Nutmeg is the oval seed of the evergreen Myristica fragrans native to Indonesia India,  Sri Lanka, South Africa and Southeast Asia. It’s an evergreen tree that produces two spices: nutmeg and mace, which is the shell of nutmeg.

The plant is a source of invert sugars, wax, gums, resins, flavonoids, organic acids, aromatic oils, terpenic acids, alkaloids, tannins, lignins, catechin, and other compounds.

It is one of the most widespread spices in the world for its unique taste and aroma of its oil and used by traditional Chinese, Tibetan and Ayurvedic medicine.

Traditional medicine attributes it with tonic properties in that it would stimulate the brain and be able to treat stress, pain, indigestion, and high blood pressure. Scientific studies have confirmed only some of these properties.

It is mainly used as a flavor enhancer in foods and as a cosmetic agent.

Studies

It is widely utilized both as food spice and in the alternative medicine where it has been reported for having antidiarrheal, anti-inflammatory, anti-tumor, antioxidant, antibacterial and antifungal properties. It contains a mixture of hydrophobic and volatile compounds, among these, the most relevant are the monoterpene hydrocarbons, followed by oxygenated monoterpenes and others such as  sabinene, α-pinene, eugenol, myristicin (1) and β-caryophyllene, which are indicated as antimicrobial, antiseptic, antiparasitic, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant (2) and antifungal (3).

Several studies have demonstrated the hepatoprotective activity of myristicin contained in nutmeg (4).

Extracts, powders and, in particular, an essential oil are obtained from nutmeg in which the most well-known useful components appearing are mainly Limonene, Linalool, Eugenol.

Safety

Generally, nutmeg is well tolerated, but in some people ingestion of this berry can cause intolerance.

Nutmeg studies

References_________________________________________________________________________

(1) Ashokkumar K, Simal-Gandara J, Murugan M, Dhanya MK, Pandian A. Nutmeg (Myristica fragrans Houtt.) essential oil: A review on its composition, biological, and pharmacological activities. Phytother Res. 2022 Jul;36(7):2839-2851. doi: 10.1002/ptr.7491. Epub 2022 May 13. PMID: 35567294; PMCID: PMC9541156.

 (2) Matulyte I, Jekabsone A, Jankauskaite L, Zavistanaviciute P, Sakiene V, Bartkiene E, Ruzauskas M, Kopustinskiene DM, Santini A, Bernatoniene J. The Essential Oil and Hydrolats from Myristica fragrans Seeds with Magnesium Aluminometasilicate as Excipient: Antioxidant, Antibacterial, and Anti-inflammatory Activity. Foods. 2020 Jan 2;9(1):37. doi: 10.3390/foods9010037. 

Abstract. Nutmeg (Myristica fragrans) essential oil has antimicrobial, antiseptic, antiparasitic, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant properties. We have recently demonstrated that hydrodistillation of nutmeg essential oil by applying magnesium aluminometasilicate as an excipient significantly increases both the content and amount of bioactive substances in the oil and hydrolats. In this study, we aimed to compare the antioxidant, antimicrobial, and anti-inflammatory activity of hydrolats and essential oil obtained by hydrodistillation in the presence and absence of magnesium aluminometasilicate as an excipient. The 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging method revealed that magnesium aluminometasilicate did not significantly improved antioxidant activity of both essential oil and hydrolat. Antibacterial efficiency was evaluated by monitoring growth of 15 bacterial strains treated by a range of dilutions of the essential oil and the hydrolats. Essential oil with an excipient completely inhibited the growth of E. faecalis, S. mutans (referent), and P. multocida, whereas the pure oil was only efficient against the latter strain. Finally, the anti-inflammatory properties of the substances were assessed in a fibroblast cell culture treated with viral dsRNR mimetic Poly I:C. The essential oil with an excipient protected cells against Poly I:C-induced necrosis more efficiently compared to pure essential oil. Also, both the oil and the hydrolats with aluminometasilicate were more efficient in preventing IL-6 release in the presence of Poly I:C. Our results show that the use of magnesium aluminometasilicate as an excipient might change and in some cases improve the biological activities of nutmeg essential oil and hydrolats.

(3) Rizwana H, Bokahri NA, S Alkhattaf F, Albasher G, A Aldehaish H. Antifungal, Antibacterial, and Cytotoxic Activities of Silver Nanoparticles Synthesized from Aqueous Extracts of Mace-Arils of Myristica fragrans. Molecules. 2021 Dec 20;26(24):7709. doi: 10.3390/molecules26247709. 

Abstract. In the present study, mace-mediated silver nanoparticles (mace-AgNPs) were synthesized, characterized, and evaluated against an array of pathogenic microorganisms. Mace, the arils of Myristica fragrans, are a rich source of several bioactive compounds, including polyphenols and aromatic compounds. During nano synthesis, the bioactive compounds in mace aqueous extracts serve as excellent bio reductants, stabilizers, and capping agents. The UV-VIS spectroscopy of the synthesized NPs showed an intense and broad SPR absorption peak at 456 nm. Dynamic light scattering (DLS) analysis showed the size with a Z average of 50 nm, while transmission electron microscopy (TEM) studies depicted the round shape and small size of the NPs, which ranged between 5-28 nm. The peaks related to important functional groups, such as phenols, alcohols, carbonyl groups, amides, alkanes and alkenes, were obtained on a Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) spectrum. The peak at 3 keV on the energy dispersive X-ray spectrum (EDX) validated the presence of silver (Ag). Mace-silver nanoparticles exhibited potent antifungal and antibacterial activity against several pathogenic microorganisms. Additionally, the synthesized mace-AgNPs displayed an excellent cytotoxic effect against the human cervical cancer cell line. The mace-AgNPs demonstrated robust antibacterial, antifungal, and cytotoxic activity, indicating that the mace-AgNPs might be used in the agrochemical industry, pharmaceutical industry, and biomedical applications. However, future studies to understand its mode of action are needed.

(4) Morita T, Jinno K, Kawagishi H, Arimoto Y, Suganuma H, Inakuma T, Sugiyama K. Hepatoprotective effect of myristicin from nutmeg (Myristica fragrans) on lipopolysaccharide/d-galactosamine-induced liver injury. J Agric Food Chem. 2003 Mar 12;51(6):1560-5. doi: 10.1021/jf020946n. 

Abstract. To evaluate the hepatoprotective activity of spices, 21 different spices were fed to rats with liver damage caused by lipopolysaccharide (LPS) plus d-galactosamine (D-GalN). As assessed by plasma aminotranferase activities, nutmeg showed the most potent hepatoprotective activity. Bioassay-guided isolation of the active compound from nutmeg was carried out in mice by a single oral administration of the respective fractions. Myristicin, one of the major essential oils of nutmeg, was found to possess extraordinarily potent hepatoprotective activity. Myristicin markedly suppressed LPS/D-GalN-induced enhancement of serum TNF-alpha concentrations and hepatic DNA fragmentation in mice. These findings suggest that the hepatoprotective activity of myristicin might be, at least in part, due to the inhibition of TNF-alpha release from macrophages. However, further studies are needed to elucidate the hepatoprotective mechanism(s) of myristicin.