Moringa oleifera

Dr. med. Heinz Lüscher

Many names for a special tree

German names for the tropical tree Moringa oleifera are Behenbaum (Behen tree), Klärmittelbaum (Clarification tools tree), Trommelstockbaum (Drumstick tree), Meerrettichbaum (Searadish tree) or also Pferderettichbaum (horse radish tree). The last two names are derived from the content of mustard oil glycosides, which make the roots of the tree taste pungent and burning like horseradish. I personally like the name Wunderbaum (Wonder tree). This name tells you a lot about this special tree. Moringa is one of the most nutritious plants in the world and contains 90 essential nutrients!

Where does Moringa come from?

Moringa oleifera belongs to the family of Bennut plants and is spread from India via the Arabian Peninsula to the main focus in East Africa and with a gap to Madagascar as well as to Southwest Africa. Moringa grows exclusively in tropical areas with an average annual temperature of 12 – 40° and at least 500 mm annual rainfall. Moringa trees grow about eight meters high, they grow very fast, up to four meters per year.

Moringa, the perfect food in famine areas

Unfortunately, the extraordinary possibilities for use in Africa have largely been forgotten, so that Moringa trees are sometimes uprooted as weeds or people even starve to death under Moringa trees just because they know nothing about it. The high content of protein and carbohydrates makes Moringa the perfect food in famine areas. Vitamin A deficiency is the main reason for the high infant mortality and numerous cases of blindness in Africa. Millions of children also die of diarrhoea every year. These children could be helped with Moringa. Moringa is also an ideal food for pregnant and lactating women in these areas.

Practically the whole tree (root, bark, seeds, flowers, fruits and leaves) can be used for medicinal purposes. In the following, however, we will only consider the powder obtained from dried leaves.

The healthy ingredients of Moringa

Most striking is the high content of proteins, vitamin A, as well as potassium, iron and calcium. In addition, Moringa also contains almost all vitamins, many trace elements, amino acids and secondary plant substances. Moringa can be considered the best natural multivitamin preparation.