
By Joe Leech
Bitter.
That's the best word I can use to describe moringa, the seeds of which I tried in Uganda.
Despite its strong taste, moringa is quickly becoming a popular nutrition supplement in the U.S.
All parts of the moringa tree—including the seeds, pods and leaves—have long been used in other parts of the world for their nutritional properties.
This article looks at what moringa is and some of its most beneficial uses, including disease prevention and even water purification.
What is Moringa?
Often referred to as the "miracle tree," the fast-growing moringa tree is actually native to northern India.
The most well-known and widely used part of the tree are its seeds, which have been part of a traditional diet in Asia and Africa for centuries.
Today, moringa is readily available in various forms, including capsules, extracts, oils, powders and teas. The seeds can also be roasted and eaten like nuts, and the flowers can be used to make tea.
However, the easiest way to consume moringa is in powder form, made from dried leaves. The taste is much milder than the seeds, and dried leaves actually contains higher amounts of nutrients than the fresh versions.
Overall, moringa is highly valued for its nutritional benefits. It's also been used for non-food purposes like biodiesel production and as an ingredient in beauty products (1).
Summary: Moringa originates from northern India and has long been used for nutritional, medical and various non-food uses.
1. Moringa is Rich in Nutrients
Moringa is rich in vitamins, minerals and bioactive compounds.
One cup (140 g) of moringa seeds contains (2):
- Calories = 37
- Carbohydrates = 8.5 g
- Protein = 2 g
- Fat = <1 g
- Vitamin C = 235% daily value
- Iron = 350% daily value
- Potassium = 13% daily value
- Magnesium = 28% daily value
- Calcium = 3% Daily Value
Note the exceptional amounts of iron (350% of daily value) and Vitamin C (235%).
Moringa seeds also contain 19 of 22 amino acids, including all 9 essential amino acids, which your body can't produce itself. This is similar to other well-known "superfoods" seeds like sunflower and chia seeds (3).
Meanwhile, the pods are especially fibrous, which can help with digestive issues.
Even with this impressive amount of nutrients, moringa is very low in calories.
Summary: Moringa seeds are low in calories, but rich in essential vitamins, minerals and amino acids.
2. The Moringa Plant Combats Malnutrition
In developing nations, where malnutrition is more prevalent, moringa can be a lifesaver.
In fact, many communities and villages are cultivating the moringa plant in order to make it a staple part of their diet.
Along with its impressive amount of vitamins and minerals, moringa is a good source of protein and essential fats.
The leaves have even been used as a multivitamin supplement because of their high amounts of minerals like iron, calcium, and zinc, all essential for growth and development.
The tree is also resistant to drought and can withstand dry and hot climates, making it an excellent, nutrient-dense food source for impoverished communities.
Summary: Moringa is a good source of protein, fats, vitamins and minerals necessary for proper growth and development. The plant is easy to grow and resistant to drought, making it an important food source for malnourished communities.
3. Can Be Used for Water Purification
Boasting antimicrobial properties, moringa seeds also play a powerful role in water purification in developing nations.
When the oil is extracted from the moringa seeds, a protein-rich "cake" is left behind. This can inhibit bacterial growth and be used to purify water for humans and animals (3).
Because moringa can be grown in abundance, this is an easy, cost-effective way to prevent waterborne diseases.
Summary: Moringa seed extract can inhibit bacterial growth and be used to purify water, making it potable for humans and animals.
4. Acts as an Anti-inflammatory and Antioxidant
Research shows that moringa seeds contain a powerful mix of health-promoting antioxidants (4).
In mouse studies, moringa seed extract functioned as an anti-inflammatory and antioxidant, improving symptoms of ulcerative colitis (UC). This data suggests a similar effect could be seen in humans (5).
Another study found that boiling the seeds increased the availability of both antioxidants and iron (6).
Summary: Moringa seeds offer anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects, which may help symptoms of ulcerative colitis.
5. Boosts Heart Health
Various studies have found that moringa seeds may be beneficial to heart health.
They contain high levels of monounsaturated fats, which can help lower LDL (bad) cholesterol and may decrease your risk of heart disease and stroke if replacing saturated fat.
In one lab study done on rats, the consumption of moringa seeds decreased oxidative stress and protected heart cells while reducing inflammation (7).
Another study on rats found that moringa seed powder reduced cardiac fibrosis, triglycerides and heart rate, and improved overall cardiac function (8).
Summary: Studies have found that moringa seeds may improve heart health by reducing triglycerides, oxidative stress and inflammation.
6. Moringa Supports Digestion
Due to its high fiber content, moringa pods may be beneficial for your digestion.
Each pod contains around 47% fiber and can help you digest regularly and easily (9).
In saying that, whether you'll benefit from an increase or decrease in fiber depends on your situation.
It's also unclear if this would be considered low FODMAP and suitable for IBS as it has not been tested.
Summary: Moringa pods are high in fiber, which can aid digestion in many instances.
7. May Help Fight Cancer
Moringa seeds are known for their potential cancer-fighting abilities.
A protein extracted from moringa seeds has been shown to slow the growth of liver cancer in both human and animal cells by up to 71% (10).
In another lab study, moringa seed extract kept breast cancer cells from significantly growing and spreading (11).
Liver and colon cancer cells have also been shown to decrease significantly when treated with moringa seeds (12).
Although this research only reflects lab studies and cannot be applied to humans, the results are promising.
Summary: Moringa seeds have been shown to slow the growth of cancer cells in various lab studies.
Why You Should Try Moringa Leaves and Seeds
The seeds, pods and leaves of the moringa tree are rich in nutrients and contain very few calories.
Studies have also shown that moringa has anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties, and may even help improve digestion and heart health too.
In fact, it's so nutritious that the moringa tree is cultivated in developing countries as it helps combat malnutrition and can even purify water. It's literally a lifesaver.
Moringa can now be found all over the world in various forms, including capsules, extracts, oils, powders and teas. This is one of the most popular moringa supplements available on Amazon, the reviews are surprising.
Just be prepared for a rather potent flavor.
Reposted with permission from our media associate Diet vs Disease.
A tornado tore through a city north of Birmingham, Alabama, Monday night, killing one person and injuring at least 30.
- Tornadoes and Climate Change: What Does the Science Say ... ›
- Tornadoes Hit Unusually Wide Swaths of U.S., Alarming Climate ... ›
- 23 Dead as Tornado Pummels Lee County, AL in Further Sign ... ›
EcoWatch Daily Newsletter
By David Konisky
On his first day in office President Joe Biden started signing executive orders to reverse Trump administration policies. One sweeping directive calls for stronger action to protect public health and the environment and hold polluters accountable, including those who "disproportionately harm communities of color and low-income communities."
Michael S. Regan, President Biden's nominee to lead the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, grew up near a coal-burning power plant in North Carolina and has pledged to "enact an environmental justice framework that empowers people in all communities." NCDEQ
Trending
By Katherine Kornei
Clear-cutting a forest is relatively easy—just pick a tree and start chopping. But there are benefits to more sophisticated forest management. One technique—which involves repeatedly harvesting smaller trees every 30 or so years but leaving an upper story of larger trees for longer periods (60, 90, or 120 years)—ensures a steady supply of both firewood and construction timber.
A Pattern in the Rings
<p>The <a href="https://www.encyclopedia.com/science/dictionaries-thesauruses-pictures-and-press-releases/coppice-standards-0" target="_blank">coppice-with-standards</a> management practice produces a two-story forest, said <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Bernhard_Muigg" target="_blank">Bernhard Muigg</a>, a dendrochronologist at the University of Freiburg in Germany. "You have an upper story of single trees that are allowed to grow for several understory generations."</p><p>That arrangement imprints a characteristic tree ring pattern in a forest's upper story trees (the "standards"): thick rings indicative of heavy growth, which show up at regular intervals as the surrounding smaller trees are cut down. "The trees are growing faster," said Muigg. "You can really see it with your naked eye."</p><p>Muigg and his collaborators characterized that <a href="https://ltrr.arizona.edu/about/treerings" target="_blank">dendrochronological pattern</a> in 161 oak trees growing in central Germany, one of the few remaining sites in Europe with actively managed coppice-with-standards forests. They found up to nine cycles of heavy growth in the trees, the oldest of which was planted in 1761. The researchers then turned to a historical data set — more than 2,000 oak <a href="https://eos.org/articles/podcast-discovering-europes-history-through-its-timbers" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">timbers from buildings and archaeological sites</a> in Germany and France dating from between 300 and 2015 — to look for a similar pattern.</p>A Gap of 500 Years
<p>The team found wood with the characteristic coppice-with-standards tree ring pattern dating to as early as the 6th century. That was a surprise, Muigg and his colleagues concluded, because the first mention of this forest management practice in historical documents occurred only roughly 500 years later, in the 13th century.</p><p>It's probable that forest management practices were not well documented prior to the High Middle Ages (1000–1250), the researchers suggested. "Forests are mainly mentioned in the context of royal hunting interests or donations," said Muigg. Dendrochronological studies are particularly important because they can reveal information not captured by a sparse historical record, he added.</p><p>These results were <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-020-78933-8" target="_blank">published in December in <em>Scientific Reports</em></a>.</p><p>"It's nice to see the longevity and the history of coppice-with-standards," said <a href="https://www.teagasc.ie/contact/staff-directory/s/ian-short/" target="_blank">Ian Short</a>, a forestry researcher at Teagasc, the Agriculture and Food Development Authority in Ireland, not involved in the research. This technique is valuable because it promotes conservation and habitat biodiversity, Short said. "In the next 10 or 20 years, I think we'll see more coppice-with-standards coming back into production."</p><p>In the future, Muigg and his collaborators hope to analyze a larger sample of historic timbers to trace how the coppice-with-standards practice spread throughout Europe. It will be interesting to understand where this technique originated and how it propagated, said Muigg, and there are plenty of old pieces of wood waiting to be analyzed. "There [are] tons of dendrochronological data."</p><p><em><a href="mailto:katherine.kornei@gmail.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Katherine Kornei</a> is a freelance science journalist covering Earth and space science. Her bylines frequently appear in Eos, Science, and The New York Times. Katherine holds a Ph.D. in astronomy from the University of California, Los Angeles.</em></p><p><em>This story originally appeared in <a href="https://eos.org/articles/tree-rings-reveal-how-ancient-forests-were-managed" target="_blank">Eos</a></em> <em>and is republished here as part of Covering Climate Now, a global journalism collaboration strengthening coverage of the climate story.</em></p>Earth's ice is melting 57 percent faster than in the 1990s and the world has lost more than 28 trillion tons of ice since 1994, research published Monday in The Cryosphere shows.
By Jewel Fraser
Noreen Nunez lives in a middle-class neighborhood that rises up a hillside in Trinidad's Tunapuna-Piarco region.