How to make fresh ginger tea, and what it can and cannot do

Ginger is a root, and tough plant parts give up their flavor slowly. The usual method for roots, barks and seeds is a decoction: the plant goes into the water on the heat, instead of having hot water poured over it the way you would make mint or chamomile tea. Our herbal infusions guide covers the difference. Slicing or grating the root first exposes more surface, so a grated piece gives a stronger cup than the same piece in thick coins.

Nausea in early pregnancy. This is the best-studied use. A 2014 systematic review pooled 12 randomized trials with 1,278 pregnant women and found ginger improved nausea symptoms compared with placebo. It did not significantly reduce the number of vomiting episodes, and the authors rated the evidence as low quality because of the small number of studies and variable reporting Viljoen 2014. NCCIH summarizes the research the same way: ginger may help with pregnancy nausea NCCIH.

The trials gave women measured amounts of ginger. A mug brewed to taste delivers an unknown and variable amount, so the tea is a reasonable, low-risk way to try ginger rather than a replica of the studied dose. The full set of graded uses, including nausea after surgery and period pain, is on the ginger remedy page.

Colds. No controlled trials in people show that ginger shortens a cold. What a hot drink can do is make you feel better for a while: in a study of 30 people with colds or flu, a hot fruit drink brought quick relief of runny nose, cough, sore throat and tiredness as they rated it, without changing measured nasal airflowSanu 2008. That is comfort, and a good enough reason to make a pot. See the colds page for what has better evidence.

Ginger as a food or a daily cup is ordinary. The cautions concern larger, regular amounts and supplements. NCCIH lists abdominal discomfort, heartburn, diarrhea and mouth and throat irritation as side effects of ginger taken by mouth, and says supplements may be safe in pregnancy but to consult your health care provider first; little is known about ginger while breastfeeding NCCIH.

If you take a blood thinner, read our page on ginger and anticoagulants and talk to your prescriber or pharmacist before using concentrated ginger products. If you sweeten the tea with honey, keep it away from babies under a year old: honey can carry the spores that cause infant botulism MedlinePlus.

Fresh root from the produce aisle gives the best flavor: look for firm, smooth skin without wrinkles or soft spots, and keep it in the refrigerator. Unused root can be frozen and grated straight from frozen. If you prefer tea bags, iHerb stocks single-ingredient ginger teas; check the label says ginger and nothing else if you want to know what you are drinking.