Wednesday, August 26, 2015

Uses And benefits Of Sesame Oil

Sesame Oil


Sesame oil is a light, nutritious oil obtained from sesame seeds. It has got lots of uses and health benefits. Sesame oil may not be the most popular oil in our times, but it was the most sought after oil in Ancient India. One of the earliest and profound writers on Ayurveda, Charaka in his Charaka Samhita mentions that sesame oil is the best oil. It was widely used back then for alleviating the body from various diseases and conditions. That is perhaps the oldest reference to this oil. Only now are we beginning to realize the strong health benefits of sesame seed oil.
Sesame oil can help one achieve flawless skin, healthy hair and radiant health from the inside out. Here, we look at the medicinal qualities of sesame oil and its nutritional value.

Source

Sesame oil comes from sesame seeds. These are the seeds obtained from a variety of species in the broad genus Sesamum. The plants in this genus have a special ability. They tolerate drought very well. People of the ancient civilizations in India, China, Egypt and in Middle East discovered that sesame seeds are good for producing oil. Sesame oil is thus one of the oldest extracted oils in the history of human civilization.
Sesame seeds are mainly of two types -
  • White sesame seeds - These are white or creamy in color. Oil obtained from these sesame seeds has a lighter color.
  • Black sesame seeds - These are dark in color, and the oil obtained from these seeds is dark in color.
There are other colors of sesame seeds as well, like yellow and red.
There are many varieties of processed and adulterated sesame seed oil in the market. One should be wary of such oils. A good idea is to always go for cold pressed virgin, or extra virgin sesame seed oil, whether you want to use it in recipes or as massage oil.
 

Properties

Sesame oil has got many powerful therapeutic and medicinal properties. The source of these properties are often taken from ancient medicinal texts, like Charaka Samhita, Susruta Samhita and Ebers Papyrus ( famous ancient papyrus scroll from Ancient Egyptian civilization ). Few of these properties have been evaluated and verified through scientific research.
  • Anti-inflammatory - it aids in reducing inflammation because of healthy fatty acids in it.
  • Antioxidant - Sesame oil contains many antioxidants. It does not spoil quickly because of these antioxidant nutrients.
  • Anti-diabetic - relieves diabetes.
  • Hypotensive - lowers blood pressure.
  • Anti-bacterial - kills many strains of bacteria.
  • Anti-atherogenic - reduces the risk of atherosclerosis
  • Anti-depressant - lowers the state of depression.
  • DNA protection - sesame oil safeguards the DNA of body cells from damage by external factors, like radiation.
  • Anti-cancer - sesame oil has now been identified to protect and inhibit the growth of specific cancers, as we shall see later.
  • Emollient - excellent moisturizer, heals dry skin.
  • Anti-aging  - sesame oil has powerful anti-aging nutrients !
  • Skin regeneration - promotes repair and regrowth of skin cells.
  • Cicatrizant - moderate wound healing property.
  • Sunscreen - sesame oil has natural SPF, although mild. It doesn't compare to sunblocks, but it can be used in natural sunscreen formulations.
  • Anti-rheumatic - used in Ayurvedic oil formulations as base oil to infuse herbs. These are used to treat rheumatoid arthritis.
  • Anti-cholesterol - improves lipid profile of people who use it.
  • Detoxifying - one of the few massage oils known to remove toxins from the body.
  • Warming - creates a warming sensation upon massage.
  • Laxative - quickly provides relief from constipation.
You can't help but ponder that ancient people revered this oil because of its healing properties. There are many more of its uses and properties mentioned in those books, but they have become difficult to decipher and understand. Hopefully, in due course of time, we can get to know many more beneficial medicinal properties of sesame oil and bring it back to its glory.

Uses and Health Benefits

We have seen the properties of this oil, now let's put it to use. These are the ways in which one can use sesame seed oil at home, cold pressed of course.
http://oilhealthbenefits.com/sesame-oil/

Health Benefits of Sesame Oil
(source: https://www.organicfacts.net/health-benefits/oils/sesame-oil.html)

The health benefits of sesame oil include its ability to improve hair and skin health, stimulate strong bone growth, reduce blood pressure, increase heart health, manage anxiety and depression, protect infant health, boost your dental health, prevent cancer, improve the digestive process, and lower inflammation.

Sesame oil, which comes from sesame seeds, is one of the lesser known vegetable oils, but is in fact one of the healthiest alternatives to normal vegetable oil options. Sesame seeds, which are known by the scientific name Sesamum indicum, are small yellowish brown seeds that are primarily found in Africa, but they also grow in smaller numbers on the Indian subcontinent.

Sesame oil has gained quite a bit of popularity in recent years, not only because sesame oil is relatively inexpensive to extract (simple hot water flotation or a variety of pressing techniques). However, sesame oil is best acquired when the seeds are completely ripe, which means that the outer shells burst. Sesame oil can be used in cooking, and it is most commonly used in Asian cuisines, including Chinese, Japanese, and Southeast Asian dishes, as well as Middle Eastern cuisine.

Sesame oil has also been used in massage practices, due to its very powerful effects on the body and its beneficial effects on the skin. It has a wide range of health benefits connected to it, which makes sesame oil highly sought after, even as a carrier oil for various cosmetic products. The problem is, the manual processing that sesame seeds require means that there will always be more of a demand than a supply. For that unavoidable reason, global sesame oil production is not as high as other vegetable oils, despite the very healthy aspects.

The impressive amount of vitamins, minerals, organic compounds, and other beneficial components in sesame oil is why it is considered so healthy, but let’s take a closer look at what health benefits can actually be enjoyed when you add sesame oil to your diet!

Health Benefits of Sesame Oil

 Hair Health: Sesame oil has traditionally been used to improve the health of hair. It can help to darken hair color and also eliminate hair loss. Furthermore, the anti-bacterial effects of sesame oil can help to eliminate any of the pathogens or foreign bodies that can attack your scalp or hair.
Skin Health: Sesame oil is rich in zinc, which is one of the most important minerals in the body for your skin. It can increase skin elasticity and smoothness, helping to reduce the appearance of age spots and eliminate skin conditions, including premature aging. Sesame oil can also be used as a sunscreen because it creates a protective layer on the skin, which is another way of protecting the body from foreign substances or toxins that get in through the skin. In some cultures, sesame oil has even been used to treat fungal diseases on the skin.

Heart Health: Like most vegetable oils, sesame oil is so helpful and delicious in foods because of its fatty acid content. Sesame oil contains a wide range of polyunsaturated fatty acids, including sesamol and sesamin. This can keep the cardiovascular system balanced and keeps cholesterol levels low. It can also drop the cholesterol levels that the body already has, thereby reducing atherosclerosis. This means that you are better protected from heart attacks and strokes if you add sesame oil to your diet.

Bone Growth: There are many important minerals that can be found in sesame oil, particularly copper, zinc, and calcium. These three minerals are integral to bone growth in the body, meaning that by maintaining an appropriate level of sesame oil in your diet, you can help increase the rate of bone growth and development, as well as speed up any healing or regrowth of bones as well. As you get older, sesame oil can help you avoid osteoporosis and various other age-related weaknesses of the bones.

Anxiety and Depression: Tyrosine is an amino acid that is found in relatively high quantities in sesame oil. Tyrosine has been directly connected to serotonin activity and release in the brain, which can help boost mood by flooding the body with enzymes and hormones that make a person feel happy. In other words, when you are suffering from anxiety or depression, sesame oil can help give you a positive boost in the right direction and turn your mood around!

Oral Health: Sesame oil is highly recommended by dental professionals because of a process called oil pulling, which involves putting oil in your mouth and then swishing it around before spitting it out. With sesame oil, this process has been directly linked to whiter teeth, lower levels of dental plaque, and protection against certain streptococcus mutants that can make us very ill. The powerful anti-bacterial effects of this oil are the main cause of this boost in dental health.

Prevent Cancer: Sesame oil contains an organic compound called phytate, which has been directly linked to a reduction in the development of cancer. Furthermore, the magnesium levels in sesame oil are unusually high, and that essential mineral is directly linked to lowered chances of colorectal cancer. The calcium content is also very beneficial for preventing colon cancer.

Circulation and Metabolism: High copper and zinc content mean that the body is able to function at its optimal levels, mainly because copper is required for the production of red blood cells. With the significant percent of copper in sesame oil, your body is sure to get the right amount of blood flowing to the organs and tissues, ensuring a healthier and more high-energy lifestyle!

Inflammation: Copper is a naturally anti-inflammatory substance, and the high levels of copper found in sesame oil can help to reduce the inflammation and discomfort of various conditions such as gout and arthritis. It reduces the swelling of joints and strengthens the bones and blood vessels, helping to keep your frame strong and sturdy for many years, without that painful inflammation.
A Final Word of Caution: If you are taking anti-coagulant or blood-thinning medications, then you should speak with your doctor before adding sesame oil to your diet. It lowers your blood pressure and thins the blood as it is, so combining those could be potentially dangerous. Otherwise, enjoy your sesame oil in any way you like. Happy cooking!

 Why Sesame Seed Oil Is Known As The Queen Of Oils
Sesame Seed Oil
has been used as a healing oil for thousands of years. Sesame oil is mentioned in the Vedas, (the Vedas is a large body of texts originating in ancient India) as excellent for humans. It is naturally antibacterial for common skin pathogens, such as staphylococcus and streptococcus as well as common skin fungi, such as athlete’s foot fungus. It is naturally antiviral. It is a natural anti-inflammatory agent.

Sesame Seed Oil has been used extensively in India as a healing oil, including in experiments which showed it was useful in unblocking arteries. In recent experiments in Holland by Ayurvedic physicians, sesame oil has been used in the treatment of several chronic disease processes, including hepatitis, diabetes and migraines.

In vitro, sesame seed oil has inhibited the growth of malignant melanoma (a skin cancer): PROSTAGLANDIN LEUKATRINES and ESSENTIAL FATTY ACIDS 46: 145-150, 1992.
Also in vitro, sesame seed oil has inhibited replication of human colon cancer cells: ANTI CANCER RESEARCH 11: 209-216, 1992.

Research shows that sesame seed oil is a potent antioxidant. In the tissues beneath the skin, this oil will neutralize oxygen radicals. It penetrates into the skin quickly and enters the blood stream through the capillaries. Molecules of sesame seed oil maintain good cholesterol (HDL) and lower bad cholesterol (LDL).

Sesame seed oil is a cell growth regulator and slows down cell growth and replication.
In both the small intestine and the colon, some cells are nourished by fat instead of sugar. The presence of sesame seed oil can provide those cells with essential nourishment.
In an experiment at the Maharishi International College in Fairfield, Iowa, students rinsed their mouths with sesame oil, resulting in an 85% reduction in the bacteria which causes gingivitis.

As nose drops, sniffed back into the sinuses, sesame seed oil has cured chronic sinusitis. As a throat gargle, it kills strep and other common cold bacteria. It helps sufferers of psoriasis and dry skin ailments. It has been successfully used in the hair of children to kill lice infestations. It is a useful natural UV protector. It is beneficial in reducing swelling and in soothing the itch of Hemorrhoids.

Used after exposure to wind or sun it will calm the burns. It nourishes and feeds the scalp to control dry scalp dandruff and to kill dandruff causing bacteria. It protects the skin from the effects of chlorine in swimming pool water. Used before and after radiation treatments, sesame seed oil helps neutralize the flood of oxygen radicals which such treatment inevitably causes
.
On the skin, oil soluble toxins are attracted to sesame seed oil molecules which can then be washed away with hot water and a mild soap. Internally, the oil molecules attract oil soluble toxins and carry them into the blood stream and then out of the body as waste.

Used as a douche mixed with warm water, the oil controls vaginal yeast infections.
Sesame seed oil absorbs quickly and penetrates through the tissues to the very marrow of the bone. It enters into the blood stream through the capillaries and circulates. The liver does not sweep sesame seed oil molecules from the blood, accepting those molecules as friendly.


Sesame seed oil helps joints keep their flexibility. It keeps the skin supple and soft. It heals and protects areas of mild scrapes, cuts and abrasions. It helps tighten facial skin, particularly around the nose, controlling the usual enlargement of pores as skin ages chronologically.

Teen boys and girls have learned, wrongly, that all oil is bad for their facial skin. Heavy oils and toxic oils and creams are bad for all facial skin. But sesame seed oil is the one oil which is actually good for young skin. It helps control eruptions and neutralizes the poisons which develop both on the surface and in the pores. With sesame oil, no cosmetics are needed. The oil will cause young facial skin to have and display natural good health.

Used on baby skin, particularly in the area covered by a diaper, sesame seed oil will protect the tender skin against rash caused by the acidity of body wastes. In the nose and ears, it will protect against common skin pathogens.

For children going to school, who will be in the presence of other children with colds and sniffles, sesame seed oil swabbed in the nose can protect against air borne viruses and bacteria.
When using the oil as a massage oil, stroke the long limbs up and down. Use circular motions over all joints to stimulate the natural energy of those joints.

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