Ginger Tea Side Effects

Ginger tea, that is made from ginger root, is a hot conventional beverage that is consumed by millions of people everyday. Ginger tea is consumed in a variety of forms throughout the world. Every region has its own ginger root tea delicacy that is relished by people. Ginger tea is also a recommended medicine in many different cultures and books. For example, Ayurveda recommends its use for a number of purposes. There are a number of ginger root tea health benefits. However, a famous saying goes, 'too much of anything is bad'; and ginger tea is no exception! Excessive consumption of ginger tea can have serious side effects. Let's take a look at some of them.

Recommended Consumption Limits
The FDA (Food and Drug Administration) has listed ginger as 'generally recognized as safe' food product. The safety limit for ginger intake is 2 gm for every kg of body mass, anything more than that is overdose. Basically, one needs to exercise caution, be aware about the consumption of ginger tea as side effects can be occur even in circumstances where there is no over dose. Apart from that, herds and medications are known to react with ginger tea, hence consulting one's physician is essential, if you are consuming any medication.

Side Effects of Ginger Tea
One of the first precautions that you must take while taking ginger tea is that you need to have a timely and healthy amount of ginger tea according to the needs of your body. The drawback of most of the botanical medicines, especially in the form of herbs and roots is that there is a good possibility that these herbs react with medications. It is thus advisable to consult a diet and nutrition expert before you actually start consuming large amounts of ginger tea on a regular basis. Ginger tea side effects are pretty rare. Ginger tea reacts with medicines that are prescribed in order to cure bleeding. Medications like aspirin also react with large volumes of ginger tea.

In cases where ginger tea reacts with other medications, symptoms such as belching, nausea, heartburn and stomach upset are observed. The following are some of the case specific ginger tea side effects that are commonly observed.

1. Side Effects of Over Consumption: The common phenomenon of ginger tea overdose has been observed in many cases. Ginger tea is to be consumed in limited quantities. The overdose of ginger tea affects the digestive system. Over consumption of ginger tea or consuming ginger tea in excess quantities affects the digestive system, causing a person to suffer from nausea, diarrhea and even heartburn. Over consumption may also lead to production of acids in the human body, leading to acidity.

2. Anesthesia and Ginger Tea: If a person has consumed ginger tea just before a surgery or has been drinking ginger tea for long, it can be a reason for certain complications in the surgery. Drugs administered for anesthesia are found to react with ginger tea, leading to complications, such as hindrance in healing of wounds or photosensitive reactions and bleeding as a result of interaction with anticoagulants.

3. Ginger Tea Side Effects in Patients with Blood Disorders: Ginger tea might be a hindrance in the functioning of the platelets that are responsible for the coagulation of blood. Patients who suffer from blood disorders such as hemophilia must hence consult their physician before consuming ginger tea. Blood thinners (Warfarin), which are prescribed for some blood related disorders are known to react with ginger.

4. Consuming Ginger Tea during Pregnancy: Ginger tea is also rumored to be a substance that is toxic to the unborn child. Hence, morning sickness patients should stay away from ginger tea. However, some medical practitioners prescribe ginger tea as a medicine for morning sickness. The issue remains debatable; but the best we can do is to avoid over consumption of ginger tea.

5. Drinking Ginger Tea before Sleep: One of the common side effects of ginger tea is that it 'kills' sleep. That means, if you consume ginger tea before going to bed, there are chances that you would not be able to sleep for a very long time and you might also experience a heartburn.

6. Ginger Tea and Gallstones: Bile production, for gallstone patients is quite painful. Ginger promotes bile production, and indirectly contributes to the pain caused.

7. Ginger Tea and the Stomach: Ginger tea and an empty stomach for a long time is a particularly bad combination, this often leads to unhealthy acidity. Hence you need to have some solid food before or after consuming the tea. This may not prove to be a problem in the short-run, but following an 'empty stomach' pattern is especially harmful in the long-term, for your digestive tract and it can lead to a lot may complications. Perpetual acidity, is not at all safe for the organs of the digestive system.

It is thus advisable for a person to seek able guidance before indulging in ginger tea on a regular basis. Ginger tea side effects are observed when it is consumed in large quantities. So, whenever you have a craving for ginger tea, drink it in sips not cups!