Carom Seeds: Benefits and Nutrition Facts

Key Takeaways

• Carom seeds have been used traditionally for centuries for their health benefits, including digestive relief, reducing inflammation, supporting heart health, and more. Research has found some evidence of these benefits in recent decades, mainly from animal studies. 
• Carom seeds have minimal nutritional value, especially when eaten in normal culinary amounts (a teaspoon or so added to a dish), but they are packed with bioactive compounds responsible for their positive effects on health. 

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If you’re a fan of Middle Eastern or Indian cuisine, you’ve likely tasted or cooked with carom seeds, also known as ajwain. The seeds look similar to cumin seeds, but their taste resembles thyme. While these little seeds can be eaten whole or ground to add flavor to bread, vegetable curries, sauces, and more, they also have several potential health benefits. 

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In this article, you’ll learn what carom seeds are, the benefits of adding the little seed-like fruits to your diet, their nutritional value, who may want to avoid them, and how to include these powerful little seeds in your diet.

What Are Carom (Ajwain) Seeds?

Carom seeds are also known as ajwain seeds, bishop’s weed, thymol seeds, or carom. In reality, they’re not actually seeds at all. The small, oval-shaped “seeds” are the Trachyspermum ammi plant's fruits, an annual herb in the Apiaceae family, including cumin and fennel. It grows in arid regions of India, Asia, central Europe, Iraq, Afghanistan, and Pakistan and is commonly added to Indian foods.¹

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Whether eaten whole or ground, carom seeds have a bold, slightly bitter taste similar to the herb thyme. They’re used to season and flavor foods and for their health benefits. Carom seeds have been used for centuries in Ayurveda medicine to help relieve digestive discomforts like bloating, indigestion, and gas. This Indian spice has antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, and anti-platelet aggregator properties, which may support a healthy heart, reduce inflammation, and more.¹

Health Benefits of Carom Seeds

While carom seeds add plenty of flavor to the foods they’re sprinkled in, they also have several potential health benefits. This includes: 

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• Lowering blood pressure: An active compound in carom seeds, thymol, may have calcium-channel-blocking effects, much like common medications used to lower blood pressure. So far, only animal studies have found that carom seed extract can lower blood pressure, so more research is needed.²
• Antibacterial properties: A recent study found that ajwain seed essential oil inhibits the growth of E. coli, making it a potential option for food preservation and preventing food poisoning.³
• Eases digestive symptoms: Ajwain has stimulant, antispasmodic, and carminative properties to help alleviate symptoms of gas, bloating, and diarrhea and even protect against peptic ulcers. Most of the research conducted on their positive digestive effects has been done in animal studies, so more research in humans is needed.⁴
• They’re anti-inflammatory: Carom seeds have anti-inflammatory properties that can help reduce chronic inflammation, a condition that can take a serious toll on the body. In one study, carom extract given to rats with induced arthritis reduced COX2 mRNA, a compound associated with inflammation.⁵
• They could improve cholesterol levels: Over the years, animal studies have found that carom seed extract may help reduce cholesterol levels. One small human study found that drinking 1 or 1.5 grams of carom seed tea daily for 60 days significantly lowered triglycerides, LDL-cholesterol, and total cholesterol without any other changes to the diet.⁶
• They could help open airways: Carom seeds have some relaxant and anticholinergic effects on the airways that may improve coughs and alleviate some asthma symptoms. One study with asthmatic patients found that carom seed extract opened airways better than the placebo but was not as effective as theophylline, a common antiasthmatic drug.⁷

Carom Seeds Nutrition Facts

Many nutritional benefits of carom seeds come from various active compounds and antioxidants. The typical serving size (just a teaspoon) used in culinary dishes has minimal nutritional value. 

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Here is what you’ll find in a teaspoon of whole carom seeds:⁸

• Calories: 5
• Carbs: 1 g
• Fiber: 1 g
• Fat: 0 g
• Sugar: 0 g
• Protein: 0.5 g
• Calcium: 14 mg, 2% DV
• Iron: 0.34 mg, 2% DV
• Potassium: 27.9 mg, 0.6% DV

Who Should Avoid Carom Seeds?

Most healthy individuals can safely eat carom seeds in small amounts as a normal part of their diet. Eating excessive amounts could cause digestive upset or nausea.

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Pregnant women should be particularly careful, limiting carom to small amounts in foods and avoiding extracts, as there is minimal evidence that excess amounts of ajwain could lead to miscarriage.¹

How to Include Carom Seeds in Your Diet

While carom seeds are frequently used in foods sold in India and surrounding countries, you’ll mostly find them in Indian or Middle Eastern cuisines in North America. However, you can always use them in home cooking to incorporate more into your diet. 

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One of the best ways to use carom seeds in cooking is to temper them, which involves lightly frying them in oil or ghee before adding them to dishes. Tempered carom seeds are often added to soups, curries, lentil dishes, or sauteed vegetables to add a rich, aromatic flavor. 

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Carom seeds are also frequently used in baked goods like crackers and bread, giving them an earthy flavor. To enjoy ajwain water, steep the seeds in hot water like an herbal tea or sprinkle whole carom seeds in your yogurt, salad, marinades, and sauces. 

The Bottom Line

Carom seeds are pungent, flavorful seeds with benefits ranging from improving digestion to reducing inflammation, lowering cholesterol, and improving airway flow. They’re commonly used as an additive to foods in India and other parts of the world, but you can enjoy their flavor and benefits by using small amounts in cooking everything from curry to crackers or by drinking ajwain water (tea). If eating carom seeds in amounts greater than normal culinary use or as a dietary supplement or extract, be sure to check with your healthcare provider, especially if you are pregnant. 

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