Dill is a derivation of the Norwegian word ‘dilla’ meaning to soothe. The Babylonians and Assyrians cultivated it during antiquity for its magical and medicinal powers. The plant has medicinal qualities, including the strong antiseptic properties of the extracted oil.
In herbal medicine dill seeds are considered a sedative, helpful to digestion and Papyrus Ebers from 1534 BC records the use of dill in ancient Egypt to relive headaches.
Some cultures chew dill seed as a means of combating halitosis. They are combined with warm white wine as a drug-free remedy for sleeplessness.
A tea made of white wine and a blend of anise, coriander, caraway, and a dill seed is reputed to stimulate the flow of breast milk in nursing mothers. Ozark healers advise dill tea for hiccups, and it is used as an antihypercholesterolaemic plant in Iranian folk medicine.
Medieval herbals recommend dill for various diseases and disorders: stomach diseases, headaches, chest pains and hemorrhoids. Eating the seeds was supposed to be an aphrodisiac for a man.
Dill seed herbal medicine
