Dill – 15 Health Benefits and Uses

Fresh dill, dill weed, and dill seeds have plenty of uses in the food industry. When you bite down on a tasty burger from your favorite fast food franchise, the crunchy pickles sitting on top of the patty get their zesty taste from dill. Dill helps bring out the flavor of many food items, which is why it’s a favorite ingredient in snacks, baked goods, condiments, and meat products.

Dill has also been a part of traditional medicine for centuries, where healers use it as a natural treatment for a variety of ailments. The cosmetics industry also relies on dill to provide perfumes, soaps, and lotions with its unique fragrance.

Dill weed is an excellent source of nutrition, offering plenty of calcium, manganese, and iron. The herb is also rich in polyphenol antioxidants, as well as providing potent anti-viral and anti-inflammatory properties.

Here are the top eight health benefits and uses of dill.

1. Antimicrobial Properties

The essential oil extract from dill seed proves to have antimicrobial properties that kill certain strains of bacteria. Studies on the oil show that it kills off the fungal plant pathogen, Fusarium graminearum, that grows on wheat and barley grain. The essential oil is also toxic to Staphylococcus aureus, as well as five other strains of bacteria.

Further research shows that a study of the effects of dill essential oil on killing other fungal strains proved useful in treating patients infected with Candida albicans and Saccharomyces cerevisiae yeasts, as well as Aspergillus niger mold spores.

You can benefit from the anti-microbial effects of dill oil by purchasing a natural hand sanitizer featuring dill extract in the ingredients. Alternatively, buy some dill essential oil extract from an online health retailer. The oil is inexpensive and typically readily available. Add the oil to your favorite hand lotion for a pleasant fragrance and anti-bacterial effect.