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Ingredients
Black cumin has been valued as a medicinal remedy since antiquity. Its active ingredient possesses both preventative and therapeutic effects. The health benefits of black cumin are primarily attributed to the active ingredient thymoquinone, which is found in the essential oil of the plant.
Black cumin seeds contain up to 2.5% essential oil with the key constituents ρ-cymene (36%), thymoquinone (11%), and α-thujene (10%). The seeds also contain carotenes and polyunsaturated fatty acids. In cold-pressed oil, the content was 55% linoleic acid, 24% oleic acid, and 15% palmitic acid (Ibrahim et al., 2017).
A characteristic feature is the high proportion of vitamin E, d.h. β-Tocotrienol (about 1200 mg/100 g cold-pressed oil) and γ-Tocotrienol (about 200 mg/100 g oil).
In addition, the seeds contain phenols, sterols, alkaloids and saponins (Hassanien et al., 2015).
Black cumin also contains the trace elements zinc, chromium, vanadium, manganese, and selenium, as well as the elements magnesium, calcium, potassium, sodium, and barium (Sium et al., 2016). Per kg of seeds, there are 15.4 mg of vitamin B1, 57 mg of vitamin B3 (niacin), 5 mg of vitamin B6, and 160 μg of folic acid (Khan, 1999).
Therapeutic use of black cumin seed oil
Summary
Black cumin is best studied in the Diabetes mellitus, hypertension and Hyperlipidemia:
In meta-analyses, black cumin lowered elevated fasting blood glucose and glycated hemoglobin. Insulin responsiveness increased. Systolic and diastolic blood pressure decreased by approximately 3 mmHg after 8 weeks. Total cholesterol decreased by 16 mg%, LDL cholesterol by 14 mg%, and triglycerides by 21 mg%. HDL cholesterol was not affected.
The results of the studies in patients with are also very promising. rheumatoid arthritis, Hashimoto-Thyroiditis and Vitiligo, which demonstrate effectiveness in autoimmune diseases.
Studies in patients with Bronchial asthma, hay fever and atopic eczema indicate the anti-asthmatic and anti-allergic effects of black cumin.
The available research on patients with osteoarthritis, cancer, and children with epileptic seizures is still insufficient, although animal studies suggest efficacy for these indications.
Further indications for the therapeutic use of black cumin exist in the case of dyspepsia, Menopausal symptoms, recurrent mastalgia, acne, infertility in men and Drug addiction These indications are also supported by experimental results.
Animal models for Alzheimer's dementia and to Parkinson's disease They point out that black cumin could also be a treatment option for neurodegenerative diseases.
Selected clinical studies:
Cognitive abilities
The study included 48 adolescents aged between 14 and 17 years.Participants were randomly assigned to receive either 500 mg of black cumin seed powder or 500 mg of placebo (psyllium husk powder) for four weeks. While the parameters did not differ between the groups before the start of treatment, treatment with black cumin seed powder led to an improvement in cognitive performance, an increase in mood, and a decrease in anxiety (Bin Sayeed et al., 2014).
In a previous study, the authors treated 40 elderly patients randomly for 9 weeks with either black cumin seed powder (1000 mg/day) or a placebo (psyllium husks). Various neuropsychological tests showed improvements in memory, attention, and cognitive performance under black cumin treatment.
Diabetes mellitus
The systematic review by Mohtashami and Entezari from 2016 on the effectiveness of black cumin on blood lipids, blood sugar, blood pressure and anthropometric factors (weight, body mass index, waist circumference) included 18 original studies with 1531 patients:
In 4 of the 9 studies on its effectiveness on blood pressure, black cumin lowered blood pressure. Fasting blood sugar decreased significantly in 13 studies, as did HbA1c – when measured. Weight loss and a reduction in waist circumference were observed in 2 of 8 studies.
The review therefore indicates an improvement in the diabetic metabolic situation.
Heshmati and Namazi (2015) also concluded in their systematic review that black cumin lowers high blood sugar and blood lipid levels. In addition to its antioxidant effect, this is also due to its influence on insulin secretion, glucose absorption, gluconeogenesis, and gene expression.
In a long-term study over one year involving 60 diabetics (type 2, HbA1c) whose diabetes was inadequately controlled with oral antidiabetic drugs. >7%) received either 2 g in addition to standard therapy.
Black cumin seed powder or charcoal powder per day. In the black cumin group, HbA1c levels decreased significantly compared to the control group. The authors concluded from this result that black cumin seed powder has an antidiabetogenic and cardioprotective effect (Bamosa et al., 2015).
In a long-term study lasting one year, 114 patients with type 2 diabetes were randomly assigned to receive either 2 g of black cumin seed powder per day or activated charcoal powder. In the black cumin group, diabetic metabolic control improved as measured by fasting blood glucose, HbA1c, and serum TBARS. Furthermore, total antioxidant capacity, superoxide dismutase (SOD), and glutathione (GSH) levels increased in the black cumin group. This was accompanied by a decrease in insulin resistance and increased pancreatic β-cell activity, as measured by the HOMA-2 calculator (Kaatabi et al. 2015).
In an open-label study of patients with stage 3 or 4 diabetic nephropathy, patients received either 2.5 ml of black cumin seed oil daily or standard conservative therapy for 12 weeks. Treatment with black cumin seed oil resulted in a decrease in blood glucose, urea, and creatinine levels, as well as a reduction in 24-hour urinary protein excretion. Additionally, the glomerular filtration rate and urine output increased (Ansari et al., 2017).
In a dose-finding study of 94 type 2 diabetics who were randomized over 3 months to receive either 1 g, 2 g or 3 g of black cumin seeds per day in addition to their antidiabetic medication, treatment success was measured by the parameters blood glucose, HbA1c, C-peptide and body weight, as well as by insulin resistance and beta cell function determined with the HOMA-2 calculator.The group receiving 2 g of seeds per day showed the best results in terms of glucose metabolism. HbA1c levels decreased by 1.5% after 12 weeks. Insulin resistance had decreased, and beta-cell function had increased. No further improvement in metabolic status could be observed in the group receiving 3 g of seeds per day (Bamosa et al., 2010).
High blood pressure
Eleven randomized controlled trials were included in a meta-analysis (860 participants with normal or high blood pressure). Ten of the studies compared black cumin seed products against placebo, and one study compared them against antihypertensive therapy. After eight weeks of treatment, the mean systolic blood pressure decreased from 133 to 125 mmHg, and the diastolic blood pressure decreased from 83 to 78 mmHg. The difference between the decreases in systolic and diastolic blood pressure was 3 mmHg each (Sahebkar et al., 2016a).
Rheumatoid arthritis
A randomized, double-blind study included 50 patients with rheumatoid arthritis aged between 20 and 50 years. For 8 weeks, the patients received either 0.5 g of black cumin seed oil twice daily or a placebo. The Disease Activity Score (DAS 28) decreased more in the black cumin seed oil group than in the placebo group. This was associated with higher serum interleukin-10 concentrations and lower MDA and NO concentrations (Hadi et al., 2016).
In a randomized, double-blind study over 2 months, 43 women with rheumatoid arthritis aged between 20 and 50 years received either 500 mg of cold-pressed black cumin seed oil twice a day or a placebo.Black cumin seed oil treatment resulted in a decrease in elevated sensitive CRP (an indicator of inflammation), DAS-28 score, and the number of swollen joints (Kheirouri et al., 2016).
In a placebo-controlled study, 40 women with rheumatoid arthritis were enrolled and received two starch-filled capsules daily for one month, followed by 500 mg of black seed oil twice daily for another month. The DAS28 score decreased significantly with black seed oil compared to placebo. Consistent with this, the number of swollen joints and the duration of morning stiffness decreased. The addition of black seed oil to DMARD (disease-modifying antirheumatic drug) therapy also had a positive effect.
drugs) therefore seems sensible (Gheita et al., 2012).
Hashimoto's thyroiditis
Hashimoto's thyroiditis is the most common cause of hypothyroidism. Forty patients with Hashimoto's thyroiditis, aged between 22 and 50 years, were treated for eight weeks with either 2 g of black cumin seed powder per day or a placebo. After treatment with the powder, weight and BMI decreased. The serum TSH levels were elevated. Concentrations of anti-thyroid peroxidase antibodies had decreased, and T3 concentrations had increased (Farhangi et al., 2016).
Bronchial asthma
In a randomized, double-blind study, 80 asthmatics were enrolled and received either 0.5 g of black seed oil twice daily or a placebo for four weeks. The primary endpoint was the asthma score in the preceding four weeks. The asthma score was significantly higher after treatment with black seed oil (21.1 points) than after treatment with placebo. Improvement in lung function tests also indicated a trend toward efficacy. Elevated eosinophils in peripheral blood normalized only under treatment with black seed oil (Koshak et al., 2017).
In a single-blind study, patients with asthma were randomly assigned to receive either 1 g or 2 g of black cumin seeds per day or a placebo in addition to standard inhalation therapy for 3 months. At 6 and 12 weeks after taking 2 g of seeds per day, vital capacity and forced expiratory volume in one second had increased significantly, and the number of asthma attacks had decreased significantly. Peak expiratory flow also increased with 1 g of seeds per day. Black cumin seed supplementation resulted in a decrease in fractional exhaled nitric oxide (NO) levels and serum IgE. Interferon-γ levels increased, and respiratory function tests improved (Salem et al., 2017).
In a randomized, controlled trial of 29 asthmatics, participants received either 15 mL/kg of a 0.1% boiled black cumin seed extract or a placebo for three months. Asthma symptoms (frequency of symptoms per week, spastic breathing sounds, and lung function values) improved significantly under the black cumin treatment. Patients in the black cumin group also required less additional asthma medication, such as oral beta-agonists, corticosteroids, euphylline, or corticosteroid inhalers (Boskabady et al., 2007).
Vitiligo
Vitiligo, also known as leukoderma, is another autoimmune disease. Due to the destruction of melanocytes, the dark skin pigment (melanin) is no longer produced.
A randomized, double-blind study included 52 patients with vitiligo. They treated the lesions for 6 months with either black cumin seed oil or fish oil twice daily. Treatment with black cumin seed oil resulted in a significant reduction in vitiligo lesions from the 3rd month of treatment onwards, exceeding that of the fish oil group (Ghorbanibirgani et al., 2014).
Black cumin seed oil for cancer
There are publications from the field of basic research on black cumin in the treatment of cancer. This research focuses primarily on tests with black cumin extracts on cell and tissue cultures, as well as on animal studies. Researchers are mainly testing the main constituent, thymoquinone, an essential oil.
These experiments suggest that thymoquinone has various effects against cancer cells. In rats, thymoquinone caused tumors to shrink. In cell lines, it enhanced the effect of certain chemotherapeutic agents.
A few clinical trials in humans have also investigated the effects of black cumin on cancer side effects. While these studies suggest that black cumin might be helpful for some specific symptoms, larger studies are needed to confirm these results.
dosage
The clinical studies conducted indicate a daily dose of up to 3 grams of black cumin seed oil (source: University Hospital Freiburg):
Possible side effects
Only occasional reports of itching or nausea were found in the studies (Farhangi et al., 2016). One study reported a slight drop in blood glucose that did not lead to discontinuation of therapy (Barakat et al., 2013).
Rarely, allergic skin reactions up to and including toxic skin necrosis occur (Nosbaum et al., 2011 Bonhomme et al., 2017).