Health Benefits of Sesame Seeds
November 1, 2007 by ruth
Filed under Food & Nutrition
My son had dairy allergies as a toddler. He has outgrown them now, thank heavens, but there was a time when I was looking for alternative calcium sources for milk-allergics and found out that sesame seeds can be a suitable option.
Apparently, not only are they rich in calcium (a quarter-cup supplies up to more than a third of the daily value for calcium), it’s also rich in
- calcium, and provides pain relief for rheumatoid arthritis
- magnesium, which is important for managing asthma, high blood pressure, migraine attacks, and sleep in menopausal women
- zinc, a trace element important for bone health and preventing osteoporosis
- phytoesterols (400-413 mg per 100 grams), which help lower blood cholesterol
WH Foods has more about the health benefits of sesame seeds as well as tips and ideas on how to incorporate them into your diet.
While I love the taste of sesame seeds, they tend to go straight through you, without giving up their fabulous nutrients on the way. Which is why I eat them ground up - as tahini. I find it such a useful ingredient. I regularly use it in salad dressings, stir fries, mashed potatoes, instead of margarine on toast, etc.
Hi Kathryn! Thanks for the tidbit about ground sesame seeds. I’ve also read that hulled sesame seeds may even contain more calcium the unhulled ones, although the bioavailability is much less.
What I like about sesame seeds is the crunch and texture it gives to dishes. But I’d use tahini (tahina) as an alternative to peanut butter and in making humus.
I never would have guessed sesame seeds were all that nutritious! I would have been wrong!
That’s really very interesting. - I’ve only ever had sesame seeds on breads, but what exactly do they taste like on their own?
Ruth, I thought it was the other way round - unhulled contained more minerals. And that these are lost in the hulling process. Hmm, mind you it’s a long-time since I “learnt” that so I could be wrong.
Agreed, about the crunch, texture and flavour of sesame seeds.
I will be graeatful if you send me information about the ground sesame seed effect on human health
Grinding the sesame seed does it do not loose the healthy components by oxidation?
Thanks,
EM
Sprinkle them on non-fat cottage cheese. Yummy.
Is anyone aware of benefits that sesame seeds have for men’s sexual health? I’ve heard that they aid in production of nitrous oxide, which is key to sexual health.
i happen to fall in love with seseme though we used to fry it and i dont know wether we used to loose some beneficial contents of it.please help by notifying me through e mail.
SOMA MANIKAM
ONCE GROUND, RANCIDITY STARTS AND MUST BE USED FAST.
A SEGMENT OF PEOPLE ARE ALLERGIC TO THE SEEDS. CHECK IF YOU ARE ONE OF THEM, AS IT CAN LEAD TO FATAL RESULTS WITHIN A FEW MINUTES BEFORE EVEN MEDICAL INTERVENTION HAS A CHANCE TO SAVE YOU.
THE OIL HAS A VERY COOLING EFFECT AND ASTHMATIC SUFFERERS MUST USE IT WITH CAUTION.
Eating the sesame seeds could help keep your ticker in top form by bringing down cholesterol and boosting blood levels of heart-cell-protective antioxidants.
In a study, postmenopausal women who took 50 grams (a little more than 3 tablespoons) of sesame seed powder daily for 5 days reduced their total and bad (LDL) cholesterol. But that’s not all. The women also had lower blood levels of substances linked to lipid peroxidation and oxidative stress (both of which cause cell damage) and higher levels of heart-protective vitamin E.
Either grind them (braun coffee grinder) before you eat them, or after grinding just mix with honey and eat anytime later. Also get sesame tahini.
All the methods above are the best way to eat sesame seeds (hulled or unhulled) and they do not oxidate or spoil this way.
Unhulled is supposed to contain more calcium but there is some disagreement as to the type and whether unhulled is very absorbable (calcium wise).
Either way the only way to actually absorb large quantities for calcium, etc content is to grind them, obviously they’re too small to chew and assimilate.