Zingiber officinale
Ginger
Generally recognised as safeOther names: Ginger
Ginger rhizome—cultivated crop in tropical and subtropical Asia including Myanmar.
Perennial from rhizome, distichous leaves.
- Family
- Zingiberaceae
- Plant type
- Perennial herb
What the safety levels mean (expand legend)
- Generally recognised as safe. Often a common herb with reasonable harvest and use; still read the specific warnings on the card.
- Information. Primarily informational — details in the text and warnings below matter most.
- Caution. Needs extra care (dose, duration, sensitive groups, interactions).
- Risky. Significant risks — verify sources, contraindications and professional guidance.
- Not for home experimentation. Not suitable to experiment with at home without knowledge and certainty.
- High risk for internal use. Particular risk with internal use (e.g. alkaloids); avoid prolonged or irresponsible dosing.
- Not specified. Level not filled in yet — rely on individual warnings and links below.
Photograph on Wikimedia Commons (Public domain).
Plant habit
Safety — read before use
For this herb it is important to check warnings, mix-ups and cautions. Start with the Safety section.
Quick overview
A practical summary; details are in the sections below.
- Safety grade
- Generally recognised as safe details
- Scientific sources on the card
- Yes — sources are listed with claims Science section
- When and what to harvest
- Rhizome — October–December
- Processing methods
Herbal infusion (tea), Syrup, Culinary use, Powder
All methods and recipes on the card- Topics and symptoms
Bloating & gas, Common cold — overall comfort, Digestion…
Topics section, Symptoms overview
Identification and mix-ups
Showy inflorescence rare in commercial forms.
Possible mix-ups and risks
Other Zingiber species vegetatively.
Similar herbs
- Turmeric
Same family and kitchen; ginger is beige, fibrous and hot, turmeric orange. Fresh rhizomes are confused at the market only by the skin — a cut settles it.
- Greater galangal
Galangal is harder, paler, with pink-edged shoots and a resinous rather than hot taste. Thai cooking never swaps them.
Topics and symptoms
More topics are in the symptoms and topics overview.
- Bloating & gasTraditional· Traditional / cultural framing
- Common cold — overall comfortTraditional· Traditional / cultural framing
- DigestionTraditional· Traditional / cultural framing
- Joints & mobilityTraditional· Traditional / cultural framing
- Nausea & queasy stomachScientific· moderate
Geographic occurrence
Myanmar
Common (expected wild occurrence in the region)
Japan
Common (expected wild occurrence in the region)
Brazil
Common (expected wild occurrence in the region)
Mexico
Common (expected wild occurrence in the region)
India
Common (expected wild occurrence in the region)
Indonesia
Common (expected wild occurrence in the region)
Thailand
Common (expected wild occurrence in the region)
Viet Nam
Common (expected wild occurrence in the region)
Harvest
- RhizomeOctober–December
podzim
Region: IndiaNotes: Young 'green' ginger is dug after 5–6 months, mature rhizome for drying after 8–10 months when the leaves yellow (October–December in India). Dried ginger is peeled and sun-dried.
Storage
- Refrigeration(Rhizome)
Fresh rhizome keeps 3–4 weeks in the fridge, unpeeled, in paper; peeled and grated it freezes well in portions.
- Moisture:
- In a sealed bag it sweats and moulds at the cut.
- Safety:
- Discard a shrivelled or mouldy rhizome whole, do not just trim it.
- Drying(Rhizome)
Dried slices keep 2 years, ground ginger 12 months in a closed container.
- Light:
- Out of light, otherwise it loses pungency.
- Moisture:
- Powder clumps; store dry.
Processing methods on this herb card
Infusion or brief extraction in hot water; usually without long boiling.
Full method description (from the catalogue)
In the narrow sense, "tea" often means an infusion: you pour water just off the boil over the dried plant matter and let it steep for a few minutes. Temperature, steep time, and the herb-to-water ratio change both flavour and what dissolves into the liquid.
Compared with a decoction, heat exposure is shorter and gentler; tender leaves and flowers are often better as an infusion than with prolonged simmering. For each herb, always follow the plant card for suitable plant part, preparation, and safety notes — general rules never replace species-level judgement.
Traditional context for this method: yes·Scientific context for this method: yes
Decoction or infusion with sweetener and reduction; shelf life depends on sugar and storage.
Full method description (from the catalogue)
Syrups combine a herbal base with sugar or honey and often a short boil to concentrate and improve hygiene. Preservation depends strongly on water content, sugar level, and bottling practice.
Home syrups may fall under food rules; store in the fridge after opening per recipe.
Traditional context for this method: yes·Scientific context for this method: no
Cooking, baking, seasoning as food — general category without therapeutic claims.
Full method description (from the catalogue)
Culinary use covers herbs as ingredients in dishes, drinks, or spice mixes. This overview does not evaluate medicinal effects — only reminds you about species intent, allergies, and heat treatment where needed (e.g. some fruits or plant parts).
Combining with alcohol, sugar, or long cooking changes outcomes; verify culinary sources.
Traditional context for this method: yes·Scientific context for this method: no
Finely ground dried herb; dosing and solubility depend on species.
Full method description (from the catalogue)
Powder increases surface area for liquids or food. Home milling needs a clean grinder and control of fineness; very fine powder may clog tea filters.
Store airtight against moisture and pests.
Traditional context for this method: yes·Scientific context for this method: yes
Traditional / spiritual use
Kept separate from science — entries are cultural or symbolic, not medical advice.
Confucius's ginger and the 'universal medicine'
General
Historical mentionFolk useHerbal loreThe Analects (Lunyu X, 8) say of Confucius that he 'never dispensed with ginger' — he ate it with every meal. In Ayurveda ginger bears the name vishvabheshaja, 'universal medicine', and Chinese tradition treats the fresh (sheng jiang) and dried (gan jiang) rhizome as two distinct 'warming' materials. A historical and cultural record, not evidence of effect.
- Form:
- denní pokrm, „hřejivé“ koření v tradičních systémech
- Claim strength:
- Historical mention
- Source note:
- Confucius, Analects X, 8; Ayurvedic and Chinese materia medica (traditional classification, not clinical data).
Scientific notes
Each claim lists a study type and a source (URL or DOI) where available. Dose notes from the literature are informational only.
How to read evidence strength and study type labels
Labels summarise how the catalogue entry is tagged — they are not a medical verdict on efficacy. For every row, read the summary, limitations and source link.
Evidence strength
- Evidence level not specified
- The author did not grade the record; judge from the summary, limitations and source link.
- Narrative / orientational literature
- Descriptive or expert literature without controlled group comparison — context rather than proof of effect.
- Weak evidence
- Study or conclusion with major methodological limits; treat only as a pointer for further reading.
- Preliminary findings
- First or smaller studies — interesting direction, not the final word on efficacy or safety.
- Moderate strength of evidence
- Moderate strength by study design; sample and context limits still apply.
- Stronger evidence
- Stronger design or consistency of results within the study's stated limits.
- Review article
- A review summarises multiple sources; quality depends on review method and field.
Study type
- Narrative / expert text
- Expert text or overview without a classical study design.
- In vitro study
- Cell culture or test-tube experiment — does not show an effect in the body.
- Animal study
- Animal model — transfer to humans is not automatic.
- Observational study
- Observing groups without random treatment assignment; confounding is possible.
- Clinical trial
- Human clinical trial; sample size and control group matter.
- Randomised controlled trial
- Randomised controlled trials are among the stronger designs when well conducted.
- Review study
- A review aggregates multiple papers — quality depends on selection rules.
- Systematic review
- Systematic review with explicit search and selection methodology.
- Meta-analysis
- Statistical pooling of studies; outcome depends on input data and heterogeneity.
- Regulatory assessment / monograph (EMA, WHO…)
- Regulatory body summary for a herbal product — different context from a single RCT; often about products, not home tea.
- Expert monograph (herbal preparations)
- Structured literature summary for a plant or drug — quality depends on author and edition year.
The HMPC recognised powdered ginger rhizome as 'well-established use' for preventing nausea and vomiting in motion sickness, based on clinical studies. Traditional uses cover mild spasmodic digestive complaints including bloating, temporary loss of appetite, minor joint pain and symptoms of the common cold.
Moderate strength of evidenceRegulatory assessment / monograph (EMA, WHO…)Year: 2012Limitations: Well-established use applies only to the powder for motion sickness in adults; the other indications are traditional. Not in pregnancy or breastfeeding (lack of data); not for children under 6. No drug interactions were described at the time of assessment.
EMA Committee on Herbal Medicinal Products (HMPC)
European Union herbal monograph on Zingiber officinale Roscoe, rhizoma
A meta-analysis of 12 randomised trials (1,278 pregnant women) found that ginger (usually up to 1.5 g a day) significantly eased nausea compared with placebo but did not significantly change the number of vomiting episodes; no excess of adverse events was seen.
Moderate strength of evidenceMeta-analysisYear: 2014Limitations: Heterogeneous preparations and doses, short interventions, small trials. The EMA monograph nevertheless does not recommend pregnancy use for lack of safety data — the decision belongs with a doctor.
Viljoen E, Visser J, Koen N, Musekiwa A — Nutrition Journal
Images
The main photo is in the card header. More images will appear here when available.
Safety
What the warning types mean
The type on each warning helps group themes — it does not replace the separate severity badge.
- Internal use
- Risks from swallowing, extracts, duration of use or concentration for internal use.
- Interactions / medicines
- Possible effect on medicines or concurrent treatment — check sources and a professional.
- Raw plant parts
- Raw, unripe or poorly prepared plant parts can be dangerous.
- Toxins and regulation
- Toxic constituents or regulated compounds (e.g. in distillates).
- Contact with the plant
- Skin or mucosa irritation from contact with fresh plant or sap.
- Allergy
- Allergic reactions, often linked to family sensitisation.
- Harvesting and contamination
- Contamination, species mix-ups or harvesting from unsuitable places.
- Pregnancy, breastfeeding and childrenModerate severitypregnancy
The EMA monograph does not list ginger medicinal products for pregnant or breastfeeding women, because safety has not been established, nor for children under 6 (motion sickness) or under 18 (other indications) for lack of data. Food flavoured with ginger is not the issue; medicinal doses are.