Moringa

The Moringa tree originates from the Himalayan region of northwest India, where it plays a significant role in the centuries-old practice of Ayurveda and continues to enjoy great popularity. Also in many Western nations, Moringa oleifera is used mainly in the form of a powder made from dried leaves of the plant, which contain a comparably high amount of important amino acids, vitamins and minerals.

The moringa plant originally comes from India, where it is also known as the drumstick tree because of its appearance. Because it is very easy to cultivate, contains numerous important nutrients and almost all parts of the plant are edible, Moringa is also called the "tree of life" or "miracle tree". In developing countries, the species Moringa oleifera is even seen as an effective remedy against malnutrition. The oil-containing seeds and unripe fruits as well as the blossoms, leaves and roots of the tree, all of which are rich in vitamins, minerals and amino acids, are used for this purpose.¹ In the West, the dried leaves of the plant, ground into powder, are primarily valued. In addition to micronutrients and dietary fibre, the focus is on secondary plant compounds such as tannins, flavonoids, saponins and alkaloids, which have already been shown to have various positive effects in basic research.² Records show that the popular moringa plant has been used in Ayurvedic practice for thousands of years.3 The traditional areas of application, which include use to regulate blood pressure and blood lipid levels, have been confirmed in part by preclinical or even clinical scientific trials. Moringa oleifera therefore rightly enjoys a long tradition.^{1, 4}
 

Diuretic properties and a lowering effect on blood pressure and blood lipids make Moringa oleifera an interesting plant in the field of cardiovascular diseases. Basic experiments suggest that the rare thiocarbamate and mustard oil glycoside forms found especially in Moringa have a hypotensive effect. The substance niazinin and its derivatives, which are also contained in moringa, could lower blood pressure by inhibiting calcium channels. In vivo experiments also indicate a cholesterol- and triglyceride-lowering effect, which is presumably caused by the substance β-sitosterol.¹ The diuretic effect, which is expected to have an additional positive influence on blood pressure, was also confirmed in vivo experiments. The substances responsible are presumably polar molecules such as saponins, flavonoids and organic acids.⁵ 
 

In the context of cardiovascular diseases, the antidiabetic and weight-regulating effects of moringa are also interesting. In addition to basic experiments with various extracts from the moringa leaf, there are also a manageable number of potentially promising clinical studies on this topic.⁶ Quercetin and kaempferol as well as their glycoside forms are suspected as effector substances.⁷ The antidiabetic effect of moringa was examined more closely in a clinical study with 55 type II diabetics. In this study, 46 people received either 8 g of moringa leaf powder or a preparation made from neem tree seeds daily. Another 9 people served as a control group. After 40 days, the participants in the moringa group had significantly lower fasting blood glucose and lower postprandial blood glucose (after a meal).⁸ Another study with 60 type II diabetics found a similar effect.  Here, the verum group each received two tablets of a preparation made from moringa leaf especially for the study. The exact dose is not specified in the study, but is probably around 1-2 g of leaf powder daily. The control group received no preparation. Both groups were instructed to follow a calorie-reduced diet. After 90 days, the control group had a 9% reduction in postprandial blood glucose. In the moringa group, this value was even reduced by 29%.⁹ The short-term administration of higher amounts of moringa leaf powder can also influence blood sugar. For example, a group of 17 type II diabetics and 10 healthy people were given a control meal and a meal with 20 g of moringa leaf powder on each of two days. Three hours after the meal, the blood sugar level was measured every 30 minutes. It turned out that the blood sugar level after the meal with the moringa leaf powder consistently rose less than that of the control. The reduction was greater in the diabetics than in the healthy subjects and was statistically significant at several time points. The authors suspect that both the fibre content and the secondary plant compounds were responsible for the effect.¹⁰ A clinical study on 35 type II diabetics also documented the positive effects of moringa on blood lipid levels. The verum group received 4.6 g of moringa leaf powder daily for 50 days, while the control group did not take any preparation. At the end of the study, the moringa group showed a small but significant increase in HDL and a simultaneous decrease in the other cholesterol values.¹¹ A small-scale study with 15 overweight women also investigated the effects of 400 mg of a moringa leaf extract taken daily for eight weeks. A reduction of the LDL value was achieved, which is presumably at least partly due to the also observed BMI reduction. However, the lack of a placebo group reduces the significance of the study.³ Overall, Moringa oleifera shows promising capacities to support normal blood glucose levels, especially in the presence of type II diabetes and during a calorie-restricted diet.
 

The moringa leaf and its extracts have been studied in numerous basic experiments. Various potential areas of application emerged. The moringa leaf probably has an antispasmodic effect due to the thiocarbamate it contains, which is the basis for its traditional use in diarrhoea. Another thiocarbamate could have an anticarcinogenic effect. Antibacterial activities are probably due to the isothiocyanate content. A liver-protective effect might be derived from quercetin, which is also found in moringa. Finally, a positive effect on thyroid function is also conceivable. Future clinical studies could also confirm these effects when used for human health. In any case, the antioxidant effect of moringa leaf is undoubted, which is not only due to the content of vitamin C, beta-carotene and vitamin E, but also to the flavonoids and other polyphenols it contains.¹ The antioxidant effect was documented in a clinical study on 90 postmenopausal women. Over a period of three months, the participants each received either 7 g moringa leaf powder, 9 g amaranth leaf powder or no food supplement (control group). At the end of the study, the moringa group showed the best results, while the values of the control group remained practically unchanged. Specifically, after taking moringa, blood retinol levels increased by 8.8%, vitamin C levels by 44.4%, glutathione peroxidase levels by 18% and superoxide dismutase levels by 10.4%. These significant differences indicate an increase in antioxidant capacity. Malondialdehyde, a marker of oxidative stress, decreased by 16.3 %, confirming this assumption. Fasting blood glucose reduced by 13.5%, highlighting the antidiabetic effect of moringa. In addition, the 17.5% increase in haemoglobin levels was interesting. The authors attribute this to the high vitamin C content, which may have improved the absorption of iron from the diet.¹² However, a dosage of 7 g of moringa leaf powder is hardly practical for longer-term supplementation. It should therefore be noted that even smaller amounts of the substances contained in moringa, such as vitamin C, beta-carotene and flavonoids, can support the body's antioxidant capacity. Even if the dosage is not reached, positive effects can be expected, which may be somewhat smaller.

¹ Anwar, F. et al. 2007. Moringa oleifera: a food plant with multiple medicinal uses. Phytother Res. 21(1):17–25.
² Berkovich, L. et al. 2013. Moringa Oleifera aqueous leaf extract downregulates nuclear factor-kappaB and increases cytotoxic effect of chemotherapy in pancreatic cancer cells. BMC Complement Altern Med. 13(1):212.
³ Ezzat, S. M. et al. 2020. Upregulation of MC4R and PPAR-α expression mediates the anti-obesity activity of Moringa oleifera Lam. in high-fat diet-induced obesity in rats. J Ethnopharmacol. 251:112541.
⁴ Dangi, S. Y. et al. 2002. Antihypertensive Activity of the Total Alkaloids from the Leaves of Moringa oleifera. Pharm Biol. 40(2):144–148.
⁵ Kumolosasi, E. et al. 2021. Antihypertensive Activities of Standardised Moringa oleifera Lam. (Merunggai) Extracts in Spontaneously Hypertensive Rats. Sains Malays. 50(3):769–778.
⁶ Stohs, S. J., Hartman, M. J. 2015. Review of the Safety and Efficacy of Moringa oleifera. Phytother Res. 29(6):796–804.
⁷ Ali Redha, A. et al. 2021. Novel insights on anti-obesity potential of the miracle tree, Moringa oleifera: A systematic review. J Funct Foods. 84:104600.
⁸ Kumari, D. J. 2010. Hypoglycaemic effect of Moringa oleifera and Azadirachta indica in type 2 diabetes mellitus. Bioscan. 5(2):211–214.
⁹ Giridhari, V. A. et al. 2011. Anti diabetic property of drumstick (Moringa oleifera) leaf tablets. Int J Health Nutr. 2:1–5.
¹⁰ Leone, A. et al. 2018. Effect of Moringa oleifera Leaf Powder on Postprandial Blood Glucose Response: In Vivo Study on Saharawi People Living in Refugee Camps. Nutrients. 10(10):1494.
¹¹ Nambiar, V. S. et al. 2010. Impact of antioxidants from drumstick leaves on the lipid profile of hyperlipidemics. J Herb Med Toxicol. 4(1):165–172.
¹² Kushwaha, S. et al. 2014. Effect of supplementation of drumstick (Moringa oleifera) and amaranth (Amaranthus tricolor) leaves powder on antioxidant profile and oxidative status among postmenopausal women. J Food Sci Technol. 51(11):3464–3469.

References interactions
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