Ginger root is often used as a spice to flavor food, but it also can have some beneficial health effects. You can purchase fresh ginger root, dried ginger that has been turned into a powder or ginger juice or oil. High blood pressure is one of the medical conditions that ginger may be helpful in treating.
High Blood Pressure
High blood pressure occurs when the heart has to pump harder to move the blood through your body. Age, inactivity, obesity, a family history of high blood pressure and consuming too much salt or too little potassium or vitamin D can increase your risk for high blood pressure. Once you have high blood pressure, you are at a higher risk for a number of other health conditions, including heart disease, stroke, aneurism and kidney or vision problems.
Ginger and Blood Pressure
Ginger may help lower blood pressure through a couple of different mechanisms. A study published in the "Journal of Cardiovascular Pharmacy" in January 2000 found ginger extract may work in a similar way to common blood pressure medications called calcium channel blockers, which relax your blood vessels, making it easier for your heart to pump the blood through your body. Another study, published in "The American Journal of Chinese Medicine" in 2006, found that subjects responded better to the blood pressure medication nifedipine when they took their medication along with ginger.
Side Effects and Safety
Ginger can cause side effects including diarrhea, stomach discomfort, belching, mouth irritation and heartburn. Ginger may interfere with blood thinning medications and diabetes medications, and it is not recommended if you are going to be having surgery, have a bleeding disorder or gallstones. Taking ginger during pregnancy or lactation is controversial, so you may want to avoid doing so.
Considerations
Do not take ginger without first speaking with your doctor to make sure it would be safe for you and determine the appropriate dosage. Do not self-treat your high blood pressure with ginger, or use ginger to treat your high blood pressure instead of following the treatment prescribed by your doctor. Evidence for the use of ginger to treat high blood pressure is still preliminary and points to the benefits of ginger as a complementary treatment rather than the use of ginger alone.
References
- MedlinePlus: Ginger
- University of Maryland Medical Center: Ginger
- MayoClinic.com; High Blood Pressure (Hypertension); March 2011
- "American Journal of Chinese Medicine"; Synergistic Effect of Ginger and Nifedipine on Human Platelet Aggregation: a Study in Hypertensive Patients and Normal Patients; H.Y. Young; 2006
- "Journal of Cardiovascular Pharmacology"; Ginger Lowers Blood Pressure Through Blockade of Voltage-Dependent Calcium Channels; M.N.M. Ghayur, et al.; January 2005
