According to the NHS UK, about a quarter of people regularly suffer from halitosis. Not only is it an embarrassment, it can also lead to low self-esteem in some people. If you’ve ever had to deal with halitosis, there’s good news for you yet. A new study shows that drinking a cup of ginger tea could help eliminate bad breath.

The chemical that gives ginger its spicy flavour (Gingerol) stimulates an enzyme in the mouth that breaks down the materials that cause your breath to smell bad.

Food substance usually contains sulphur compounds that produce an offensive odour in people’s mouth that contributes to halitosis. Halitosis is simply the medical term for bad breath.

However, you can only get gingerol from drinking or eating the root. Once the gingerol is released, it boosts the level of the sulfur-breaking enzyme by a factor of 16 in mere seconds. This helps to improve your breath and eliminate any bad smell.

While investigating the effects of food on the actions of saliva molecules, researchers at the Technical University OF Munich in Germany discovered that ginger could help with bad breath.

The research showed that ginger contained a chemical that destroys amino acids carrying sulfur molecules. These acids contributed significantly to halitosis. Consuming ginger increased the level of an enzyme known as sulfhydryl oxidase 1almost 16 times its usual level.

When scientists tested human volunteers that consumed ginger to see how it affected the breath and saliva of humans, they found that the breath of the volunteers had improved.

Experts believe that this research could lead producers to make toothpaste and mouthwashes that contain this spicy ingredient. However, before that happens, you can brew a cup of ginger tea, or add a pinch to your food to help combat the problem that affects 25% of people.

How Ginger Tea Helps to Eliminate Bad Breath

The enzyme released when you consume ginger destroys suffer in the mouth that typically leads to bad breath. This means that ginger can also remove the long-lasting aftertastes that accompany things like coffee through the same process. 

“As a result, our breath also smells better,” stated Professor Thomas Hofmann, the lead researcher of the study. He also added that companies that manufacture oral hygiene product could learn from the process and create products that contain ginger. Unfortunately, the research did not specify how much ginger you would need to eat or drink before you can achieve the desired effect.

This new research also helps to support previous claims about the various health benefits that ginger provides. Earlier in May, scientists claimed that ginger root could provide relief to children who suffer from stomach bugs.

The University of Naples carried out a study that showed that children with gastroenteritis needed less time off school and vomited less after they consumed a few drops of ginger.

The research revealed that only two-thirds the number of children taking ginger got sick while 86.7% of those that were given a placebo threw up during their illness.