Nutritional Profile and Health Benefits of Dill

Dill, also known as dill weed and scientifically termed as Anethum graveolens, is quite easy to find annual herb that belongs to the part of the celery or the Apiaceae family. This is native to the Mediterranean and South Russian; however it can be grown in almost all parts of the world, including North America. This is generally added to soups or salads, or used as garnish. Dill is known for its tremendous health benefits. Let us read the following array of the article and know about some of the best health benefits of dill.

Dill is packed with important nutrients and vitamins that help you in keeping quite healthy. A 100 grams of fresh serving of dill, offers you about 43 calories. One serving of dill also provides you 3.5 grams of protein and only over 1 gram of fat. 2/3rd cups of this herb even offers you around 2 grams of fiber and 7 grams of carbohydrates, as per the USDA data. ⁽¹⁾

Vitamins present in dill are vitamin A (154% of your daily recommended amount), Vitamin C( 85 mg or 142% of your recommended amount), folate (38% of the daily amount that is recommended) and riboflavin (17% of the recommended amount). Apart from all these, you also get some amount of niacin, thiamin, pantothenic acid, and vitamin B6.

There are also some essential minerals present in dill which include calcium( 203 mg), magnesium (55 mg), iron (6.6 mg), phosphorus( 66 mg), manganese (1.3 mg), potassium (738 mg), and small amounts of zinc, sodium, and copper.

As mentioned above dill is loaded with several micronutrients that offer you health benefits. Vitamin A found in dill helps you in maintaining healthy immune system function, vision, skin and reproductive health. Vitamin c present in dill helps your body to resist various infections as this vitamin is a crucial antioxidant. Folate present in dill helps in maintaining healthy bones, riboflavin helps in improving cell function.

In Ayurvedic medicines, dill has been used for treating various illnesses and now people use this herb for various medicinal purposes like gastrointestinal disorders, cough, bronchitis, infectious diseases, flatulence, insomnia, and many more.

Research has suggested that this herb might have an antidiabetic effect and authors of one review have stated that dill can be used for managing the symptoms of diabetes in diabetic patients. ⁽²⁾ however, more studies are required to confirm this.

There are even some studies which suggest that dill might be beneficial in managing the levels of cholesterol. ⁽³⁾ however, there are also some other studies that show that this herb has got no effect in managing cholesterol and thus more evidence is required to support this benefit of dill. ⁽⁴⁾

It must also be mentioned that scientists are also investigating if dill might have an effect of metabolic syndrome or not. One 12-week of study showed that the extracts from this herb had a beneficial effect on the levels of triglyceride, but had no effect on the waist circumference, fasting blood sugar, and blood pressure. ⁽⁵⁾

Now, let us take a better look on some of the health benefits of dill.

One of the best known health benefits of dill is, it helps in proper digestion. Dill is used in ancient medicine for treating gastrointestinal issues, like indigestion, flatulence, and stomachache. However, as per studies, there is very limited evidence to prove its impact now. ⁽⁶⁾

Being a popular carminative, dill can help in preventing excessive gas. Excessive gas is not just embarrassing but also if it continues to develop, it can cause a dangerous situation where it presses on several delicate organs of your chest cavity. Dill or any carminative, forces the gas downwards through your digestive tract and allow it to come out of the body.

Hiccup is a condition that can occur due to various reasons. However, one of the major reasons for hiccups is trapped gas and its repeated upward movement via your food pipe. One more reason could be because of some specific allergies, hyperactivity, hypersensitivity, and nervous malfunctioning.

Dill can assist you in these situations. Being a carminative, dill aids the expulsion of gases and even reduces the formation of gas; while as a sedative, it is thought to help in calming down hiccups because of hyperactivity, allergies, or nervous disorders.

One more known health benefits of dill is that is help in managing diabetes. In fact this herb has been used for diabetes since long and also for managing the levels of insulin. Though there are only limited research in this regards, studies have shown that dill might be helpful in reducing the fluctuations of serum lipids and the levels of insulin in case of corticosteroid-induced diabetes.

As per a study which was published in the Journal Phytotherapy Research, it was explained that laboratory rats that suffered from corticosteroid-induced type 2 diabetes showed a reduced level of serum glucose and insulin when there were given extracts of dill for 22 days. ⁽⁷⁾

Dill is also known to benefit in treating insomnia. The essential oils present in dill have got powerful properties and are known for their medicinal properties, and they also act as a sedative, and hypnotic. The presence of vitamin B complex and flavonoids in the essential oils of dill activate the secretion of some hormones and enzymes which are known to have hypnotic and calming abilities, and thus helping people get a good night sleep.

One more health benefit of dill is that it promotes the functioning of your immune system and enhances immunity. Dill has been associated with antimicrobial activity. So using dill on a frequent manner in meals might help in reducing the incidence a lot of microbial infections all throughout the body and also infections that might result in small cuts or open wounds on the skin.

There are a lot of bone health benefits of dill. This herb is packed with calcium content in it and this contributes to adequate calcium levels in the body, which helps against the important element in protecting the loss of bone mineral density.

Osteoporosis is a condition that affects a lot of people every year, and calcium content, along with several other essential minerals is an important component in the growth and development of bones and it also repairs any injured bones.

Diarrhea is a condition primarily caused due to microbial action and indigestion. Dill can be beneficial if diarrhea is due to indigestion as, the herb has got some fair digestive properties. Moreover, dill can also help due to the flavonoids and monoterpenes found in the essential oils, which are bactericidal or germicidal in nature. They can aid relieve the condition of diarrhea by inhibiting microbial infections attacking the body.

Dill is also beneficial in stimulating menstruation. The presence of flavonoids in the essential oil present in dill are quite stimulating and have got emmenagogue abilities, which are used in folk medicine for stimulating the secretion of some hormones that helps in maintaining proper menstrual cycles in case of women. ⁽⁸⁾

Respiratory disorders can also be treated by dill. There are some components like Kaempferol found in flavonoids and monoterpenes found in essential oils present in this herb are antihistaminic and anti-congestive in nature. They are believed to help in clearing congestion in the respiratory system because of histamines, cough, or allergies.

Dill has got anti-inflammatory abilities and thus helps in reducing inflammation and the associated pain of certain diseases like gout and rheumatoid arthritis. Dill has actually been used since quite long time for this reason.

Dill leaves and seeds work as good mouth as well as breath fresheners. Moreover, the essential oils found in it are germicidal, disinfectant, and antioxidant in nature. Because of these properties, dill helps in alleviating oral microbial infections and also their antioxidants help in minimizing the damage occurring to teeth and gums, due to free radicals.

Dill is also known to be an excellent relaxant, and it also increases strength and urination so as to remove toxins out of body, extra salts, and water from your body. Apart from all these, dill also helps in preventing cramps, and it is also an anti-flatulent substance. Dill might also be helpful in preventing cancer; however, further research is also needed for exploring this claim.

It is true that dill has got so many health benefits and adding this in to your daily diet could be a real option for you if you are looking to stay healthy and fit. However, it must also be strictly noted that it is always better to consult with your doctor before using it for treating any diseased condition, as an expert medical advice is always required for getting the best treatment in any of the health condition.

Reference Links:

1. https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/fdc-app.html#/?query=ndbNumber:2045
2. https://dx.doi.org/10.1155%2F2016%2F1098916
3. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25422662
4. https://doi.org/10.1186/1476-511X-6-5
5. https://dx.doi.org/10.1186%2F2008-2231-20-47
6. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3555834/
7. http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ptr.2553/abstract
8. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0378874103003647