With virtually no side effects, the healing prowess of black seed oil — made from black cumin seeds — is actually quite unbelievable, and it boggles the mind that most people have never even heard of it.

Read on find out what black seed oil is all about, along with all the wonderful black seed oil benefits out there.

What Is Black Seed Oil?

Black seed oil is made from the seeds of the black cumin (Nigella sativa) plant, which belongs to the ranunculus family (Ranunculaceae). The black cumin plant is native to southwestern Asia, the Mediterranean and Africa.

It has been grown for centuries for its aromatic and flavorful seeds that can be used as a spice or as an herbal medicine.

This oil is also commonly called black cumin seed oil. Be careful, as black seed should not be confused with true cumin (Cuminum cyminum), black pepper, black sesame or black cohosh.

Quite possibly, the most promising research has been done connecting Nigella sativa to multi-drug-resistant bacteria. This is a really big deal because these so-called “superbugs” are becoming a significant public health risk.

Information available by the National Institute of Health indicates that:

• Strains of bacteria and viruses that are antimicrobial-resistant are becoming virtually impossible to treat, including HIV, staphylococcal, tuberculosis, influenza, gonorrhea, candida and malaria.
• Between 5 percent to 10 percent of all hospital patients develop infections from superbugs.
• More than 90,000 of these patients die every year, up from 13,300 patient deaths in 1992.
• People infected with superbugs typically have longer hospital stays, require more complicated treatment and don’t recover as well.

In a study conducted by Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College in India, researchers determined just how potent black seed oil is against some of these superbugs and paired it against several antibiotics, such as Amoxicillin, Gatifloxacin and Tetracycline. According to the study, “Out of 144 strains tested, most of which were resistant to a number of antibiotics, 97 were inhibited by the oil of black cumin.”

Next to oregano oil, few things on the planet can boast this type of potency to microbes. The study uncovered that it was especially effective against multi-drug-resistant strains of P. aeruginosa and S. aureus.

The key to understanding the health benefits of black seed oils lies in the presence of three key natural phytonutrients: thymoquinone (TQ), thymohydroquinone (THQ) and thymol. These incredible phytochemicals lead to all kinds of amazing black seed oil benefits.