Ginger ale is one of the most commonly reached-for home remedies for digestive discomfort, but as a treatment for gas specifically, it works against you more than it helps. While ginger itself has real evidence behind it as a digestive aid, the ginger ale you buy at the store is essentially sugar water with carbonation and trace flavoring. The carbonation introduces gas into your digestive tract, the sugar can feed the fermentation that causes gas in the first place, and the amount of actual ginger is negligible. The drink’s reputation rests almost entirely on the word “ginger” in its name and decades of parental advice.
What Ginger Can Actually Do
Ginger, the root, is not a folk myth. Several controlled trials have measured its effects on the digestive system, and the results are genuinely interesting. In one study of healthy volunteers, ginger roughly halved the time it took the stomach to empty its contents compared to a placebo. The stomach’s half-emptying time dropped from about 27 minutes with a placebo to about 13 minutes with ginger, and the frequency of contractions in the lower stomach increased as well.1PubMed. Effects of ginger on gastric emptying and motility in healthy humans A separate trial in people with functional dyspepsia found a similar pattern, with the stomach emptying faster after ginger consumption.2PubMed Central. Effect of ginger on gastric motility and symptoms of functional dyspepsia
Why does faster stomach emptying matter for gas? When food lingers in the stomach and upper gut longer than it should, it creates more opportunity for fermentation and gas buildup. By pushing contents through more efficiently, ginger can reduce that bloated, distended feeling that people often describe as “gas.” Animal research has also shown that ginger extracts can reverse chemically induced delays in gastric emptying, suggesting the effect is pharmacologically real rather than just a quirk of one or two human trials.3PubMed. Reversal of pyrogallol-induced delay in gastric emptying in rats by ginger (Zingiber officinale)
There is also a specific mechanism by which ginger may help gas escape the stomach more easily. A study measuring what happens at the junction between the esophagus and stomach after ginger consumption found that ginger caused the lower esophageal sphincter to relax more during swallowing. The researchers noted this could facilitate the expulsion of gastric gas, essentially making it easier to belch.4PubMed. Effect of ginger on lower esophageal sphincter pressure That is a modest but real anti-flatulent effect, and it comes from the bioactive compounds in ginger root, primarily gingerols and shogaols.
How Much Ginger Is in Ginger Ale
Here is where the story falls apart. The ginger used in those clinical trials was delivered in capsules or powder at doses typically around 1,000 to 1,500 milligrams. A systematic review of clinical trials on ginger and gastrointestinal disorders found that a divided daily dose of about 1,500 mg appeared beneficial for nausea, while the evidence for other gut symptoms remained too thin to draw strong conclusions.5PubMed Central. Ginger in gastrointestinal disorders: A systematic review of clinical trials
Most commercial ginger ales contain no measurable ginger at all. The ingredient lists for major brands typically include carbonated water, high fructose corn syrup or sugar, citric acid, and “natural flavors,” which can legally mean almost anything derived from a natural source. Some brands use a tiny amount of ginger extract for flavor, but the quantity is so small that it would not approach the doses used in any clinical trial. Even brands that market themselves as using “real ginger” rarely disclose how much is actually in the can, and independent analyses have consistently found the amounts to be trivial.
To get a therapeutically meaningful dose of ginger from ginger ale, you would need to drink an impractical volume of it, and by that point, the sugar and carbonation would overwhelm any benefit the ginger might provide.
Carbonation Adds Gas, It Doesn’t Remove It
This is the most straightforward problem with using ginger ale for gas relief. Carbonated beverages are, by definition, liquid infused with carbon dioxide gas. When you drink a can of ginger ale, you are swallowing dissolved COâ‚‚ that releases as gas in your stomach and intestines. For someone already dealing with bloating or flatulence, adding more gas to the system is counterproductive.
Some people feel temporary relief from the belching that carbonation triggers, but that addresses gas in the stomach, not the intestines. Most of what people describe as “gas” is intestinal, caused by fermentation in the colon, and belching does nothing for that. The COâ‚‚ that does not escape as a burp continues through the digestive tract and adds to the very symptom you are trying to fix.
It is also worth noting that the relationship between gas volume in the gut and the symptoms people experience is not straightforward. Research using imaging to measure intestinal gas has found that the total volume of gas visible on abdominal scans does not correlate with the severity of symptoms like pain, bloating, or discomfort.6PubMed. Intestinal gas in plain abdominal radiographs does not correlate with symptoms after lactulose challenge People with relatively little gas sometimes report severe bloating, while people with significant gas sometimes feel fine. This means the problem for many people is not the gas itself but how sensitive their gut is to normal amounts of it. Carbonation still makes things worse by increasing overall gas load, but it underscores that “reducing gas” and “feeling less bloated” are not always the same goal.
The Sugar Problem
A standard 12-ounce can of ginger ale contains roughly 30 to 40 grams of sugar, typically from high fructose corn syrup or sucrose. This creates a second problem for gas relief, especially for anyone with even mild fructose sensitivity.
Fructose malabsorption is more common than most people realize. When fructose is not fully absorbed in the small intestine, it passes into the colon, where gut bacteria ferment it and produce gas. A narrative review of the evidence on fructose malabsorption confirmed that this incomplete absorption leads to colonic fermentation and symptoms including bloating and excessive gas.7PubMed Central. Fructose Malabsorption, Gut Microbiota and Clinical Consequences: A Narrative Review of the Current Evidence High fructose corn syrup, which is the primary sweetener in most American ginger ale brands, delivers a concentrated hit of the very sugar most likely to cause this reaction.
Fructose falls into the category of FODMAPs, a group of short-chain carbohydrates known to provoke intestinal symptoms. Research on FODMAP restriction has shown that reducing dietary intake of these fermentable sugars leads to less gas production and meaningful symptom improvement, particularly in people with irritable bowel syndrome.8GASTROENTEROLOGY. Fructose: role in the formation of intestinal symptoms Drinking ginger ale moves you in exactly the opposite direction. You are loading up on a fermentable sugar while hoping the trace ginger and the fizz will somehow cancel it out. They do not.
Diet ginger ales swap the sugar for artificial sweeteners, which avoids the fructose fermentation issue. But you are still left with carbonated water and negligible ginger, which is not a remedy for anything.
Why People Think It Works
The belief in ginger ale as a stomach soother is deeply embedded in many cultures, particularly in North America, where generations of parents have handed their children a glass of flat or fizzy ginger ale for an upset stomach. This cultural conditioning matters more than it might seem.
Placebo responses in gastrointestinal conditions tend to be unusually strong. The gut is densely innervated and highly responsive to psychological state, which means that expecting a remedy to work can genuinely reduce the perception of symptoms like bloating or discomfort. Research on placebo effects in GI disorders has explored several potential mechanisms, including conditioning (you felt better as a child after drinking ginger ale, so your body anticipates feeling better now) and outcome expectations (you believe ginger is medicinal, so the drink feels therapeutic).9PubMed Central. Placebo responses in patients with gastrointestinal disorders
There is nothing wrong with a placebo effect if it makes you feel better. The issue arises when the drink’s downsides, the sugar load and the added gas, create more problems than the psychological comfort solves, or when it delays someone from addressing an underlying cause of chronic bloating.
Better Ways to Use Ginger for Gas
If you want the actual benefits of ginger without the drawbacks of ginger ale, the solution is straightforward: use real ginger in a form that delivers a meaningful dose without carbonation and sugar.
- Ginger tea: Steep a tablespoon of fresh grated ginger root in hot water for 5 to 10 minutes. This delivers a concentration of gingerols far beyond what any commercial ginger ale offers, with no added sugar and no carbonation. You can sweeten lightly with honey if needed.
- Ginger capsules: Standardized ginger extract capsules are widely available and deliver a consistent, measurable dose. Based on the clinical literature, doses in the range of 250 to 500 mg taken multiple times per day appear to be the range where effects on stomach motility become meaningful.
- Crystallized ginger: Candied ginger pieces contain real ginger in concentrated form. They do have added sugar, but in much smaller quantities than a full can of soda, and without the carbonation.
- Fresh ginger in food: Adding ginger to stir-fries, soups, or smoothies is another way to incorporate it regularly, though doses will vary and it is harder to gauge how much you are actually consuming.
The bioactive compounds in ginger are sensitive to processing. Gingerols, which are the primary active compounds in fresh ginger, convert to shogaols when exposed to high temperatures or during drying. Research on extraction methods has shown that shogaols may actually be more bioactive than gingerols, so dried or heat-processed ginger products are not necessarily less effective.10PubMed Central. Optimization of Extraction Conditions for the 6-Shogaol-rich Extract from Ginger (Zingiber officinale Roscoe) Both fresh and dried forms are reasonable choices.
When Gas Is Worth Taking Seriously
For most people, gas is an occasional nuisance that resolves on its own. But if you find yourself reaching for ginger ale regularly because of persistent bloating, that pattern is worth paying attention to. Chronic or worsening gas can be a sign of food intolerances, small intestinal bacterial overgrowth, celiac disease, or other conditions that have targeted treatments. Using ginger ale as a daily crutch can mask symptoms that would otherwise prompt someone to investigate further.
A few signs that gas warrants a conversation with a doctor: it is accompanied by unexplained weight loss, it is consistently associated with specific foods and worsening over time, it comes with persistent changes in bowel habits, or it is painful enough to interfere with daily life. None of these are situations where a can of soda is the right response.
Ginger Ale Versus Other Carbonated Drinks
People sometimes ask whether ginger ale is at least better than other sodas when your stomach is bothering you. The honest answer is that it is roughly equivalent. Cola, lemon-lime soda, and ginger ale all deliver the same basic payload: carbonated water, sugar, flavoring. None of them contain meaningful amounts of any compound with demonstrated effects on gas or digestion.
The one scenario where ginger ale might have a slight edge is if a particular brand happens to use enough real ginger extract to contribute some active compounds. A handful of craft or artisanal ginger ales, the kind sold in glass bottles at specialty stores, use substantially more ginger than mass-market brands and sometimes list ginger root or ginger juice high on the ingredient list. These products are closer to a ginger tea with bubbles, though they typically still come with significant sugar. If you are going to drink ginger ale at all, checking the ingredient list for actual ginger and the nutrition label for sugar content makes a real difference in whether the drink is doing anything useful.
Flat ginger ale is another common recommendation, the idea being that if you let the bubbles dissipate, you get the ginger without the gas. In practice, this gives you flat sugar water with negligible ginger. The carbonation was never the only problem, and removing it does not create a remedy out of what remains. You are still better off making ginger tea.
The Gap in the Research
One frustrating reality about this topic is that while ginger has been studied fairly well for nausea, particularly pregnancy-related and post-surgical nausea, the research on ginger specifically for intestinal gas and bloating is much thinner. The systematic review of ginger in gastrointestinal disorders noted that the evidence for conditions beyond nausea was limited by the small number of trials, making it difficult to draw firm conclusions about efficacy for bloating or flatulence.5PubMed Central. Ginger in gastrointestinal disorders: A systematic review of clinical trials The gastric-emptying studies are suggestive, because faster emptying should theoretically mean less fermentation and less gas, but “should theoretically” and “proven to” are different standards.
No one has run a rigorous trial comparing ginger ale to ginger capsules to placebo specifically for gas relief. The closest we get is the collection of motility studies on ginger root itself, which show a real physiological effect, and the well-established chemistry of carbonation and fructose, which work in the opposite direction. Putting those two bodies of evidence together, the case against ginger ale as a gas remedy is stronger than the case for it, even if no single study has tested the exact question most people are asking when they crack open a can.