Superfood Superstition
Black seeds: a timeless skincare secret or a 'superfood' hype?
I was entranced by the glass skin glow and fell down a social media rabbit hole seeking the best strategy to achieve it. I came across a man with glowing skin swearing by black seed oil in the mornings and evenings as a cure for all skincare concerns. I was intrigued, I'd never heard this skincare advice before, and took upon myself to find evidence to corroborate his claim.
I discovered that thymoquinone is the distinguished compound in black seeds, with remarkable abilities to support our skin health. It's anti-fungal and antibacterial properties are great for acne and fungal infections. Its anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties help with eczema, psoriasis, and allergies. And it's able to boost hydration to soothe irritation and plump the skin. Taken both orally and topically have shown to have incredible benefits even deeper than the skin.
It can support lung health and ameliorate conditions like asthma. Its ability to reduce inflammation can reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and stroke. Black seed oil can even support wound healing and treat vitiligo! Got Hair problems? Black seed oil can solve that too, by increasing hair strength and growth! What problem can it not solve?!
This made me reflect on the hadith "There is healing in black seed for all diseases except death." (Sahih Al-Bukhaari, 5688). With the myriad of evidence highlighting the black seed superpowers, I was about to call it a superfood! But, unfortunately, the term superfood is a cape, worn not by a hero, but a serpent akin to a sleazy car salesman.
It was coined by none other than the conniving United Fruit Company to skyrocket their banana sales. As bananas were newly introduced to the United States, research began to emerge highlighting their health benefits. This scientific research proved to be a valuable marketing tactic to validate their newfound superfood label. This label began spreading in the food industry to validate health value proposition of products and mark up their prices. Since this label is not regulated, it’s slapped on anything even without good scientific evidence to support the health claims being made.
The term superfood has expanded into different variations such as superfruit or supergrains and act as a badge of honour for food and beverage products. The health claims they make are misleading and distort our perception of healthy foods. Naming one food as "super" also implies that others are inferior. The reality is, all whole foods have unique health benefits, regardless of how well researched they are and catchy marketing titles are not credible for validating health claims. So don’t get enchanted by the glamour of sensational food labels promising rich health and endless youth!
Check out these posts I've written about credibility gaps in nutrition science research and what makes a healthy diet:
Radical Rodents
I was clawing at my eyes. Scratching to relieve the pain. But they kept ballooning. Swelling my eyes shut. The hospital gave a me pill. That tamed the rage inside to relieve the itching, but not the puffiness that remained the fortnight.
Whole Wheat Hoax
Did you know that physiological differences between men and women arise from ploughing?!
You can also read more about the corrupt history of the United Fruit Company and the banana wars they instigated:
That's Bananas!
I was listening to podcast by the Harvard Business Review discussing how disruptive markets are glamourized in business with the mantra "disrupt or be disrupted". New market disruption is perceived to be the utmost success for entrepreneurs by sabotaging and eliminating rivalries. Disruptive markets displace people and is an inherently colonial framewor…
I hope you enjoyed this post and I'd love to know, what's your favourite natural skincare remedy? Lately, I've been loving sunflower oil for hydration!
this is off-topic but idk why i laughed out loud when i read this line; "But, unfortunately, the term superfood is a cape, worn not by a hero, but a serpent akin to a sleazy car salesman." them car salesman are really catching strays left and right LOL
anyways, back on topic. yeah the black seed oil is really a timeless gem and has aloot of benefits. infact i was reading some stuffs about ancient egyptian practices and i was shocked to see that even back then it was used by the queens and priestesses as part of their skincare, even by the men as well. they valued it so much that a bottle of the oil was buried with them in their tomb.
also growing up my dad always emphasized the benefits of blackseed, so it was constant in our diet Alhamdullilah.
really great post, well written as always!
I absolutely enjoyed reading this tidbit of Information Leena!
Keep it coming. The image of a sleazy car salesman cracked me up though.
Though I am a little bit older. My go to for glass skin is rice water as a toner and yogurt with rice flour as a mask. Leaves my skin Glowing wand hydrated every time.
I'm not regular with it, though I have read it can do wonders if used regularly.
The black seed though is a jack of all trades. Consuming 6-7 seeds with a teaspoon honey on an empty stomach in the morning is what my grandmother did.