Sesame and sesame oil: Super beneficial antioxidant action

Sesame successfully accompanies many of the flavors we love such as the round bread roll from Thessaloniki, Easter breads, and infinite pastries. However, this does not mean that sesame in order to have a reason for its existence, it is required the presence of another material-product, exactly the opposite. It offers us incredibly tasty and healthy foods, such as halva, sesame oil and pastel.

Sesame comes from sesame; an annual plant of Indian origin. There, in India, it was used since 2000 BC, but even here, in Greece, it was highly honored by the ancient Greeks. Today, it has found application in cooking, cosmetology, and even folk medicine. Its benefits are many, making it a food worth researching, investing in and finally adding to our diet.

Nutritional value and benefits of sesame

Sesame is particularly rich in vitamins, such as vitamins A, E, C, K and B1, B2, B3 and B6. In addition, it contains magnesium, calcium, iron and zinc and a large amount of protein of high biological value. In addition, it is an excellent source of natural antioxidants such as sesamol, sesamonol and tocopherols. These are powerful antioxidants (lignans), which help lower LDL cholesterol, facilitate blood circulation, thereby lowering blood pressure and generally contribute to the proper functioning of the heart system. According to scientific studies, the consumption of sesame oil and low blood glucose levels are directly related, suggesting its beneficial effects on glycosylated hemoglobin in diabetics.

Sesame oil and its benefits

Sesame oil, in turn, is a vegetable oil that results from the processing of sesame and is extremely beneficial to health with multiple uses. The varieties are also determined based on the way it is exported. That is, cold-pressed sesame oil acquires a light yellow color, while those from East Asia usually have a dark brown color.

Sesame oil’s special feature compared to other seed oils, is the high percentages it has in fatty acids, such as palmitic, stearic, linoleic and others. Of course, this also implies a high caloric value, which makes its consumption careful.

In general, sesame oil has detoxifying, anti-aging, anti-inflammatory and antibacterial properties, while it helps a lot in the healing of sunburn and wound healing. Admittedly, the benefits that the body gains from sesame are many, which is why we at Ntourountous bakery take care to highlight them, always guided by a quality, balanced and tasty nutritional proposal.