Black caraway is mainly known from the spice rack. However, you can also use it to obtain a special oil whose healing properties have been sworn by in the Middle East for thousands of years: black cumin oil. Read here what ingredients it contains, what it is supposed to help against and what a food expert says about it from a scientific point of view.
What is black seed oil and how is it made?
Thousands of years old medicinal plant
As the name suggests, black cumin oil is obtained from the seeds of the black cumin plant, botanically called «Nigella sativa». The story behind it goes back several thousand years: Found papyrus scrolls show that the ancient Egyptians called black cumin oil the «gold of the pharaohs». A bottle of it was even found in the tomb of Pharaoh Tutankhamun. Black cumin was not only part of ancient Greco-Roman medicine, but also widespread in the Persian-Arabian region. It also has a firm place in all world religions. From the Bible, for example, the small, black seeds known as «ketzah» were usually sprinkled on flatbreads. Probably the most well-known quote is that of the Prophet Mohammed from Islam, who honors the plant in one of his holy books with the sentence: «Black cumin heals every disease except death.» In the Middle Ages, it was mainly the monasteries that introduced black cumin into European medicine a. After that, however, it was forgotten again. Due to the ever-growing trend towards healthy and conscious nutrition, especially with the help of plant-based products, the hype about black cumin has recently been revived.
Production in the cold pressing process
Two different types of oil can be made from black cumin: a normal cooking oil and an essential oil. To produce the cooking oil, the seeds of the black cumin plant are first dried and then cold-pressed. In this way, the ingredients should be better preserved. The essential oil is obtained through a special evaporation process. Up to 60 kilograms of black cumin seeds are required for one liter.
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Theoretically, you could do the whole thing yourself: To do this, you put about 500 grams of black cumin seeds together with a liter of olive oil in a mason jar and leave the whole thing in a warm place for about three weeks. The seeds are then filtered out again. However, the ingredients of the self-made variant cannot be compared with those of a machine cold-pressed oil.
These are the ingredients of black cumin oil
But what is so special about the supposed “liquid gold”?
Black seed oil consists of 60 percent polyunsaturated fatty acids, followed by 20 to 25 percent monounsaturated fatty acids. The highest is the proportion of oleic acid, linoleic acid and saponins (they belong to the secondary plant substances). It also contains essential oils and essential amino acids such as L-phenylalanine and L-tyrosine. These in turn are the basic building blocks of the messenger substances adrenaline, noradrenaline and dopamine. In addition to the minerals biotin, selenium and magnesium, black cumin oil also contains various vitamins – such as provitamin A, various B vitamins, as well as vitamin C and vitamin E.
What should black cumin oil help against?
Black cumin oil is said to have countless health effects in a wide variety of areas. In naturopathy, it is used in particular for the following complaints:
- allergies
- asthma
- diabetes
- high blood pressure
- indigestion
- Rheumatoid arthritis
- Alleviating the side effects of chemotherapy
- Skin diseases such as acne or neurodermatitis
Black cumin is also said to strengthen the immune system and have an anti-inflammatory effect.
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Is the effect scientifically proven?
There are many supposed “cure-alls” in herbal medicine, and when researching black cumin oil, you come across numerous different studies that are supposed to provide evidence of its effectiveness. But can this be scientifically proven? «Yes, there are actually some studies that provide evidence that black cumin has a health effect in various ways,» confirms Sabine Hülsmann, specialist advisor for food and nutrition at the Bavarian consumer center, to FITBOOK. However, many of these studies have a rather small number of test persons – so they are not really meaningful. The same applies to studies on animals, which cannot be easily transferred to humans, according to the expert.
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Ingestion, application and dosage
Black cumin oil has many uses. So you can use it both internally and externally. Hülsmann: «Since the oil tastes and smells very intense, it is rather difficult to integrate it into everyday nutrition. That’s why it’s usually added to, among other things, it’s also offered in capsule form.» Regarding the dosage, she recommends: «In studies, amounts of up to five milliliters of oil (equivalent to half a tablespoon to a whole tablespoon) or three grams of seeds were given .” According to the expert, however, one should not ignore the additional calories consumed as a result. For external use, for example against acne, the oil can be applied undiluted to the affected areas of the skin. On the other hand, if you suffer from neurodermatitis, you should dilute the black cumin oil with a carrier oil. Argan oil, for example, is suitable for this.
Can side effects occur?
In principle, side effects would rarely occur when using or taking black cumin oil. «In the studies, itching or nausea were occasionally reported,» explains Hülsmann. In another study, there was also a slight drop in blood sugar. Allergic skin reactions are rare. According to the expert, a contact allergy with local application cannot be ruled out. She also advises against taking black seed oil on an empty stomach, as it can irritate the stomach lining. Another side effect that has been reported is increased burping.
In general, the expert advises stopping treatment with black cumin oil immediately if there are signs of side effects. To be on the safe side, pregnant women should also refrain from taking it in concentrated form, as a labor-promoting effect cannot be ruled out. But don’t worry: the normal caraway roll, on the other hand, is still harmless.
What does it cost and what should you pay attention to when buying?
When buying black cumin oil, you should pay particular attention to the quality. Always use high-quality organically grown oil, advises the expert. You can buy both filtered and unfiltered black seed oil. Although the unfiltered version is more natural, the filtered oil has a milder taste and is therefore more digestible. The natural product can be bought in pharmacies, health food stores, organic shops, well-stocked drugstores and also online. You pay between 20 and 35 euros for a liter. But there are also smaller bottlings, which are correspondingly cheaper. Depending on the size of the pack, the capsules cost around 5 to 25 euros.
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Expert conclusion: black cumin oil does not replace medication
Finally, the nutrition expert states that, despite all the alleged health effects, black cumin is only a dietary supplement and not a cure. “In the case of dietary supplements, you should know that they are legally classified as food. They are not there to prevent, alleviate or cure diseases. That is still the task of medicines,” explains Hülsmann. This is also due to the fact that dietary supplements are not tested before they are sold, or the amount of ingredients they contain is determined. She therefore does not advise against taking it: if the oil is good for you, you can take it – in appropriate doses. However, black cumin oil does not have a proven health effect.