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The ancient Egyptians knew and used the black seed and described it as a panacea (cure for problems and diseases). Tutankamun even had a bottle of the oil in his tomb! The Romans also knew this seed and called it Greek Coriander and used it as a dietary supplement.
In the first century, the Greek physician Dioscoredes recorded that the black seed were taken to treat headaches, nasal congestion, toothache and intestinal worms.
The black seed is also mentioned in the Bible in Isaiah 28:25-27 as the ‘fitches’. Ibn Senna, known in the West as Avicenna, who wrote the great medical treatise 'The Canon of Medicine', referred to the black seed as the seed ‘that stimulates the body's energy and helps recovery from fatigue’.
HISTORICALLY, the structure of the Medicines Control Council (MCC) has been based on allopathic medicine with the alternative medicine industry having been in a state of flux in SA for 15 years.
However, government has now indicated its intention of bringing everyone into the system.The MCC now has a section for such medicines and this has made it possible for Be-tabs Pharmaceuticals to register its black seed products. By mid-2000 they should be official and legal, says Be-tabs founder and chairman Rashid Bhikha, and will be marketed in retail outlets in SA as general health supplements.
Holistic medicine is close to the heart of Bhikha, a qualified pharmacist. The possibilities of the black seed - a cumin seed grown in Mediterranean areas - has intrigued him since he came across a prophetic saying in the Koran to the effect that the seed is a cure for all illness except death.
Be-tabs did extensive research in partnership with Potchefstroom University. Bhikha says that he was amazed at the properties contained in the black seed. Its main action is on the immune system, which is why continuous usage maintains health".
An indication of how serious Be-tabs is about developing and marketing black seed products is the appointment of pharmacist Imraan Suliman as a full time director of its international division. Be-tabs is now marketing black seed products in Muslim countries, where its powers are established in Islamic tradition.
"They've been using it since time immemorial, but we've modernised it, adapted it to modern needs and marketed it," says Suliman. "We've formulated black seed into products that are more palatable. From research at Potchefstroom, we've isolated its advantages - such as anti-bacterial and anti-arthritic propertis - and have made products applicable for each property."
A formulation it hopes will create initial interest is rooibos black seed tea, which it has just launched in SA and other parts of Africa. Others include an ointment used for muscle fatigue, a shampoo, soap and vitamin E cream.
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