Why Jeera is a Powerful and Important Spice

Cumin or jeera is a very popular and most-loved spice found in India. It is made from the seeds of the Cuminim Cyminum plant. Not just in India, but jeera is popular all-over Southwest Asia and parts of Mediterranean. Many dishes in these regions use jeera and jeera powder extensively in their dishes. The reason for its popularity is its distinctive flavour that transforms an ordinary plate of rice into a lip-smacking dish as evidenced by Jeera Rice, India’s favourite rice dish after Biryani. 

Not just as food and for its flavour, jeera has been used as an important ingredient in traditional medicine dating back to hundreds of years. Various studies conducted since have proven jeera’s efficiency as a medicine to treat indigestion and other food-borne infections. Other studies have established jeera’s role in other health benefits such as promoting healthy weight loss, improving blood sugar control and controlling cholesterol. 

Read on to find out more about the health benefits of jeera, all backed by credible evidence. 

Helps in Digestion 

For years, the number one use of jeera was to cure indigestion. This is evidenced by modern studies which prove that jeera helps rev up normal digestion. It increases the activity of our digestive enzymes and speeds up the entire process of digestion. It also immensely helps the liver in releasing bile from it. Bile is that thing that helps your body digest certain nutrients and fats in your stomach. 

As one study proves, more than 50 subjects with Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) claimed to have noticed improvement in their conditions after ingesting concentrated levels of jeera in their diet for two weeks. 

Source of Iron 

Jeera is known to be naturally rich in iron as one teaspoon of crushed jeera includes 1.4 mg of iron, which equals to 17.5% of Recommended Dietary Intake (RDI) for adults. 

With jeera being this rich in iron, it should be included in everyone’s daily diet as iron deficiency is a serious problem with up to 20% of the world’s population suffering from it. That equals to 10 in every group 1,000 people in the wealthiest nations of the world suffering from iron deficiency.  

Not adults, but children in particular need iron to support their growth and development. In young women, iron is a necessity to replace lost blood during menstruation. In particular, children need iron to support growth and young women need iron to replace blood lost during menstruation  

Not a lot of spices are as rich in iron as jeera. This is the reason that makes jeera a very good source of iron, even if it’s taken in smaller quantities or just added as garnish on certain dishes. 

Contains Plant Compounds 

Jeera contains a host of plant compounds which are associated with several health benefits such as terpenes, phenols, flavonoids, and alkaloids. 

Many of these compounds act as antioxidants which reduce the damage your body gets from free radicals. These radicals are basically electrons that are alone in your body. Electrons are usually found in pairs ad they become unstable when they are split up. These lone electrons then steal other electrons from other chemicals in your body in a process called oxidation. This oxidation of fatty acids leads to clogged arteries since they take place in your arteries leading to heart disease. Oxidation also causes inflammation during diabetes and the oxidation of DNA can even cause cancer. Antioxidants found in jeera give these lonely electrons a partner electron hence making it more stable and preventing any diseases. 

Helps with Diabetes  

Various studies point to the fact that jeera can be an effective medicine in treating diabetes. One particular study shows that a concentrated amount of jeera supplement given to certain overweight patients helped in improving early symptoms of diabetes when compared to a placebo. 

Jeera was forever loved as a spice and a taste-enhancer but now, it will also be recognised as an important spice with a ton of medicinal properties. All this evidence points to the fact that jeera is a wonder spice and all diets all across the world should incorporate this important spice in their diet. 

When it comes to buying the highest quality of jeera, trust only the best spice exporters in India. Trust only KBM Gai Chaap brand for the best jeera powder.