GINGER

Where clinical trials have included ginger, it has shown value in reducing chemotherapy induced nausea. Evidence of direct suppression of pre-cancerous markers has been seen in high risk groups for colorectal cancer. Human telomerase reverse transcriptase (hTERT) expression was significantly reduced. hTERT is strongly associated with increased cancer incidence and poor prognosis in various solid tumors, including colon and lung cancers. At 2g daily, ginger extract reduced hTERT expression around 40%, and other markers of cell proliferation between 15 and 46%.

In an earlier trial the same team observed clear tendencies for ginger to suppress activity of the lipid mediator PGE2 (Prostaglandin E2) which is up-regulated during incidence and progression of several cancers including breast, prostate, lung and colon. Ginger has been studied for a variety of health benefits related to its anti-inflammatory, anti-nausea and general metabolic health benefits. Some reports include reductions on platelet aggregation, linked ot metastatic activity, particularly at higher doses. But data is not fully consistent.

Clinical research has been somewhat inconsistent but the main weight of evidence points to significant effects in improved blood glucose levels, positive outcomes in cholesterol levels and reduced inflammation markers

In cancer, there are limited studies, though some evidence has been presented for gingers ability to inhibit proliferation markers related to colorectal cancer risk and progression.

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Highlighted Studies

Our strongest indication of a treatment effect on proliferation was the estimated effect on hTERT expression. A decrease in hTERT expression is consistent with previous reports, which found that ginger inhibited hTERT and c-Myc expression in human non-small lung cancer cells (24). While the estimated treatment effect on our other marker of proliferation MIB-1 was not as strong, the estimated effect was more pronounced in the upper sections of the colorectal crypts, suggesting that ginger may ...

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Participants reported a high level of adherence with all participants reporting taking at least 80% of their study medication. Ginger extract had no significant effect on colon concentrations of AA, PGE2, 5-, 12-, & 15-HETE or 13-HODE normalized to protein when compared to the placebo group. However, ginger extract did appear to have an inhibitory effect on COX and LOX-5, 12-, & 15-2 enzymes as observed by significant or close to significant decreases in the mean percent change in PGE...

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The present study demonstrates that the ginger extract as a daily supplement for patients receiving moderate-to-high emetogenic adjuvant chemotherapy could increase antioxidant enzyme blood levels, including CuZn-SOD and CAT activity, and levels of GPx and GSH/GSSG and decrease oxidative stress blood levels, including MDA and NO2−/NO3−, as compared to the placebo. Furthermore, patients taking ginger extract continuously were inclined to increase antioxidant enzyme blood levels and decreas...

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All seven studies that investigated the impact of ginger (doses of 1.5–3 g/day) on insulin found a benefit, ten out of twelve found positive effects on blood glucose (doses of 1.2–3 g/day), six out of seven found a positive effect on blood lipids, such as total cholesterol, LDL and triglycerides (doses of 1–3 g) and four out of five studies looking at inflammatory markers (doses of 1.5–3 g) found a benefit. The studies were mainly of high quality (22 out of 24) according to Jadad scor...

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TABLE OF REFERENCES

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https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3618532/3Human study - adjunctOur results suggest that ginger supplementation may reduce proliferation in the crypts of the normal-appearing colorectal epithelium and increase apoptosis and differentiation relative to proliferation—especially in the differentiation zone of crypts of individuals at increased risk for CRC. These findings are consistent with previous studies that suggested that the chemopreventive properties of ginger may lie in its ability to regulate cell function and viability . In vitro and animal studies also suggest that ginger and its constituents may act as chemopreventive agents by reducing COX-2 expression , increasing immune function, lowering the activity of microbial enzymes (β-glucuronidase and mucinase) , and blocking angiogenic signals that supply blood to tumor cells Our results suggest that expression of proliferation markers may decrease in response to ginger supplementation, a finding that is consistent with our hypothesis as well as results from animal models... Our strongest indication of a treatment effect on proliferation was the estimated effect on hTERT expression. A decrease in hTERT expression is consistent with previous reports, which found that ginger inhibited hTERT and c-Myc expression in human non-small lung cancer cells. While the estimated treatment effect on our other marker of proliferation MIB-1 was not as strong, the estimated effect was more pronounced in the upper sections of the colorectal crypts, suggesting that ginger may decrease proliferation in the parts of the colorectal crypts most exposed to bowel lumen carcinogens.
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3208778/2.5Human studyIn conclusion, ginger appeared to be well tolerated. There were no differences between placebo and ginger for total adverse events (AE) or in common AE categories including fatigue, gastrointestinal effects or headaches. Participants reported a high level of adherence with all participants reporting taking at least 80% of their study medication. Ginger extract had no significant effect on colon concentrations of AA, PGE2, 5-, 12-, & 15-HETE or 13-HODE normalized to protein when compared to the placebo group. However, ginger extract did appear to have an inhibitory effect on COX and LOX-5, 12-, & 15-2 enzymes as observed by significant or close to significant decreases in the mean percent change in PGE2, 5-, 12-, & 15-HETE normalized to AA. Consequently, it would appear that ginger extract has an anti-inflammatory effect in the colon of persons at normal risk for CRC and warrants further study.The mean percent change in PGE2 in the colon mucosa after 28-days, as compared to placebo, was significantly lower (−28% versus +26%, p=0.05), as shown in Table 2. When PGE2 was normalized to protein the results were not significant (p=0.16), but there was a trend suggesting that ginger decreased PGE2 compared to placebo (7% vs. +32%, Table 2). Changes in the other eicosanoids also were more evident when normalized to AA levels. There were no significant differences in mean percent change between baseline and day 28 for any of the other eicosanoids (HETE-5, -12, -15 and 13-HODE), when normalized to protein. In contrast, there was significant decrease in 5-HETE (p=0.04) compared to placebo and trends toward significant decreases in 12-HETE (p=0.09) and 15-HETE (p=0.06) when eicosanoid concentrations were normalized to AA. There was no significant effect of batch (p=0.47–0.95) on mean percent change for any eicosanoid whether normalized to protein or free AA.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10708057/2.5Meta-analysisGinger was used in doses that ranged from 1 g to 10 g of dried powdered ginger for a single dose or up to 12 weeks daily, apart from one study that used 15 g of fresh ginger or 40 g of cooked ginger [119] and another study that used 20 g of fresh ginger [138]. There did not appear to be a correlation between dose and efficacy. All seven studies that investigated the impact of ginger (doses of 1.5–3 g/day) on insulin found a benefit, ten out of twelve found positive effects on blood glucose (doses of 1.2–3 g/day), six out of seven found a positive effect on blood lipids, such as total cholesterol, LDL and triglycerides (doses of 1–3 g) and four out of five studies looking at inflammatory markers (doses of 1.5–3 g) found a benefit. The studies were mainly of high quality (22 out of 24) according to Jadad scoring, with 18 double-blind RCTs, 3 randomized cross-over studies and 3 placebo-controlled study.Ginger was used in doses that ranged from 1 g to 10 g of dried powdered ginger for a single dose or up to 12 weeks daily, apart from one study that used 15 g of fresh ginger or 40 g of cooked ginger [119] and another study that used 20 g of fresh ginger [138]. There did not appear to be a correlation between dose and efficacy. All seven studies that investigated the impact of ginger (doses of 1.5–3 g/day) on insulin found a benefit, ten out of twelve found positive effects on blood glucose. All seven studies that investigated the impact of ginger (doses of 1.5–3 g/day) on insulin found a benefit, ten out of twelve found positive effects on blood glucose (doses of 1.2–3 g/day), six out of seven found a positive effect on blood lipids, such as total cholesterol, LDL and triglycerides (doses of 1–3 g) and four out of five studies looking at inflammatory markers (doses of 1.5–3 g) found a benefit. The studies were mainly of high quality (22 out of 24) according to Jadad scoring, with 18 double-blind RCTs, 3 randomized cross-over studies and 3 placebo-controlled study.Screenshot from 2024-04-04 13-10-23
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.2147/CMAR.S1240162Human studyThis is a pilot randomized placebo controlled trial on the pharmacological effects of ginger extract in cancer patients who received chemotherapy. The results of our study demonstrated significantly increased antioxidant activity (e.g., CuZn-SOD, CAT, GPX and GSH/GSSG) and decreased oxidative stress (e.g., NO2−/NO3− and MDA) in patients who received daily ginger extract. This effect was not observed in patients who received placebo, as measured after each chemotherapy cycle. In subsequent cycles of chemotherapy, patients seemed to have significantly elevated oxidative defense status based on their higher blood levels of Cu-Zn SOD, CAT, GPx and GSH/GSSG and significantly reduced levels of MDA and NO2−/NO3− after continuously receiving ginger extractThe present study demonstrates that the ginger extract as a daily supplement for patients receiving moderate-to-high emetogenic adjuvant chemotherapy could increase antioxidant enzyme blood levels, including CuZn-SOD and CAT activity, and levels of GPx and GSH/GSSG and decrease oxidative stress blood levels, including MDA and NO2−/NO3−, as compared to the placebo. Furthermore, patients taking ginger extract continuously were inclined to increase antioxidant enzyme blood levels and decrease oxidative stress blood level. This result might confirm the antioxidant pharmacological activity of ginger. No serious adverse effects were reported after taking ginger extract as a daily supplement.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9922148/2Meta-analysisIn vitro studies consistently showed the beneficial effect of ginger on the treatment and prevention of cancer cells in cell culture models, but the results of clinical trials do not justify these results. The results obtained from clinical trials have inconsistent. In part of clinical trial studies, the anticancer effect of ginger has been proven, and in the other part, this hypothesis has been rejected. This indicated that ginger may play a role in the prevention and treatment of cancer, but this is not a dominant role.A remarkable point in these studies is that the amount of proliferative factors, such as hTERT and MIB‐1 (Ki‐67), has been significantly reduced. But the interesting tip is that ginger has been able to reduce hTERT and MIB‐1 (Ki‐67) in these individuals. A decrease in hTERT expression is consistent with previous reports, which found that ginger inhibited hTERT and c‐Myc expression in human lung cancer cells (Tuntiwechapikul et al., 2010). Oncogenes activate hTERT, while tumor suppressor p53 inhibits cancerous cell growth (Kyo et al., 2008). The MIB‐1 (Ki‐67) protein is a cellular marker for the proliferation of cells
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7546607/2Human studyThis study demonstrated that the daily consumption of 1.2 g of ginger for 90 days decreased the values of FBS, TC, and LDL in people with T2DM. Longer research studies using doses higher than the one presented in this research, considering different metabolic variables, and assessing the cost-effectiveness of ginger, should be explored.The results of this study showed that, in doses of 1.2 g daily for 90 days, ginger was effective in reducing FBS [fasting blood sugar] and TC [total cholesterol] values in people with T2DM [type2 diabetes] compared to a placebo, confirming part of the original hypothesis. Among the CG [control group] participants, only the decrease in the LDL values was greater than in those of the EG [experiment group]...A number of research studies that investigated the effect of ginger in the treatment of T2DM, in different doses and intervention periods, also showed reduced FBS and TC values
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4277626/#2Human studyThe present study was conducted to investigate the effects of ginger on fasting blood sugar (FBS), Hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c), apolipoprotein B (Apo B), apolipoprotein A-I (Apo A-I), Apo B/Apo AI, and malondialdehyde (MDA) in type 2 diabetic patients. In this study, it was demonstrated that oral administration of ginger powder for 12 weeks at dose of 2 g per day caused significant reduction in the levels of FBS, HbA1c, Apo B, Apo B/Apo A-I and MDA in ginger group in comparison to baseline, as well as control group, while it increased the level of Apo A-I.In conclusion, the present study showed that ginger supplementation significantly reduced the levels of FBS, HbA1c, Apo B, Apo B/Apo A-I and MDA, and increased the level of Apo A-I in type 2 diabetic patients. Regarding negligible side effects of ginger, it may be a good remedy for diabetic patients to diminish the risk of some secondary chronic complications.

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