Black Sesame Seed – 1 lb (454 g)

Black Sesame Seed, known in Chinese as 黑芝麻 (Hēizhīmá) and scientifically as Semen Sesami Nigrum, is a valued herb in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). This TCM herb has been traditionally used to support natural wellness, maintain vitality, and encourage holistic balance. At TCMforyou.com, we provide premium-quality Black Sesame Seed carefully sourced to preserve its therapeutic properties.

As a herbal supplement, Black Sesame Seed helps promote overall well-being and supports natural energy, immunity, and balance. Integrating this herb into your wellness routine offers a gentle, time-tested approach to enhancing daily health. Whether brewed as tea, added to herbal remedies, or taken as part of a TCM formula, Black Sesame Seed provides a safe, natural way to experience the benefits of traditional Chinese medicine.

Trusted for centuries, Black Sesame Seed has been used in TCM to harmonize the body and encourage optimal functioning of key systems. At TCMforyou, we prioritize authenticity and quality. Each batch undergoes rigorous testing to ensure purity and potency, delivering an herbal product aligned with traditional practices.

Experience the natural support of Black Sesame Seed, promoting immune health, vitality, and holistic well-being. Embrace the wisdom of TCM and incorporate this gentle, effective herbal remedy into your daily wellness journey.

[Overview] This herb is also known as black sesame, black fat sesame, oil sesame, and black hemp seed. It is the mature seed of the plant Sesamum indicum L. from the Pedaliaceae family. It is widely cultivated throughout China, mainly produced in Shandong, Henan, Hubei, Sichuan, Anhui, Jiangxi, and Hebei provinces. The whole plant is harvested when the fruit matures in autumn, then dried in the sun. The seeds are threshed out, impurities removed, and then dried again.

[Properties] Sweet in taste, neutral in nature. Enters the Liver, Kidney, and Large Intestine meridians.

[Actions] Tonifies the Liver and Kidneys, nourishes essence and blood, moistens intestinal dryness.

[Applications]
1. Used for dizziness, tinnitus, soreness of the waist and limbs, weakness, blurred vision, premature graying of hair, and softening of tendons and bones due to Liver and Kidney deficiency and insufficient essence and blood. Often used alone as a dietary therapy for long-term use. When combined with Rehmannia glutinosa (Shu Di), Polygonum multiflorum (Shou Wu), and Polygonatum sibiricum (Huang Jing), it enhances the tonic effect. If Liver blood deficiency causes wind-yang disturbance with dizziness and headache, it is combined with Chrysanthemum flower, Abalone shell (Shi Jue Ming), and Lycium fruit (Gou Qi).
2. Used for dry intestines and constipation. Suitable for elderly, post-illness, or postpartum constipation caused by fluid depletion and blood deficiency. Black sesame is stir-fried and ground, then taken with honey or combined with Cannabis seed (Huo Ma Ren), Angelica sinensis (Dang Gui), and Cistanche deserticola (Rou Cong Rong) decoction.
3. Used for hemiplegia, numbness of limbs, soreness and weakness of waist and knees, often combined with Polygonum multiflorum (He Shou Wu) and Achyranthes bidentata (Niu Xi). For chronic rheumatic arthralgia involving the kidneys with numbness and soreness, it is combined with Atractylodes (Cang Zhu), Achyranthes (Niu Xi), and Taxillus (Sang Ji Sheng).
Additionally, it can be used for postpartum blood deficiency with insufficient lactation, alone or combined with Astragalus membranaceus (Huang Qi), Angelica sinensis (Dang Gui), and Manis pentadactyla (Chuan Shan Jia).

[Dosage and Administration] Internal use: decoction, 9–15 g; or incorporated into pills or powders. External use: appropriate amount, decocted water for washing or pounded for topical application.

[Cautions] Contraindicated in cases of loose stools.

[Modern Research]
1. Chemical constituents: Black sesame contains fatty oil, including oleic acid, linoleic acid, palmitic acid, stearic acid, arachidic acid, tetracosanoic acid, docosanoic acid, as well as glycerides, sesamin, sesamolin, sesamol, vitamin E, phytosterols, lecithin, folic acid. It also contains sesamin glycosides, proteins, sesame sugar, phosphorus, potassium, cytochrome, and large amounts of calcium oxalate.
2. Pharmacological effects: Black sesame extract can reduce blood sugar and increase glycogen content in liver and muscle, but large doses reduce glycogen content; black sesame oil can increase ascorbic acid and cholesterol content in rat adrenal glands, showing some inhibitory effect on adrenal cortex function; fresh sterilized sesame oil applied to skin and mucous membranes reduces irritation and promotes inflammation recovery; the seeds have a laxative effect.
3. Clinical reports: 1) Postpartum insufficient lactation: black sesame and walnut kernel, each 15 g, stir-fried, combined with 50 g fresh loofah, mashed into a paste, taken with 500 ml boiling water including residue. Treated 20 cases, all cured. [Liaoning Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine, 1995, 22(12): 545] 2) Nipple fissures: black and white sesame, each 20 g, stir-fried until yellow, Fritillaria (Chuan Bei Mu) 10 g, all ground finely and mixed with sesame oil into a paste, applied twice daily. Treated 8 cases, all healed within one week. [Zhejiang Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine, 1984, 19(2): 309]