Ginger snaps are crisp, flat cookies that are lightly sweet and have a zippy flavor from fresh or dried ginger. Ginger is the root-like rhizome of the Zingiber officinale plant, and has been used for thousands of years to aid in digestion and counter nausea and gastric distress. The ginger in ginger snaps, along with the fiber in whole-wheat flour and the chromium in molasses, can help improve digestion and settle a distressed stomach.
Gastric Motility
Ginger stimulates digestion by causing increased muscle contractions in the stomach, according to the Bastyr University Center for Natural Health. The increase in stomach muscle contractions moves food more swiftly into the small intestine, where a large portion of the digestive process occurs. Low gastric motility, or the failure of food to move along through the digestive tract, is associated with indigestion symptoms such as nausea and gastric reflux, so consumption of ginger in tea or foods like ginger snaps can help relieve these stomach problems.
Nausea
Eating ginger is recommended to relieve nausea associated with pregnancy and motion sickness and chemotherapy, according to the University of Maryland Medical Center. Ginger tea, crystallized ginger or ginger snaps may also help relieve the nausea from Hepatitis C treatment, according to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Read labels of packaged ginger carefully to ensure that they contain real ginger and not artificial flavoring, which will not convey the digestive benefits of ginger. Homemade ginger snaps can incorporate both powdered ginger and fresh or crystallized ginger, enhancing the cookies' beneficial health impacts.
Fiber
Ginger snaps are often made with whole wheat flour, such as the recipe suggestion from the Utah State University Extension, which calls for whole-wheat pastry flour. Whole wheat flour uses the whole grain, including the wheat bran that is high in insoluble dietary fiber. This type of fiber aids digestion by trapping water in the colon, keeping stool soft and bulky which avoids constipation, hemorrhoids, and digestive tract disorders like diverticulitis, according to the Arizona State University Extension. Check the label of packaged ginger snaps to ensure they are made with whole wheat to enjoy this digestive benefit.
Minerals
The subtle sweetness of gingersnaps usually comes from molasses, a dark syrup removed from cane sugar during processing. Molasses is rich in iron and other trace minerals, including chromium. Chromium is essential in the diet, as it is the active component of a substance called glucose tolerance factor or GTF. GTF makes insulin work more effectively to transform sugars and starches into useful fuel for the body. Most Americans consume diets low in chromium, according to the University of Maryland Medical Center. Chromium from molasses in ginger snaps may help to digest and absorb sugars and starches while protecting against diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Check the label of packaged ginger snaps to ensure they have been made with molasses.
References
- University of Maryland Medical Center: Ginger
- U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs: Managing Side Effects of Hepatitis C Treatment
- Bastyr University Center for Natural Health: Ginger--A Spicy Way to Stimulate Healthy Digestion
- "Obstetrics and Gynecology"; A Randomized Controlled Trial of Ginger to Treat Nausea and Vomiting in Pregnancy; C. Smith, et al.; April 2004
- Utah State University Extension; Making 'Eat' a Part of Wheat; Rosemary Markham, M.S.; 2008
- University of Maryland Medical Center: Chromium
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