冬吃萝卜夏吃姜：姜的9大保健功效

 What Exactly Is Ginger¹... And What Are Its Benefits?

姜到底是什么……它有什么益处？

Ginger is a rhizome in the Zingiberaceae family, and it's related to turmeric, cardamom, and galangal.

姜是姜科中的一种根茎，它与姜黄、小豆蔻、高良姜有亲缘关系。

A rhizome is found underground — but it's actually a stem, not a root!

这种根茎长于地下——但它实际上是一种茎，不是根！

Ginger has been used for centuries to relieve aches, pains, and ailments² of all kinds. It can be used as a spice in all kinds of cooking, as well as brewed³ to make tea.

几个世纪以来，姜就被用于缓解疼痛以及各种疾病。也可将其添加在各种饭菜中作为香料，而且姜还可以用于泡茶。

Benefit #1: Eases Nausea⁴

功效一：缓解恶心

Ginger has long been used as a treatment for nausea of all kinds, including sea sickness and the nausea that comes after surgeries and other medical treatments.

长期以来，姜一直被用于缓解各种恶心，包括晕船以及外科手术和其他医学治疗后随之而来的恶心。

Benefit #2: Aids Digestion⁵

功效二：助消化

Ginger has been shown to speed the stomach's emptying process and make digestion go more smoothly⁶.

研究表明，姜可以加速胃部排空，并使消化更顺畅。

Benefit #3: Soothes⁷ Achy Muscle

功效三：舒缓肌肉酸痛

Ginger has been shown to be effective in soothing⁸ sore muscles, especially from exercise-induced pain.

研究表明，姜可以有效地舒缓肌肉酸痛，尤其是运动引起的酸痛。

Benefit #4: Soothes Osteoarthritis

功效四：缓解骨关节炎

Ginger can also reduce inflammation in joints⁹, such as the inflammation that occurs with osteoarthritis.

姜也可以减轻关节炎，如伴随骨关节炎出现的炎症。

Benefit #5: Lowers Blood Sugar + Boosts Heart Health

功效五：降血糖+有益于心脏健康

A study showed that powdered ginger, taken daily, reduced the blood sugar levels in people with Type II diabetes¹⁰ by 10 percent.

一项研究表明患有II型糖尿病的患者每天服用姜粉，其血糖浓度降低了10%。

It also showed a 23 percent decrease in oxidized lipoproteins, a major factor in heart disease.

研究也表明每天服用姜粉，氧化脂蛋白降低了23%，而氧化脂蛋白是引发心脏病的主要因素。

However, this is a relatively¹¹ new discovery, and more studies must be performed before we really know.

然而，这是一个相对较新的发现，在我们真正了解之前必须进行更多研究。

Benefit #6: Lowers Cholesterol¹² Levels

功效六：降低胆固醇水平

LDL lipoproteins, the "bad" cholesterol, are a risk factor for heart disease, and greatly influenced by what you eat.

低密度脂蛋白，一种“有害的”胆固醇，是引发心脏病的危险因子，并且受饮食的影响巨大。

But taking 3 grams of ginger powder daily can greatly reduce LDL lipoproteins, says one study.

但是一项研究表明，每天服用3克姜粉可以极大地减少低密度脂蛋白。

Benefit #7: Eases Menstrual Pain

功效七：缓解痛经

When taken at the beginning of the cycle, ginger was shown to reduce the cramping¹³ pain many women experience while menstruating.

研究表明，在月经周期之初服用姜可以缓解许多妇女经期时的绞痛。

Benefit #8: Aids Brain Function

功效八：有助于增强脑功能

A study involving middle-aged¹⁴ women showed that taking ginger had a direct effect on the brain and improved their reaction time and memory.

一项针对中年妇女的研究表明服用姜可以直接影响大脑并提高了她们的反应能力和记忆力。

Benefit #9: Could Help Fight Cancer

功效九：可以帮助与癌症抗争

Some studies suggest that a compound found in raw ginger, 6-gingerol, can greatly reduce the potentially cancer-causing activity in cells.

研究表明，在生姜中发现的一种化合物，6-姜辣素，可以极大地减少潜在致癌活性细胞。

However, other studies have shown that it has no substantive¹⁵ effect at all.

然而，其他的研究表明姜完全没有实质性效果。

Though the information we have on the relationship between ginger and cancer is limited, it's definitely something worth looking into!

尽管有关姜和癌症之间的关联性，我们拥有的信息有限，但这一定是值得研究的课题。

1 ginger   

n.姜，精力，淡赤黄色；adj.淡赤黄色的；vt.使活泼，使有生气

参考例句：

• There is no ginger in the young man.这个年轻人没有精神。
• Ginger shall be hot in the mouth.生姜吃到嘴里总是辣的。

2 ailments   

疾病（尤指慢性病），不适( ailment的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His ailments include a mild heart attack and arthritis. 他患有轻度心脏病和关节炎。
• He hospitalizes patients for minor ailments. 他把只有小病的患者也送进医院。

3 brewed   

调制( brew的过去式和过去分词 )； 酝酿； 沏（茶）； 煮（咖啡）

参考例句：

• The beer is brewed in the Czech Republic. 这种啤酒是在捷克共和国酿造的。
• The boy brewed a cup of coffee for his mother. 这男孩给他妈妈冲了一杯咖啡。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 nausea   

n.作呕，恶心；极端的憎恶(或厌恶)

参考例句：

• Early pregnancy is often accompanied by nausea.怀孕期常有恶心的现象。
• He experienced nausea after eating octopus.吃了章鱼后他感到恶心。

5 digestion   

n.消化，吸收

参考例句：

• This kind of tea acts as an aid to digestion.这种茶可助消化。
• This food is easy of digestion.这食物容易消化。

6 smoothly   

adv.平滑地，顺利地，流利地，流畅地

参考例句：

• The workmen are very cooperative,so the work goes on smoothly.工人们十分合作，所以工作进展顺利。
• Just change one or two words and the sentence will read smoothly.这句话只要动一两个字就顺了。

7 soothes   

v.安慰( soothe的第三人称单数 )；抚慰；使舒服；减轻痛苦

参考例句：

• Fear grasps, love lets go. Fear rankles, love soothes. 恐惧使人痛心，爱使痛苦减轻。 来自互联网
• His loe celebrates her victories and soothes her wounds. 他的爱庆祝她的胜利，也抚平她的创伤。 来自互联网

8 soothing   

adj.慰藉的；使人宽心的；镇静的

参考例句：

• Put on some nice soothing music.播放一些柔和舒缓的音乐。
• His casual, relaxed manner was very soothing.他随意而放松的举动让人很快便平静下来。

9 joints   

接头( joint的名词复数 )； 关节； 公共场所（尤指价格低廉的饮食和娱乐场所） （非正式）； 一块烤肉 （英式英语）

参考例句：

• Expansion joints of various kinds are fitted on gas mains. 各种各样的伸缩接头被安装在煤气的总管道上了。
• Expansion joints of various kinds are fitted on steam pipes. 各种各样的伸缩接头被安装在蒸气管道上了。

10 diabetes   

n.糖尿病

参考例句：

• In case of diabetes, physicians advise against the use of sugar.对于糖尿病患者，医生告诫他们不要吃糖。
• Diabetes is caused by a fault in the insulin production of the body.糖尿病是由体內胰岛素分泌失调引起的。

11 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。

12 cholesterol   

n.（U）胆固醇

参考例句：

• There is cholesterol in the cell of body.人体细胞里有胆固醇。
• They are determining the serum-protein and cholesterol levels.他们正在测定血清蛋白和胆固醇的浓度。

13 cramping   

图像压缩

参考例句：

• The bleeding may keep my left hand from cramping. 淌血会叫我的左手不抽筋。
• This loss of sodium can cause dehydration and cramping. 钠流失会造成脱水和抽筋。

14 middle-aged   

adj.中年的

参考例句：

• I noticed two middle-aged passengers.我注意到两个中年乘客。
• The new skin balm was welcome by middle-aged women.这种新护肤香膏受到了中年妇女的欢迎。

15 substantive   

adj.表示实在的；本质的、实质性的；独立的；n.实词，实名词；独立存在的实体

参考例句：

• They plan to meet again in Rome very soon to begin substantive negotiations.他们计划不久在罗马再次会晤以开始实质性的谈判。
• A president needs substantive advice,but he also requires emotional succor. 一个总统需要实质性的建议，但也需要感情上的支持。