Study on Black Cumin Extract: Benefits on Sleep and Stress
Nigella sativa (black cumin or black seed) is popularly known as the blessed seed in Arab medical tradition. Although not widely recommended for sleep, an exclusive extract of black cumin has shown utility in treating stress and sleep disorders.
This randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study aimed to investigate the efficacy of black cumin extract on the sleep quality of volunteers characterized by self-reported non-restorative sleep disorder.
Healthy male and female participants (n = 70), aged 18 to 65 years (BMI 22-28 kg/m2), were randomized to receive either placebo or black cumin extract (n = 35/group). Both therapies were administered at 200 mg/day for seven days.
Actigraphy and a validated questionnaire on restorative sleep (RSQ-W) were used to monitor the influence of black cumin extract.
Compared to placebo, black cumin significantly improved sleep quality, as evidenced by both intra-group and inter-group analysis of actigraphic data.
The observed relative improvements were in sleep efficiency (7.8%, p < 0.001), total sleep time (19.1%, p < 0.001), latency (35.4%; p < 0.001), and wake after sleep onset (22.5%; p < 0.001) compared to placebo.
Black cumin also improved sleep by 75.3% compared to baseline (p < 0.001) and 68.9% compared to placebo (p < 0.001), as monitored by RSQ-W.
Black cumin significantly improved non-restorative sleep within seven days, indicating its potential role as a natural sleep aid.
If your company wishes to create or manufacture a product to improve non-restorative sleep
Source: “Exploring the short-term influence of a proprietary oil extract of black cumin (Nigella sativa) on non-restorative sleep: a randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled actigraphy study”, Frontiers in Nutrition, Vol.10, 2024.
