Dried ginger (Gan Jiang) is the dried rhizome of the ginger plant, Zingiber officinale Rosc. It is harvested in winter, with the fibrous roots and soil removed, then sun-dried or dried at low temperatures. Freshly sliced and dried or low-temperature dried ginger is referred to as “dried ginger slices”.
Ginger Plant
【Characteristics】 Dried ginger appears as flat, block-like pieces with finger-like branches, measuring 3 to 7 cm in length and 1 to 2 cm in thickness. The surface is grayish-yellow or light gray-brown, rough, with longitudinal wrinkles and distinct nodes. Branching areas often retain scale leaves, and the tips of branches show stem scars or buds. The texture is solid, with a cross-section that is yellowish-white or grayish-white, powdery or granular, with distinct annular patterns in the inner skin layer and scattered yellow oil spots. It has a fragrant, distinctive aroma and a spicy taste.
Dried Ginger
Dried ginger slices are irregularly longitudinally or obliquely cut pieces, measuring 1 to 6 cm in length, 1 to 2 cm in width, and 0.2 to 0.4 cm in thickness. The outer skin is grayish-yellow or light brown, rough, with longitudinal wrinkles and distinct nodes. The cut surface is grayish-yellow or grayish-white, slightly powdery, with many longitudinal fibers, some appearing hair-like. The texture is solid, with a fibrous cross-section. It has a fragrant, distinctive aroma and a spicy taste.
Dried Ginger Slices
Dried Ginger Slices
Dried Ginger
Fried Ginger
Identification of Dried Ginger Characteristics
【Processing】 Dried ginger is cleaned of impurities, slightly soaked, washed, thoroughly moistened, cut into thick slices or blocks, and dried.
【Characteristics】 This product appears as irregular pieces, 0.2 to 0.4 cm thick.
Dried Ginger Slices
Ginger Charcoal is made from dried ginger blocks, fried until the surface is black and the interior is brown.
【Characteristics】 This product resembles dried ginger slices, with a blackened surface and brown interior, light in weight and brittle in texture. It has a slightly bitter and spicy taste.
Ginger Charcoal
Fried Ginger is made from dried ginger, fried in sand until it puffs up and turns brown.
【Characteristics】 This product appears as irregularly expanded blocks with finger-like branches. The surface is brown-black or brown. It is light and porous, with a cross-section showing brown-black edges and a yellow-brown center, granular in texture, with scattered vascular bundles. It has a fragrant, distinctive aroma and a slightly spicy taste.
Fried Ginger
【Chemical Composition】
Contains components such as pinene, laurene, watercressene, gingerol, ginger terpene ketone, gingerone, borneol, and ginger ketone, as well as resins, starch, and various amino acids.
【Pharmacological Effects】
1. Effects on the Central Nervous System The ginger extract shows a tendency to inhibit spontaneous movement in mice and can prolong sleep induced by cyclohexyl barbiturate. The combination of ginger extract and Ban Xia (Pinellia ternata) extract has a stronger effect on the central nervous system than either alone, significantly inhibiting spontaneous movement in mice and prolonging sleep time, indicating a synergistic effect. Various components of ginger exhibit central inhibition, enhance sedation and hypnosis, and counteract central stimulants. Both ether and water extracts of dried ginger show significant analgesic effects.
2. Effects on the Cardiovascular System Both dried ginger extract and its combination with Ban Xia enhance spontaneous movement in isolated hearts. Intravenous injection of dried ginger extract (0.25 g/kg) in rats initially causes a transient hypertensive effect, followed by a hypotensive effect, and enhances atrial spontaneous activity.
3. Effects on the Digestive System The combination of dried ginger extract and Ban Xia shows inhibitory effects on stress-induced ulcers. Dried ginger extract can inhibit gastric acidity and secretion, which is related to its effect on stress-induced ulcers. However, some reports indicate that water decoction of dried ginger (4.5 g/kg) does not inhibit stress-induced gastric ulcers, acetic acid-induced gastric ulcers, pyloric ligation-induced gastric ulcers, or indomethacin-induced gastric ulcers in rats; whereas fried ginger (made from dried ginger slices fried in sand) water decoction (4.5 g/kg) significantly inhibits stress-induced gastric ulcers, acetic acid-induced gastric ulcers, and pyloric ligation-induced gastric ulcers, but has no effect on indomethacin-induced gastric ulcers.
4. Anti-inflammatory Effects Both ether and water extracts of dried ginger exhibit significant anti-inflammatory effects. Ginger extract and gingerone administered orally do not show significant effects on paw swelling induced by carrageenan in rats, but increasing the dose of gingerone results in significant anti-inflammatory effects, although weaker than that of indomethacin (5 mg/kg).
5. Anti-hypoxia Effects Ether extract of dried ginger shows anti-hypoxia effects, extending survival time in mice subjected to hypoxia at normal pressure and potassium cyanide poisoning; it also prolongs the maintenance of respiration after acute cerebral ischemia and hypoxia induced by decapitation in mice, but shows only a tendency to extend survival time in mice poisoned with sodium nitrite and has no effect on survival time in hypothermic mice.
6. Other Effects Water extract and volatile oil of dried ginger administered orally can significantly prevent the formation of experimental thrombosis in rats. Water decoction of dried ginger (10 mg/ml) prolongs coagulation time and partially dissolves fibrin. Ginger extract significantly inhibits vomiting induced by peripheral emetic agents such as copper sulfate; however, it does not inhibit vomiting induced by central emetic agents such as apomorphine and digitalis. Ginger extract can inhibit vascular permeability and, when combined with Ban Xia, exhibits diuretic effects. Gingerol and gingerone have significant molluscicidal effects.
【Properties and Channels Entered】 Spicy, hot. Enters the Spleen, Stomach, Kidney, Heart, and Lung channels.
【Functions and Indications】 Warms the middle, disperses cold, restores yang, opens the meridians, warms the lungs, and transforms phlegm. Used for cold pain in the abdomen, vomiting, diarrhea, cold limbs with weak pulse, and cough with phlegm due to cold.
【Dosage and Administration】 3 to 10 g.
【Storage】 Store in a cool, dry place, protected from pests.
【Preparation】 Ginger tincture.
Note: This article aims to promote the culture of Traditional Chinese Medicine. The TCM knowledge mentioned is for learning and exchange purposes only.
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