Are you caught with gripping stomach pain? Having few sips of coriander seeds along with dill, caraway, fennel, and aniseed from your granny's kitchen is perhaps the most effective carminative remedy for this ailment.

Coriander is tender hollow stemmed plant in the apiaceae family, of the genus coriandum. Its scientific name is Coriandum sativum. Pleasantly aromatic and spicy, the seeds have been in use since ancient times in cooking as well as in various traditional medicines.
Coriander is native to South-eastern Europe and grown extensively all over Europe, Middle East, China, India, and Turkey. It is recognized as cilantro in the west. This herbaceous plant grows up to 2 feet in height with branching stems, featuring deep green soft, hairless, bi or tri-lobed leaves. The mature plant bears small light pink colour flowers that subsequently turn in to globular or oval shaped fruits (seeds). The seeds are oval, measure about 4-6 mm in diameter with central hollow cavity containing two vertical vittae containing some important essential oils.

The seeds are ready for harvest when the plants turn brown, leaves begin to dry and fall. Immature seeds are light green in colour and taste bitter. To harvest, the crop is cut, tied in small bundles, and dried under the sunlight for several days. To separate the seeds, either the bundles beaten with stick or a lightweight roller used to wear off the pods.

Health benefits

Coriander seeds contain many plant derived chemical compounds that are known to have anti-oxidant, disease preventing, and health promoting properties.

The characteristic aromatic flavour of coriander seeds comes from the many fatty acids and essential volatile oils. Some important fatty acids in the dried seeds include petroselinic acid, linoleic acid (omega-6), oleic acid, and palmitic acid. In addition, the seeds contain essential oils such as linalool (68%), a-pinene (10%), geraniol, camphene, terpine etc. Together, these active principles are responsible for digestive, carminative, and anti-flatulent properties of the seeds.

As in other spices, coriander is also rich in of dietary fibre. 100 g seeds provide 41.9 g of fibre. Much of this fibre is metabolically inert insoluble fibre, which helps increase bulk of the food by absorbing water throughout the digestive system and help easing constipation condition.

In addition, dietary fibres bind to bile salts (produced from cholesterol) and decrease their re-absorption in colon, thus help lower serum LDL cholesterol levels. Together with flavonoid anti-oxidants, fibre composition of coriander helps protect the colon mucus membrane from cancers.

The seeds are excellent source of minerals like iron, copper, calcium, potassium, manganese, zinc and magnesium. Copper is required in the production of red blood cells. Iron is essential for cell metabolism and red blood cell formation. Zinc is a co-factor in many enzymes that regulate growth and development, sperm generation, digestion and nucleic acid synthesis. Potassium is an important component of cell and body fluids that helps controlling heart rate and blood pressure. Manganese is used by the body as a co-factor for the powerful anti-oxidant enzyme, superoxide dismutase.

Unlike other dry spice seeds that are lack in vitamin C, coriander seeds contain ample amount of this anti-oxidant vitamin. 100 g of dry seeds provide 21 mg or 35% of RDI of this vitamin.

Furthermore, the seeds indeed are storehouse for many vital B-complex vitamins like thiamin, riboflavin, and niacin.

Aids in digestion: A coriander seed in addition to fresh coriander leaves assist in healthy digestion. It’s got an anti-oxidant quality that encourages healthy functioning of the liver as well as bowel motions. It will help in the manufacture of digestive enzymes as well as juices. If you suffer by stomach indigestion, include coriander seeds in your daily diet.

Soak a handful of seeds in water for the day. Filter out the seeds as well as consume the coriander water before eating anything daily to avoid indigestion.

Blood Sugar: Coriander reduces blood sugar levels and also works as an antioxidant, in accordance with a survey published within the January 2011 issue of the “Indian Journal of Experimental Biology.” In diabetic laboratory animals, coriander seed powder markedly reduced blood sugar levels and also levels of insulin. Additionally, it helped restore levels of antioxidants, chemicals which help safeguard the body from free-radicals. These types of chemicals can easily increase your chance of long-term disease, like cancer as well as heart problems. Damage to the insulin-producing cells of the pancreas that may result from free-radicals was also decreased in coriander-fed animals. Further research to verify their results in humans is still required.

Anti-bacterial properties: Many water and food borne illnesses just like cholera, typhoid, food poisoning, dysentery etc. are caused by bacteria (salmonella). Frequent consumption of coriander safeguards from food borne diseases because of its anti-bacterial qualities.

Anaemia: Are you aware that together with essential vitamins, coriander also includes iron? It includes large amount of iron that helps to prevent anaemia. Women particularly ought to include coriander seeds as well as fresh leaves within their diet together with iron supplements.

Detox remedy: If some heavy toxic metals just like lead, arsenic, mercury, aluminium etc. get accumulated within our body, it results in severe health issues just like Alzheimer’s disease, loss of memory as well as eye-sight, improper functioning of cardio-vascular and also neurological system.

Coriander seeds consist of natural compounds that really help to detox the body and remove all of the traces of heavy toxic metals.

Eye care: Considered one of the best remedies for conjunctivitis (pink eye), coriander also helps prevent various other eye disorders as well as problems. The high anti-oxidant content within it decreases redness, itchiness as well as inflammation within the eyes.

Women’s health: If you suffer from heavy menstrual flow, then include coriander seeds within your regular diet. It may also help to avoid menstrual irregularities.  Boil around 6grms of coriander seeds in half a litre of water and include a teaspoon of sugar. Consume the mix when it’s still warm. However, this mixture ought to be consumed 3 times each day daily.

Pimples: The anti-bacterial qualities of coriander seeds act as a highly effective home cure for pimples, acne as well as blackheads. Make a face mask along with coriander paste, honey as well as turmeric. You may also add multani mitti in case you have oily skin. Use the mask throughout the face and allow it to dry. Rinse along with cold water.

Dark lips: Make a combination of 2 teaspoons of coriander juice as well as 1 teaspoon of fresh lemon juice. Apply this all within the lips and keep it overnight. Wash off next morning and repeat exactly the same for a few days to show healthy as well as pink lips.

Calm upset stomach: Even though its action is extremely mild, coriander seed might be useful in reducing gastrointestinal symptoms. Numerous modern herbalists follow the historical traditionalists in specifically recommending coriander for indigestion and diarrhoea. Coriander is additionally utilized as a component in certain laxative formulations as a way to combat their harsh effects around the stomach.

Relieve flatulence: As a “carminative,” coriander seed may possibly gently reduce intestinal gassiness and bloating. Utilized as a tea, coriander has got long had a reputation for eliminating flatulence and also relieving the painful cramps that may accompany it.

Revive appetite: Another therapeutic use for coriander seed is always to encourage a flagging appetite, it evidently does simply by enhancing stomach function. Germany’s Commission e, that has summarized the uses of countless herbs, authorizes coriander as a cure for appetite loss.

Protects from Urinary Tract Infections: The most important health advantage of coriander seeds is they safeguard from the urinary tract infections. There are various scientific studies that have demonstrated it clearly the significance of coriander seeds just for this trouble.

Lowering high cholesterol levels: A variety of acid compounds included within coriander such linoleic acid, oleic acid, palmitic acid, stearic acid as well as ascorbic acid are recognized to be effective in reducing levels of cholesterol within the blood. Additionally, these compounds can also be known to lessen cholesterol deposits within the arteries and veins.

Overcoming swelling: The content of cineole, that is one of 11 components of essential oils, and also linoleic acid within the coriander has ant rheumatic qualities and also anti-arthritis, the two properties are the reason why coriander may be used to deal with swelling brought on by rheumatism and arthritis

Assists with heavy periods: To assist in heavy menstrual flow, mix around 3 teaspoons of coriander seeds (6 grams) in 500 ml (16.9 oz) of water, add honey or sugar to taste, bring to a boil then consume once cooled enough to consume easily but while warm. For additional benefit a tea need to steep for 10 to 15 minutes.