Ginger (Zingibers) is used in cooking food. It is a spice.
It also has medicinal value. Some tribes use it for treating abdominal pain and as anti-helminthic troubles.
As per scientific information available, there are 141 species of genus Zingiber are distributed throughout tropical Asia, including China, Japan and tropical Australia.
Of these, 20 are reported from India, which include seven from Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Most of the species of these Gingers are endemic to India.
The tribes of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands have interesting usage of other species of Zingibers.
For instance, Shompen and Nicobari tribes use various plant parts of another species of Zingiber (Hornstedia fenzlii) as bee repellent and, tranquiliser.
Rhizome extracts and leaf pest are applied on body during extracting honey from honeycomb.
Ginger has a sialagogue action, stimulating the production of saliva, which makes swallowing easier.
