Are Sesame Seeds Healthy, and Are You Eating Enough?

There is a bag of sesame seeds in most British kitchens, and most of it will still be there next year.

We put them on bagels. We scatter them over a stir fry. Then we fold the top of the bag over and forget about it for eleven months.

Which is a shame, because the honest answer to are sesame seeds healthy is a fairly enthusiastic yes, and the sprinkle is not where it happens.

Key Takeaways

1. Verdict: Sesame seeds are genuinely nutrient-dense, bringing fibre, plant protein, unsaturated fat, copper, magnesium, calcium and iron in a 30g serving.
2. Portion: A 30g serving is about three tablespoons. The scattering on a bun is closer to half a gram, which is a garnish rather than a nutritional contribution.
3. Form: Ground sesame, which is all tahini is, makes the seed easier to digest than whole seeds that may be swallowed without being fully chewed.
4. Allergen: Sesame is one of the 14 allergens that must be declared by law on food sold in the UK.

The spread in question Messyface — Naturally delicious. Surprisingly simple. Grapes and tahini. That’s it. Take a look →

Are sesame seeds healthy?

Yes. Sesame seeds are one of the more nutrient-dense things in any cupboard. A 30g serving, roughly three tablespoons, gives you about 155 calories, 13g of mostly unsaturated fat, 4.8g of plant protein and 3.2g of fibre, plus useful copper, magnesium, iron, zinc and selenium.

Figures vary depending on whether the seeds are hulled or unhulled, which matters more than most articles let on.

Sesame has been doing this quietly for a very long time. It is one of the oldest oil crops there is, and most of the world's sesame never gets sprinkled on anything. It gets crushed, into oil or into tahini.

Which is where we should declare an interest.

Messyface is made of two things. Sesame tahini and grape molasses. That is the whole list, and somehow it tastes like dark, fudgy caramel.

We did not expect that either.

At our tastings, one of the questions people keep asking after a spoonful of Messyface is what it's sweetened with. Grapes. The sesame is busy doing something else entirely.

What are the health benefits of sesame seeds?

Sesame seeds contain unsaturated fats, fibre, minerals and antioxidant compounds called lignans, which is why researchers have studied them in relation to heart health, blood pressure, bone health and inflammation. The evidence varies, though, and the studies generally use far more sesame than anybody puts on a bun.

1. Heart health. Around 80% of the fat in sesame seeds is unsaturated. Replacing saturated fats with unsaturated fats in the diet can help maintain healthy cholesterol levels.

2. Blood pressure. Sesame has also been studied in relation to blood pressure, including in small trials using sesame seeds or sesame oil. Interesting, but not a reason to start treating the jar behind the star anise as medicine.

3. Bone health. Sesame is one of the better plant sources of calcium. Adults in the UK need 700mg of calcium a day, and how much of sesame's calcium you absorb depends on the hull.

4. Antioxidants. Sesamin, sesamol and sesamolin are the compounds doing the interesting work, studied for oxidative stress and inflammation. Early laboratory work on cancer cells is exactly that: early.

5. Fibre. 3.2g in a 30g serving is a real contribution, given UK adults average well below the recommended 30g a day.

6. Zinc. Sesame contains a decent amount, and zinc is needed for normal immune function.

7. Iron. Women aged 19 to 49 need 14.8mg of iron a day and men need 8.7mg. Unhulled seeds carry noticeably more iron than hulled ones.

None of this is why anybody eats sesame, mind. Toasted sesame smells like the best part of a stir fry. And tahini turns into something close to pudding the moment it meets anything sweet.

How many sesame seeds should you eat a day?

There is no official UK recommendation for how many sesame seeds you should eat a day. Research studies often use around 30g, or roughly three tablespoons, but that is a study quantity rather than a daily recommendation. The scattering on a bagel is closer to half a gram, which puts the difference in perspective.

This is the bit the internet skips. Search are sesame seeds healthy and you get dozens of pages listing what they do for you, almost none of which mention that the way most of us eat sesame delivers a rounding error.

Worth saying plainly: Messyface is not a health supplement. A 15g serving is 66 calories Worth saying plainly: Messyface is not a health supplement. It is food. Dark, glossy, ridiculously delicious food made from grapes and sesame. The fact that those ingredients bring something nutritionally interesting with them is a bonus, not the reason to lick the spoon.

Two ingredients

Put it on toast. Then try not to eat the jar.

Grape molasses and sesame tahini, blended until it goes fudgy. Five seconds in the microwave and it pours.

✓No refined sugar✓No palm oil✓No emulsifiers

Get a jar

Is tahini healthier than whole sesame seeds?

Neither is healthier as such. The answer to are sesame seeds healthy does not change with the form, but how much you get out of them does. Whole seeds are tiny and slippery, and some can be swallowed without being fully chewed. Grinding them, which is essentially what tahini does, takes care of that part in advance.

What is the difference between black and white sesame seeds?

Black sesame seeds are commonly sold unhulled, which is where a lot of the iron and calcium sits, and they taste stronger and crunchier for it.

The hull also carries oxalates, which bind some of that calcium into a form the body absorbs poorly. Reviews of sesame's composition suggest more than half the calcium in unhulled seed can end up bound this way. Hulled seeds are paler and milder. Neither is a bad choice.

What Britain has never quite worked out is that sesame is not only a savoury ingredient.

In Turkey, tahini and grape molasses have long been eaten together as tahin pekmez, often with bread: dark, thick, nutty and properly sweet. Variations on that sesame-and-fruit-molasses pairing run through the wider region too. It is the food tradition that eventually led to Messyface.

Five seconds in the microwave, poured over vanilla ice cream, eaten standing up in the kitchen. Absolutely magnificent.

Right then

Breakfast doesn’t know what’s coming.

Delicious. Caramel-like. Two ingredients, one very moreish jar, and a breakfast you’ll actually get out of bed for.

Shop Messyface

Or try one of each →

Are there any downsides to eating sesame seeds?

For most people who can eat sesame, it is an ordinary food rather than something that needs special caution. Three things are worth knowing: sesame is a significant allergen, it contains oxalates, and like other seeds it is energy-dense.

Sesame allergy is the important one. Sesame is one of the 14 allergens that must be declared by law on food sold in the UK, and the NHS lists it among foods people react to. Reactions can be serious.

One important, non-messy bit: Messyface contains sesame, the Peanut edition contains peanuts, and both are made in a facility that also handles nuts. If sesame is off the menu for anyone you are feeding, Messyface is too.

Naturally sweet still means sweet, so here are the numbers. Messyface Original contains around 43g of sugars per 100g. Its sweetness comes from grape molasses, made from grapes, with no refined sugar added. No palm oil, no milk powder, no emulsifiers.

What is the best way to eat sesame seeds?

Toast them, then use them somewhere you will actually notice them. Two to three minutes in a dry pan transforms the flavour completely. And because tiny whole seeds are easy to swallow without much chewing, tahini is an easy way to eat sesame in amounts considerably bigger than a sprinkle.

1. Toasted over roast vegetables. Carrots, cauliflower, sprouts. Two minutes in a dry pan first, then scattered while everything is still hot.

2. Tahini as a dressing. Loosen it with lemon juice and water and it turns pale and creamy. Good on almost any grain bowl.

3. In baking. Sesame goes properly nutty in the oven. Our sesame slices are built around exactly that.

4. On a yoghurt bowl. Thick yoghurt, fruit, granola, and a dark spoonful dragged through the middle. Do not stir it in properly. Finding the sticky bit is the entire point, and our granola yoghurt bowl does it with raspberries and pistachios.

5. Against something sweet. Sesame has a savoury, faintly bitter edge that stops sweet things becoming cloying, which is why tahini behaves so differently from peanut butter in sweet recipes.

6. On hot toast. Sourdough, still steaming. Spread it right to the crust. The warm bread loosens it, the surface goes glossy, and a little runs into the holes. Some ends up on the knife. Some of that never reaches the toast. There are other things worth putting on toast, but this one is difficult to come back from.

There is a bag of sesame seeds in your cupboard right now. You bought it for one recipe, used a teaspoon, and folded the top over. It has been waiting patiently ever since, somewhere behind the star anise.

Top tips

• Toast sesame seeds in a dry pan for two to three minutes, moving them constantly. They go from nutty to burnt in about fifteen seconds.
• Unhulled seeds generally contain more of some minerals; hulled seeds are milder and often easier to use in baking.
• Store the bag somewhere cool and dark. Sesame is high in oil and goes stale faster than you would think.
• Tahini separates in the jar. Stir it properly rather than pouring off the oil, which is where a lot of the flavour lives.
• To turn a thick spread into a drizzle, put a spoonful in a small bowl and microwave it for about five seconds. Never the jar, which has a metal lid.

Frequently asked questions

Is it OK to eat sesame seeds every day?

For most people who aren't allergic to sesame, sesame seeds can be part of an everyday diet. There is no official recommended daily amount in the UK. They're energy-dense, though, so a generous helping is worth thinking of as part of the meal rather than an invisible extra.

Are black sesame seeds healthier than white?

Black sesame seeds are often sold with their hull intact, which can mean more of some minerals including iron and calcium. But the hull also contains compounds that can reduce how much of some minerals your body absorbs. So “healthier” is too simple: black sesame tends to taste stronger and nuttier, while white sesame is generally milder and often preferred for baking.

Are sesame seeds nuts?

No. Sesame seeds are seeds, from the plant Sesamum indicum, and they are botanically unrelated to tree nuts or peanuts. They are still a major allergen in their own right and must be declared on UK food labels. A sesame allergy and a nut allergy are separate things.

Can you eat too many sesame seeds?

Yes, although sesame is an ordinary food rather than something with an official upper limit. Large amounts may cause digestive discomfort, and sesame is energy-dense because of its naturally high fat content. If you have a sesame allergy, of course, the safe amount is none.

What is the healthiest way to eat sesame seeds?

There isn't one single “healthiest” form. Whole sesame gives you crunch and texture; tahini gives you the same ingredient already ground into a paste, which makes it easier to eat in meaningful amounts. Toasting adds flavour rather than magic. Pair tahini with something sweet and it stops being a health decision entirely.

Should you be eating more sesame seeds?

Maybe. You should almost certainly be doing more interesting things with them.

Are sesame seeds healthy? Properly so. They bring fibre, plant protein, mostly unsaturated fats and an impressive collection of minerals. But the real revelation isn't that sesame is nutritious. It's that the seed Britain mostly relegates to the top of a bun can become something extraordinarily indulgent when you grind it.

Add grapes and things get properly interesting.

Dark. Glossy. Deeply caramel-like. Nutty enough to stop the sweetness becoming sickly. Two ingredients behaving far more indulgently than they have any right to.

That one is Messyface.

Get it on hot toast. Mind your thumb.

Pick your mess

Three jars. One correct answer, and it is yours.

Dark & caramel Original Grapes and tahini. The one that started it. Choose this one → Roasted & nutty Peanut Same jar, plus peanuts. Louder. Choose this one → One of each Discovery Duo No deciding required. Choose this one →