Bad breath Ginger makes unpleasant bad breath disappear quickly

Of course fresh breath thanks to the traditional medicinal ginger

Ginger is healthy. Not for nothing was ginger awarded the title of Medicinal Plant of the Year 2018. Numerous studies prove the versatile medical fields of application. Thus, the medicinal plant relieves nausea, works against colds, prevents bloating and has analgesic effects. Now, a German research team has proven that ginger also effectively makes the halitosis go out. For example, an ingredient in ginger should stimulate saliva to break down malodorous substances.

A team from the Technical University of Munich (TUM) and the Leibniz Institute of Food Systems Biology recently investigated the 6-gingerol gas in ginger and found that the ingredient stimulates a salivary enzyme, which in turn breaks down malodorous substances in the mouth and so counteracts bad breath. The study results were recently published in the journal "Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry".

Ginger is a versatile and traditional medicinal plant. A German research team has now confirmed the miracle tuber another effect: ginger effectively reduces bad breath. (Image: gitusik / fotolia.com)

Fresh breath and better aftertaste in a few seconds

As the researchers report, 6-Gingerol not only provides fresher breath, but also for a better aftertaste in the mouth. The Scharfstoff acts so fast, that the refreshing effects occur after only a few seconds. The respiratory air analyzes carried out by the scientists showed that ginger also markedly softened the smell of many long-lasting flavors such as coffee drinking.

An enzyme in the mouth is responsible for the freshness

The study team documented how the zinc 6-gingerol gas from ginger excites the enzyme sulfhydryl oxidase 1 in saliva to increase 16-fold. This enzyme combats foul-smelling foci in the mouth and thus ensures a better taste in the mouth. "Our breath also smells better," reports study leader Professor Hofmann, director of the Leibniz Institute for Food Systems Biology at the TUM. From the discovered mechanism new oral hygiene products could be developed in the future, so the professor.

Not only ginger has been scrutinized

The TUM team also looked at other food ingredients for useful effects. "Many food ingredients contribute directly to their taste, their scent or their sharpness to the typical taste of food and beverages," explain the experts in a press release on the study results. In addition, they would indirectly have other, largely unexplored biochemical mechanisms that affect our sense of taste.

Citric acid reduces salty taste

In addition to the ginger, the scientists also devoted themselves to the lemon. In further research, the researchers found that citric acid has a very different impact on our sense of taste. According to the study, the acid stimulates salivary flow by about eleven times, thereby increasing the amount of minerals dissolved in the saliva. This effect in turn means that salt in food is not perceived as strong.

When salt does not taste salty anymore

"Saline is nothing more than sodium chloride, with the sodium ions in humans responsible for the salty taste," explains Professor Hofmann. If the saliva already contained a higher concentration of sodium ions, food would have to have a significantly higher salt content, so they are perceived as salty, so the conclusion of the food expert.

There is a lot of new territory in taste research

Professor Hofmann points to a complex interplay between the taste-giving molecular systems in food, the biochemical processes that take place in the saliva, and our taste sensation. In this area there is still much research needed. With his research, he wants to create a new scientific basis for the production of foods whose ingredient and functional profiles are tailored to the health and sensory needs of consumers.

Super-thin ginger

This study again shows the many positive effects of the ginger tuber, whose healing power has been known for thousands of years in traditional Chinese medicine. In addition to the newly discovered freshness effect, the all-purpose ginger ginger can be used multifaceted to promote good health. For example, ginger should:

• Against nausea and vomiting,
• often be effective in motion sickness,
• stimulate the digestion,
• help to reduce overweight,
• help with fullness after luscious food,
• Relieve pain and inflammation,
• antispasmodic and tumor-inhibiting,
• support the healing process for colds and cough,
• Reduce periodic pain,
• help with back pain and migraine.

(Vb)