Wednesday Oct 2, 2013 (foodconsumer.org) -- A new study in Panta Medica has provided evidence at least partially explaining the therapeutic effect of ginger on cardiovascular disease.

Qing Liu from School of Chinese Pharmacy, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine in Beijing, China and colleagues conducted the study and discovered that [6]-Gingerol found in ginger is a potent angiotensin II type 1 receptor antagonist that can be used for the treatment of cardiovascular disease.

Anything that inhibits angiotensin II type 1 receptor activation can be accepted as a therapeutic agent to treat or prevent cardiovascular disease, according to the study report.

In the study, the Chinese researchers tested 89 compounds isolated form 39 Chinese herbs using a cell-based calcium mobilization assay and found [6]-Gingerol derived from Zingiber officinale Roscoe (ginger) is an angiotensin II type 1 receptor antagonist.

The researchers say that the finding "partially clarified the mechanism of ginger regulating blood pressure and strengthening heart in the cardiovascular system."

Early research has shown that [6]-gingerol inhibits angiogenesis and may be used treat cancers and other angiogenesis-dependent diseases.  It also protects against bacterial infection and inflammation.

Cardiovascular disease is a leading killer in the United States.  Medications have a limited efficacy and anything that is promising for the treatment of the disease may deserve further investigation.

However, consumers may not have to wait.  It has been known that coronary heart disease, one major cardiovascular disease, can be prevented in many cases by following a plant-based diet.  Many patients who opt to follow a plant-based diet either improve their conditions or stop the progression or even reverse their conditions.

[6]-gingerol is available as a dietary supplement. (DL)