Originally published February 5 2006
Korean medicine claims spicy ginger tea can aid digestion and stop sneezing
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
The JoonGang Daily provides information on spicy ginger tea and its array of health claims.
We're in the depths of winter -- the sneeze season -- and for many Koreans, when they feel a touch of the ague coming on, the tipple of choice to ward off cold and flu bugs isn't anything kimchi related: it's a humble cup of ginger tea.
In a related idea, ginger is also believed to be effective in expelling bad energy from the body, says Jung Sung-ki, a professor at the College of Oriental Medicine at Kyung Hee University.
The traditional Korean folk remedy involves sugaring and drying sliced ginger at 80 to 90 degrees centigrade (176 to 194 Fahrenheit), and then adding boiling water as needed.
Ginger warms the body noticeably because of its hydroxyaryl compounds, which give the rhizome its sharp taste and help speed up one's metabolism.
It's said that fishermen who were out to sea for a long time used to take sugared ginger along with them as a tonic.
Last year, an obstetrics and gynecology research team at the University of Adelaide, Australia, said that pregnant women who took 1 gram a day of ginger and 75 milligrams a day of vitamin B did not suffer from morning sickness, with no side effects on the fetus.
A later Joseon Dynasty scholar, and also a doctor, Heo Jun, wrote in his oriental medical book, "Donguibogam," that dried ginger boosts the appetite and aids digestion.
In oriental medicine, dried ginger is an indispensable herb, being the go-to ingredient for more than half of all prescriptions.
This is because it has two functions -- it acts as a dispersant for the other herbs, enabling faster and more effective absorption into the body, and it also works as an antidote, neutralizing poisonous herbs that are sometimes used in the prescription.
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