The effect of Ginger consumption on blood lipids of hypercholesterolimia patients

The objective of this research is to determine the effect of consumtion of ginger on blood lipids of the hypercholestrolemia patients who referred to clinics at Shaheed Modarres Hospital at Tehran. This double-blind clinical trial was conducted in 23 subjects with hypercholestrolemia by using before-after treatment method. The subjects referring to clinics at Shahid Modarres Hospital were selected non-randomly by convenience sampling. All patients were given ginger powder capsules 3 times a day with a total amount of 400 mg over four weeks. After one-week washout, placebo capsules were administered with similar condition. Blood samples were collected and examined at the beginning and at the end of fourth and ninth weeks of the study for serum total cholesterd, LDL cholesterol, HDL cholesterol and triglycerides after 12-14 hours at fasting. In addition, 24 hours recall questionnerie of food intake was completed at the beginning and at the end of the study. Dietary consumption of ginger powder significantly increased total serum cholesterol and LDL cholesterol. There was no significant change in HDL, cholesterol, triglycerides, and LDL/HDL ratio. Although there was a continual decrease in TG/HDL ratio, it was not statistically significant. In spite of the fact that consumption of ginger powder can reduce TG/HDL ratio as a significant risk factor in myocardial infarction, some findings are unexpected. Thus, further studies with different dose and duration of consumptions are recommended.