Cumin

India, the Middle East, and the Mediterranean region. The fruit of the plant is called the cumin seed, and it’s popular all over the world as a spice. Cumin has become the subject of medical research, as anecdotal evidence claims it has all kinds of health benefits.

Most of cumin’s claimed benefits have to do with your digestion, immune system, and circulation. Some benefits of cumin can be demonstrated with clinical studies, while some remain hard to prove.

How to Prepare Cumin

Cumin is a popular seasoning in many Indian and Latin American dishes. Some recipes call for use of the whole cumin seed while others use the powdered form.

Both cumin seed and powder have a rich, earthy, nutty flavor. If you’re using whole cumin seeds, try toasting them in a nonstick pan to bring out more of their unique flavor.

Here are just a few ways you can experiment with using cumin as a seasoning in your food :

•   Add cumin to a spice rub for grilled chicken or fish.

•   Mix cumin with yogurt, veggies, and other spices to make a traditional Indian raita.

•   Toss cumin seeds with rice or couscous.

•   Stir cumin into your favorite chili recipe.

•   Sprinkle a little cumin onto a salad for an extra kick.

Cumin has many evidence-based health benefits. Some of these have been known since ancient times, while others are only just being discovered.

Using cumin as a spice increases antioxidant intake, promotes digestion, provides iron, may improve blood sugar control and may reduce food-borne illnesses.

Taking higher doses in supplement form has been linked to weight loss and improved blood cholesterol, though more research is needed.

I personally prefer to use cumin in cooking rather than as a supplement. This way, I take advantage of the 10th benefit of cumin — it’s delicious.

Uses in Food

Many dishes use cumin, especially foods from its native regions of the Mediterranean and Southwest Asia.

Cumin lends its distinctive flavour to chili, tamales and various Indian curries. Its flavour has been described as earthy, nutty, spicy and warm.

Nutrition

Cumin contains compounds called flavonoids that work as antioxidants in the body. Antioxidants can help neutralize unstable particles called free radicals that cause cell damage. By neutralizing these particles, antioxidants can help prevent diseases like cancer, heart disease, and high blood pressure.

Cumin is also a good source of: Vitamin A, Calcium, Iron

Nutrients per Serving

1 teaspoon of cumin contains:

•   Calories: 8

•   Protein: 0 grams

•   Fat: 0 grams

•   Carbohydrates: 1 gram

•   Fiber: 0 grams

•   Sugar: 0 grams

Promotes Digestion :

The most common traditional use of cumin is for indigestion.modern research has confirmed cumin may help rev up normal digestion.

Cumin also increases the release of bile from the liver. Bile helps digest fats and certain nutrients in your gut.

In one study, 57 patients with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) reported improved symptoms after taking concentrated cumin for two weeks .

Rich Source of Iron

Cumin seeds are naturally rich in iron .

One teaspoon of ground cumin contains 1.4 mg of iron, or 17.5% of the RDI for adults.

Iron deficiency is one of the most common nutrient deficiencies, affecting up to 20% of the world’s population and up to 10 in 1,000 people in the wealthiest nations. In particular, children need iron to support growth and young women need iron to replace blood lost during menstruation .

Contains Beneficial Plant Compounds

Cumin contains lots of plant compounds that are linked with potential health benefits, including terpenes, phenols, flavonoids and alkaloids.

Several of these function as antioxidants, which are chemicals that reduce damage to your body from free radicals.

Free radicals are basically lonely electrons. Electrons like being in pairs and when they split up, they become unstable.

These lone, or “free” electrons steal other electron partners away from other chemicals in your body. This process is called “oxidation.”

The oxidation of fatty acids in your arteries leads to clogged arteries and heart disease. Oxidation also leads to inflammation in diabetes, and the oxidation of DNA can contribute to cancer .

Antioxidants like those in cumin give an electron to a lonely free radical electron, making it more stable

Cumin’s antioxidants likely explain some of its health benefits.

Cumin contains compounds called flavonoids that work as antioxidants in the body. Antioxidants can help neutralize unstable particles called free radicals that cause cell damage. By neutralizing these particles, antioxidants can help prevent diseases like cancer, heart disease, and high blood pressure

Cumin has been a part of the human diet for thousands of years. It’s grown in the Middle East, Mediterranean, India, and China. Today, most cumin sold in the United States originally comes from India.

People across the world use cumin as a seasoning in food and extract its oil for perfumes. It’s also a popular remedy in traditional medicine—and for good reason. Cumin packs a lot of health benefits into a few tiny seeds.

Health Benefits

For generations, people have used cumin to treat conditions ranging from indigestion and diarrhea to headaches. People in India have used it to treat kidney and bladder stones, eye disease, and even leprosy.

Now, scientific research is finding evidence that backs up many of these traditional uses.

Diabetes

Some of cumin’s components have shown promise helping to treat diabetes.

One clinical study showed a concentrated cumin supplement improved early indicators of diabetes in overweight individuals, compared to a placeborn .

Cumin also contains components that counter some of the long-term effects of diabetes.

One of the ways diabetes harms cells in the body is through advanced glycation end products(AGEs)

They’re produced spontaneously in the bloodstream when blood sugar levels are high over long periods of time, as they are in diabetes. AGEs are created when sugars attach to proteins and disrupt their normal function.

AGEs are likely responsible for damage to eyes, kidneys, nerves and small blood vessels in diabetes

Cumin contains several components that reduce AGEs, at least in test-tube studies.

While these studies tested the effects of concentrated cumin supplements, routinely using cumin as a seasoning may help control blood sugar in diabetes

It is not yet clear what is responsible for these effects, or how much cumin is needed to cause benefits.

Cumin may help people living with diabetes manage its symptoms and effects. Traditionally used as an antidiabetic drug, one study found that eating cumin can help lower urea in the blood—an organic compound that may interfere with how your body responds to insulin. Animal studies have also shown that cumin may help keep blood sugar at healthy levels, but more research is necessary.

Improve Blood Cholesterol

Cumin has also improved blood cholesterol in clinical studies.

In one study, 75 mg of cumin taken twice daily for eight weeks decreased unhealthy blood triglycerides.

In another study, levels of oxidized “bad” LDL cholesterol were decreased by nearly 10% in patients taking cumin extract over one and a half months .

One study of 88 women looked at whether cumin affected levels of “good” HDL cholesterol. Those who took 3 grams of cumin with yogurt twice a day for three months had higher levels of HDL than those who ate yogurt without it .

It is not known if cumin used as seasoning in the diet has the same blood cholesterol benefits as the supplements used in these studies.

Also, not all studies agree on this effect. One study found no changes in blood cholesterol in participants who took a cumin supplement.

Several studies have shown that cumin may help people control their cholesterol levels. In one study, cumin powder dissolved in yogurt helped reduce “bad” (LDL) cholesterol and triglycerides while increasing “good” (HDL) cholesterol.

Cancer Prevention:

Cancer develops when cells in the body start to multiply out of control. Tumors are collections of these abnormal cells. In several animal studies, scientists have found that cumin seeds may prevent the growth of different kinds of tumors, including those caused by liver, stomach, and colon cancers. More studies are needed to determine if cumin can help prevent cancer in humans.

Promote Weight Loss and Fat Reduction

Concentrated cumin supplements have helped promote weight loss in a few clinical studies.

One study of 88 overweight women found that yogurt containing 3 grams of cumin promoted weight loss, compared to yogurt without it.

Another study showed that participants who took 75 mg of cumin supplements every day lost 3 pounds (1.4 kg) more than those who took a placebo

A third clinical study looked at the effects of a concentrated cumin supplement in 78 adult men and women. Those who took the supplement lost 2.2 pounds (1 kg) more over eight weeks than those who did not

Again, not all studies agree. One study that used a smaller dose of 25 mg per day did not see any change in body weight, compared to a place born.

Prevent Food-Borne Illnesses

One of cumin’s traditional roles in seasoning may have been for food safety.

Many seasonings, including cumin, appear to have antimicrobial properties that may reduce the risk of food-borne infections

Several components of cumin reduce the growth of food-borne bacteria and certain kinds of infectious fungi .When digested, cumin releases a component called megalomicin, which has antibiotic properties

Additionally, a test-tube study showed that cumin reduces the drug resistance of certain bacteria .

Help With Drug Dependence

Narcotic dependence is a growing concern internationally.

Opioid narcotics create addiction by hijacking the normal sense of craving and reward in the brain. This leads to continued or increased use.

Studies in mice have shown that cumin components reduce addictive behavior and withdrawal symptoms

However, much more research is needed to determine whether this effect would be useful in humans.

The next steps include finding the specific ingredient that caused this effect and testing whether it works in humans

Fight Inflammation

Test-tube studies have shown cumin extracts inhibit .

There are several components of cumin that may have anti-inflammatory effects, but researchers don’t yet know which are most important Plant compounds in several spices have been shown to reduce levels of a key inflammation marker, NF-kappaB .

There is not enough information right now to know whether cumin in the diet or cumin supplements are useful in treating inflammatory diseases.

Has anticancer properties

Cumin appears to have the ability to keep cancer cells from multiplying, according to some experiments. In one study, rats that were fed cumin were protected from colon cancer. Researchers in another study found that out of nine popular herbs and spices, basil and cumin were the most powerful anticarcinogen plants.

Antibacterial Effects

Research has shown that cumin may help kill some bacteria that can get into your body and make you sick. In the lab, cumin has been shown to limit the growth of microorganisms, including E. coli—a bacteria that can cause food poisoning. Its antibacterial properties might explain why people have traditionally used cumin as a preservative.

Boosts memory

 Cumin can help your body by stimulating your central nervous system to be more effective. This can result in a sharper memory and greater control over your limbs. Cumin might even be able to help treat Parkinson’s disease because of its contribution to the body’s central nervous system function.