Ginger has a long and well-documented history of culinary and medicinal use, not only throughout Asia, but in the Roman Empire and thence to those European countries colonised by Rome.

Chinese herbalists traditionally use ginger to expel cold and restore depleted yang. It induces sweating, thereby expelling toxins. It is also used for some types of diarrhoea, cough, rheumatism and other ills.

But the most widely known use of ginger today is for nausea. The Chinese believe it stimulates and strengthens the stomach, and this is borne out by modern scientific research.

In India, too, ginger has traditionally been used to treat cold conditions - nausea, cough. colic, heart palpitations, swelling, dyspepsia, and rheumatism. It was also applied as a paste to the temples to relieve headache.

The forerunner of modern gingerbread was apparently an ancient Greek digestive aid. They would follow a big meal with a piece of ginger wrapped in bread. Over time, the ginger was incorporated into the bread. When trade brought the spice to Europe, it became almost indispensable very quickly, and its use in confectionery was born. Here the Greek gingerbread evolved into a sugary cake that proved very popular.