Nigella Sativa or Black Seeds
Black seeds are being viewed by many as a serious herbal remedy that can be of assistance for the treatment of cancer. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has granted 2 patents that involve Nigella Sativa extracts in regards to cancer. One is for preventing the side effects of chemotherapy and the other is for increasing immune system function. U.S. Pat. No. 5,482,711 and 5,653,981.
As a Tumor therapy In 1991, studies at the Amala Cancer Research Centre, Kerala, India, indicated that Nigella Sativa has the efficacy of a chemotherapeutic agent. It was found that the oil diminished the toxic side effects caused by several other chemotherapeutic drugs such as cisplatin and doxorubicin. A second common type of cancer cells, Dalton’s lymphoma ascites cells, were also studied. Mice that received the EAC cells and Nigella Sativa remained normal without any tumor formation, illustrating that the active principle was 100% effective in preventing EAC tumor development. Read more here
In 1997, at the Cancer Research Laboratory of Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, USA, it was shown that Nigella Sativa oil had enormous success in tumor therapy without the negative side effects of common chemotherapy. They found that it increased the growth rate of bone marrow cells by a staggering 250% and it inhibited tumor growth by 50%. It stimulated immune cells and raised the interferon production which protect cells from the cell destroying effect of viruses.
Studies with black seeds for various cancers
For Breast Cancer- In 2003, at the Jackson State University, USA, doctors interested to investigate why Nigella Sativa had been used for such a long time for the treatment of so many acute ailments studied its effectiveness in cancer prevention. They exposed breast cancer cells to Nigella Sativa extracts, and the cells were inactivated. Doctors concluded that it had promising results in the field of prevention and treatment of cancer. Read more about this study
Cancer of the Colon- Doctors at the Osaka City University Medical School in Japan investigated the use of Nigella Sativa for the treatment of cancer of the colon. Their studies demonstrated that it inhibited the growth of cancer in the post- initiation stage. Furthermore in 2004, at the American University of Beirut, Lebanon, thymoquinone extracted from Nigella Sativa was investigated to see if it could terminate human colorectal cancer cells. Their studies revealed that thymoquinone has potential for the treatment of colon cancer. Read more about this study
Pancreatic cancer cells- Using a human pancreatic cancer cell line, Dr Arafat and her team found that adding thymoquinone killed approximately 80 percent of the cancer cells. They demonstrated that thymoquinone triggered programmed cell death in the cells, and that a number of important genes, including p53, Bax, bcl-2 and p21, were affected. The researchers found that expression of p53, a tumor suppressor gene, and Bax, a gene that promotes programmed cell death, was increased, while bcl-2, which blocks such cell death, was decreased. The p21 gene, which is involved in the regulation of different phases of the cell cycle, was substantially increased. She presents her findings May 18 at the Digestive Disease Week in San Diego. Dr. Arafat and her co-workers also found that thymoquinone caused “epigenetic” changes in pancreatic cancer cells, modifying the cells’ DNA. She explains that these changes involve adding acetyl groups to the DNA structure, specifically to blocks of proteins called histones. This “acetylation” process can be important for genes to be read and translated into proteins. Link to Dr Arafat’s study.
Liver Cancer- In this study, researchers found that when they used thymoquinone extract from Nigella Sativa on cancer rats, the growth and spread of cancer cells was effective suppressed. Link to the study
Cervical Cancer- A 2013 study sought to investigate the potential anti-cancer effects of Nigella Sativa exract. Researchers found that “Nigella Sativa showed an 88.3% inhibition of proliferation of SiHa human cervical cancer cells”. Link to the study
Brain Cancer– A thymoquinone extract from Nigella Sativa was found to selectively target aggressive glioblastoma brain cancer cells. Link to the study
Leukemia- A thymoquinone extract from Nigella Sativa was found to induce mitochondria-mediated apoptosis in acute lymphoblastic leukemia in vitro. Link to the study
Lymphoma- Dalton’s lymphoma ascites cells were also studied. Mice which had received the EAC cells and Nigella Sativa remained normal without any tumor formation, illustrating that the active principle was 100% effective in preventing EAC tumor development. Link to study
Oral Cancer- Researchers at China Medical University in Taiwan found that thymoquinone extract induced apoptosis in oral cancer cells. Link to the study
Multiple melanoma-researchers have shown that the proteasome inhibitor bortezomib (formerly known as PS-341) triggers significant antitumor activity in multiple myeloma. Link to the study
Squamous Cell Carcinoma- Nigella sativa has been proven to have a range of anti-cancer effects against many different abnormal cell types and effects against skin cancer cells have been demonstrated. Squamous cell carcinomas affect the epidermal layer of the skin and can spread and invade surrounding tissues. Nigella sativa extract has been found to be effective against squamous cell carcinoma cells in vitro (using human skin cancer cells cultured cells in a lab). The study found that the active anti-cancer extract from black seeds (Thymoquinone) inhibits cell proliferation and induces apoptosis in squamous cell carcinoma. The oil can be applied to skin and taken internally for this.
Anti fungal & Anti bacterial effects of black seeds for the treatment of Candida- In 2003, at the Aga Khan University Medical College, Karachi, Pakistan, the anti-fungal activity of Nigella Sativa was studied. Extracts from Nigella Sativa were found to have a considerable inhibitory effect on the growth of the Candida in all organs. They concluded that aqueous extract of Nigella Sativa exhibited inhibitory effect against candidiasis and that the traditional use of the plant in fungal infections was valid. They also confirmed the strongly anti-bacterial and anti-mycotic effects and they also confirmed that Nigella Sativa has an effect in lowering the blood sugar level which is essential for the treatment of diabetes. The report stated that a healthy immune system will detect and destroy cancer cells before the cancer endangers the patient, and concluded that the oil is an ideal candidate for use in cancer prevention and cure and that it has remarkable promises for clinical use.
As an integrative therapy– In other studies, it was found that the seeds or oil can diminish the the toxic side effects caused by several other chemotherapeutic drugs such as cisplatin and doxorubicin.
In one of the patents listed above it states that “Nigella sativa extract helps stimulate bone marrow cells, protects the normal cells from cytopathic effects of virus, destroys tumor cells and increases antibody producing B cells. It protects the bone marrow against chemotherapy and at the same time, can act as an anticancer agent. All these factors makes N. sativa seed extract an ideal candidate to be used as vaccine for cancer prevention and cure.” ” Nigella sativa plant extract also has been found to help restore immune competent cells in immuno-suppressed cancer patients and to overstimulate bone marrow formation in normal individuals.” Link to patent info.
In a recent study, children with brain tumors who were given 5g of nigella sativa seeds per day experienced roughly 10 times less infections and fevers due to depleted white blood cells following their chemotherapy treatments (Febrile Neutropenia). These children also spent less time in the hospital than their counterparts who were not given the seeds. Link to this study.
The Black Seed Oil Protocol:
- 1st dose- mix 1 teaspoon of Black Seed Oil with 1/2 teaspoon of raw, organic honey ½ hour before eating breakfast.
- 2nd dose- is taken in the afternoon on an empty stomach. Mix 1 teaspoon oil with 1/2 tsp of honey.
- 3rd dose- mix 1 teaspoon of oil mixed with 1/2 teaspoon of honey before bed.
- The dosages can be increased to 3 tbsp of oil per day by following the above protocol using 1 tbsp of oil mixed with 1 tsp of the honey, taken 3 times per day.
- Combine this with a healthy lifestyle, an anti-cancer diet and detoxing protocols.
- Start with 1 dose per day and work your way up to the full protocol.
In regards to the quality of the honey that you use:
Cancer cells are obligate glucose metabolizers. They have 10 to 20 times more insulin receptors than normal healthy cells which allows them to gobble up glucose much faster than other cells and use it for their growth and spread. This honey protocol is said to exploit this dependence on glucose by using the honey as a “carrier” in order to get the cancer killing substances into the cancer cells to destroy the microbes that exist within them. CancerTutor.com says this about using honey for this purpose: “cancer microbes reside inside of all cancer cells. Honey is one product which can transfer microbe-killing nutrients inside of cancer cells. While honey by itself has been known to cure cancer, honey combined with another microbe-killing substances should be even more effective.” For this particular protocol, the honey will act as a carrier for the nigella sativa oil to be absorbed into the cells.
If you are going to do a honey protocol, then it is important to use a quality honey. Raw Honey is unpasteurized and unprocessed so it has all the natural vitamins, enzymes, phytonutrients, and other nutritional elements still intact. It is rich in minerals such as iron, copper, manganese, silicon, chlorine, calcium, potassium, sodium, phosphorus, and magnesium and is a good source of vitamins A,B’s, C, and includes the benefits of bee pollen and bee propolis. Raw Manuka Honey comes from New Zealand and is taken from the bees that pollinate Manuka trees. It is considered to be the “queen of honeys” and is reputed to have the highest anti-microbial activity of all the other honeys.
Additional Resources:
40 studies on nigella sativa oil
Green Med Info “The Remedy For Everything But Death”
A Medical Review of Medical Uses and Pharmacological Activities of Nigella Sativa
Find these products online:
Raw Manuka Honey from New Zealand