginger extracts inhibited rhinovirus. The most active antiviral components of the ginger extracts according to the researchers were the sesquiterpenes.
Ginger fights retroviral nausea and vomiting
A 2014 study tested 102 HIV-positive patients who were taking antiretroviral medication. Most of them were experiencing nausea and vomiting from the therapy. The researchers found that 500 milligrams of ginger twice a day significantly reduced their vomiting and nausea.
Whether this was due to the antiviral potency of ginger or simply its beneficial gastrointestinal effect is not known.
How to consume medicinal ginger
Fresh ginger can be consumed with foods, herbal tea, or blended into a smoothie. If adding to an herbal tea it should be put into the cup last – right before drinking if possible. Ginger can also be squeezed into fresh ginger juice, which may then be blended with water or fruit juice. Ayurvedic traditionalists have often suggested simply chewing fresh ginger root raw when sick.
Mu tea is one of the most famous and easily made cold and flu remedies. Mu tea is made by brewing up some ginger tea (steep ginger root in water after being brought to a boil). Then add some raw honey and fresh-squeezed lemon to the herba cuppa.
The research above indicates that using ginger essential oils is also a good strategy for fighting viral infections. A few drops of ginger essential oil can be used topically and internally. A very small test dose should precede consumption.
It should be noted that the ginger candies are not only made from dried ginger but are typically blended with sugar which practically counteracts ginger’s benefits – as refined sugar tends to feed pathogens and inhibit immune response.
In addition to the sesquiterpenes found in the rhinovirus research, antiviral components in ginger include allicin, alliin and ajoene. Other research has determined that fresh ginger contains upwards of 477 different constituents. This of course includes many polyphenols and flavonoids that have shown anti-viral properties – many of which are also heat sensitive.
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