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Cardamom

Elettaria cardamomum

Also known as green cardamom, true cardamom, elaichi

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The dried seed pods of Elettaria cardamomum, used whole or as ground seed in baking, curries and coffee. The USDA entry is per 100 g of ground cardamom; a few pods weigh well under a gram.

Heart HealthInflammationGut & Digestive Health

Potential health benefits

Best supported: Limited

Ordered by how well the human research supports them — strongest first. A rating describes the state of the evidence, not how impressive the food is. How we rate evidence.

Healthy blood pressure

Heart Health
Limited evidence

A small number of randomised trials report modest reductions in blood pressure with cardamom powder. The body of work is small, geographically concentrated and not independently replicated, and the doses are supplement-scale rather than culinary.

Limited evidence. Early human work, or mostly lab and animal research.

3 sources

Deep research mode adds each paper’s own conclusion and stated limitations.

Inflammatory markers

Inflammation
Limited evidence

Some trials of cardamom powder report reductions in C-reactive protein and other inflammatory markers. The trials are few and small, and marker changes have not been linked to any outcome people would notice.

Limited evidence. Early human work, or mostly lab and animal research.

4 sources

Deep research mode adds each paper’s own conclusion and stated limitations.

Digestive comfort

Gut & Digestive Health
Insufficient evidence

Cardamom is a traditional remedy for indigestion and is chewed as a breath freshener. Controlled human research on digestive symptoms is essentially absent.

Insufficient evidence. Not enough human research to say anything useful yet.

No source is attached to this association yet, so it is rated insufficient by default. It is listed because people commonly ask about it — not because there is evidence for it.

Ask about Cardamom

Ask about Cardamom

Answers are written only from the entries on this page — the same nutrients, compounds, claims and citations you can read above. Nothing is added from outside the database, and every answer lists what it was built from.

AI explanations are not switched on for this site, so there is nothing to ask here. Everything above is read straight from the database and does not need them.

Key nutrients

Nutrient content per 100 grams
NutrientAmount% DV
Macronutrients
Calories311 kcal16%
Protein10.8 g22%
Total fat6.7 g9%
Carbohydrate68.5 g25%
Fibre28 g100%
Water8.28 g—
Fats
Saturated fat0.68 g3%
Monounsaturated fat0.87 g—
Polyunsaturated fat0.43 g—
Cholesterol0 mg0%
Linoleic acid (omega-6)0.31 g—
Vitamins
Vitamin A0 µg0%
Vitamin C21 mg23%
Vitamin D0 µg0%
Thiamin (B1)0.198 mg17%
Riboflavin (B2)0.182 mg14%
Niacin (B3)1.1 mg7%
Vitamin B60.23 mg14%
Vitamin B120 µg0%
Minerals
Calcium383 mg29%
Iron14 mg78%
Magnesium229 mg55%
Phosphorus178 mg14%
Potassium1119 mg24%
Sodium18 mg1%
Zinc7.47 mg68%
Copper0.383 mg43%
Manganese28 mg1217%
Other measured compounds
Ash5.78 g—

Nutrient values are per 100 g of the USDA reference entry named on this page and vary with variety, growing conditions, storage and preparation.

Source record: Spices, cardamom (USDA FoodData Central, FDC ID 170919).

% DV uses the FDA Daily Values for adults and children aged 4 and over. A dash means no Daily Value has been established for that nutrient.

Bioactive compounds

Compounds present in meaningful amounts. Presence is banded rather than quantified, because whole-food levels vary enormously with variety, growing conditions, storage and preparation.

How preparation changes things

Only effects with real support are listed. If a preparation method is missing, it is because nothing dependable is documented — not because it makes no difference.

  • crushedIncreases aroma compound release

    Cardamom’s aroma sits in the seeds inside the pod, so lightly crushing pods immediately before use releases far more than adding them whole, and far more than using pre-ground seed that has been stored.

Things to know

Allergies, interactions and intake concerns. Every food gets this section — a reference where everything is uniformly good is not a reference.

  • Interaction

    Additive with blood-pressure and glucose-lowering medication

    The trials reporting effects of cardamom used around three grams a day of powder, and reported small reductions in blood pressure and glucose. At that scale an additive effect with medication is plausible and worth monitoring.

  • Worth knowing

    Research doses are far above culinary use

    Cardamom trials use one to three grams of powder daily for weeks. A few crushed pods in a pot of rice or coffee is a small fraction of that, and results should not be read across.

  • Allergy

    Rare sensitisation

    Cardamom allergy is uncommon, with occasional reports of contact dermatitis in people handling large quantities.