Effect of Oral Stimulation with Ginger (Zingiber officinale Roscoe) Juice on Salivary Secretion

Abstract

  This study demonstrated the effect of oral stimulation with ginger juice (GJ) on salivary secretion. Compared with distilled water (DW), oral stimulation with GJ increased total salivary secretion. Moreover, the total salivary secretion induced by GJ was higher than those by citric acid (CA) and monosodium L-glutamate (MSG). Markers of autonomic nervous activity (RR interval, standard deviation of RR intervals, and root mean square of successive differences between RR intervals) were not different between the solutions. The pungency components of GJ included 6-gingerol and 6-shogaol, with 6-gingerol being the major component. Thus, the increase in salivary secretion by oral stimulation with GJ may have been induced by pungency components, such as 6-gingerol and/or 6-shogaol. The results indicate that GJ helps increase salivary secretion and maintain oral health.