Nutritional and Medicinal Importance of Moringa – A Review

Abstract

Moringa plant was first domesticated in India. It grows well in the subtropical and tropical zones in all around the world. It is also called as „horseradish tree‟ or „drumstick tree‟. The ability of this plant is that it can tolerate both the mild frost and drought conditions and thus due to this reason, this is widely cultivated all around the world. Due to its high nutritional profile, every portion of this plant can be used as nutritional supplement or for the commercial purposes. The leaves of Moringa are very rich source of vitamins, minerals and phytochemicals. The leaf extracts of Moringa plant is mainly used for the treatment of malnutrition. It is also used to expand the quantity of breast milks in the lactating mothers. It is a good source as an anticancer, antioxidant, antimicrobial and antidiabetic agent. It is also used in the purification of drinking water and water treatment. In the market, there are many commercial products fortified with Moringa that are good treatment for the diseases of cancer and diabetes. Due to these specifications of this tree, this is also known as “Miracle Tree”.