Safety of ginger use in pregnancy: results from a large population-based cohort study.
OBJECTIVE
The objective of the study was to examine the safety of ginger use during pregnancy on congenital malformations and selected pregnancy outcomes.


METHODS
The Norwegian Mother and Child Cohort study, a large population-based cohort, provided the data used in this study. Our study population consisted of 68,522 women. Data on ginger use and socio-demographic factors were retrieved from three self-administered questionnaires completed by the women during weeks 17 and 30 of the pregnancy and when their child was 6 months old. Data on pregnancy outcomes were provided by the Medical Birth Registry of Norway.


RESULTS
Among the 68,522 women in the study, 1,020 (1.5 %) women reported using ginger during pregnancy. The use of ginger during pregnancy was not associated with any increased risk of congenital malformations. No increased risk for stillbirth/perinatal death, preterm birth, low birth weight, or low Apgar score was detected for the women exposed to ginger during pregnancy compared to women who had not been exposed.


CONCLUSIONS
Use of ginger during pregnancy does not seem to increase the risk of congenital malformations, stillbirth/perinatal death, preterm birth, low birth weight, or low Apgar score. This finding is clinically important for health care professionals giving advice to pregnant women with NPV.
Department of Public Health and Primary Health Care and Centre of Pharmacy, University of Bergen, P.O. Box 7804, 5020 Bergen, Norway. kristine.heitmann@isf.uib.no
Kristine
K
Heitmann
Hedvig
H
Nordeng
Lone
L
Holst
D000328:Adult; D015331:Cohort Studies; D000013:Congenital Abnormalities / Q000453:epidemiology*; D005260:Female; D020939:Zingiber officinale; D006801:Humans; D009664:Norway / Q000453:epidemiology; D011247:Pregnancy; D011256:Pregnancy Outcome / Q000453:epidemiology*; D012042:Registries; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D055815:Young Adult