Magic Seed
Cure-all Kalijira
Kalijira seeds
Kalijira (scientific name 'Nigella sativa'), also called 'black cumin' in English, is an annual flowering plant, which grows to a height of 25-40 cm with finely divided leaves. The flowers are of pale blue colour with 4-9 petals. The fruit is composed of 3-7 follicles, each containing numerous seeds. It is mainly used for flavouring food as well as for medicinal purposes. It is not cultivated on a large scale and the seeds are collected mostly from plants growing in the wild. Kalijira has a pungent smell with bitter taste. It has been traditionally used both as a herb and as a source of oil for centuries in Asia, Middle East and Africa to treat various ailments including asthma, bronchitis, rheumatism and related inflammatory diseases. It is a 'diuretic', which increases the flow of urine and is used as a carminative to relieve gastric problem. It is used to increase milk production and to heal childbirth-related fever in nursing mothers and to stimulate women's menstrual discharges. The Muslims regard it as one of the best curative medicines available. According to sahih hadith even Prophet Mohammed (sm) praised kalijira seed for its potential to cure about every disease except death. Kalijira seed contains 35-40% fatty oil and a small portion of volatile oil. The flavour of the seed is for its volatile oil. The fatty oil obtained by extracting the seed is used for edible purposes. The seed contains a bitter taste (nigellin), tannins, resins, proteins and reducing sugars (mainly glucose). The Kalijira oil contains mainly carvone (about 60%) and a smaller portion of d- limonene and cymene. 'Nigellone', another extract of the oil, is known to cure cough and bronchial asthma. Scientists at the Kimmel Cancer Centre at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia have found that 'Thymoquinone' an extract of Kalijira oil, can heal pancreatic cancer at an early stage of the disease. However, the studies are in the preliminary phase.
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