Moringa: What Can This ‘Wonder Plant’ Do for You?

One of the most nutrient-dense foods in the world is offering hope for diabetes, malnutrition, and even COVID-19

Moringa powder (Moringa Oleifera) with fresh Moringa leaves. Rostovtsevayu/Shutterstock

If you’re looking to control your blood sugar, you may have heard about a “new” superfood called moringa, a healthy supplement to take on its own or add to smoothies and soups. Called a “wonder plant” by some, moringa is available in powder form, in capsules and gummies, and as a tea.

Rich in vitamins, proteins, and amino acids, moringa is an ancient plant and a powerful dietary supplement—so much so that researchers are looking into its potential to prevent malnutrition.

In the Western world, moringa (Moringa oleifera) is often promoted as a supplement to help patients with Type 2 diabetes.

“It lowers blood sugar and blood pressure as well since it is high in fiber and protein,” Dr. Ahmet Ergin, an endocrinologist and founder of Sugarmds.com, told The Epoch Times.

He said the plant’s naturally occurring vitamins, proteins, and amino acids are the source of its benefits. One of the most nutrient-dense plants in existence, moringa is rich in vitamins A, B, C, D, E, and K, as well as calcium, iron, potassium, magnesium, manganese, and zinc.

For people who are unfamiliar with moringa, the easiest way to use it is in powdered form, added to smoothies, salads, or soups, Dr. Ergin said.

“Food can be medicine if you eat it correctly,” he said.

“We use medications, too, but I think using natural sources helps a lot in terms of the number of medications they need. With the right coaching, the right foods, and supplements, they do great.”

While moringa may be new to many Westerners, people have relied on its healing properties for centuries in developing and tropical areas. People in Asia and other places where moringa grows often use its bitter leaves in stews, casseroles, soups, and salads.

Some nutrition experts believe moringa has the potential to help ease malnutrition globally and also to be a tremendous boon to the health and wealth of poorer nations.

What Is Moringa?

Native to India, the deciduous moringa tree is also known as the horseradish tree, drumstick tree, and radish tree, among other names. The plant now also thrives in tropical areas of West Africa, Asia, Australia, South America, and Central America.

According to a review by an international group of researchers looking at a collection of studies on moringa, the plant contains:

• Higher amounts of vitamin C than oranges.
• Higher concentration of vitamin A than carrots.
• Higher calcium content than milk.
• More potassium than bananas.
• Nine times more iron than spinach.
• Four times more fiber than oats.

Its nutrient density is why moringa is called a “living cornucopia“ in a book on African crops produced by the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM).

With its high concentration of beta-carotene (four times the amount in carrots, according to NASEM), moringa is ideal for use in programs aiming to end vitamin A deficiency in developing countries, the group said.

Moringa also packs in more amino acids than most other plants. According to the organization Trees for Life, nutritional analyses show that moringa leaves contain all the essential amino acids, which is unusual for a plant source.

Researchers in India labeled moringa a “wonder plant” after reviewing 10 years of research and patents on it. In a 2021 review of research into moringa’s nutritional significance and therapeutic potential, they found that the plant could be a tremendous boon to the health and wealth of developing countries.

“The indigenous components of moringa can treat humankind of its diseases and contribute to overall health,” they wrote. “It can lead to tremendous economic development if the industries and researchers exploit its potential for highly nutritional super food and therapeutic application by undertaking further research to corroborate earlier studies.”

Potential to Nourish the Poor, Fight COVID-19

The organization Trees for Life was founded in the 1980s to assist Indian villagers in planting fruit trees. Its founder and president, Balbir Mathur, learned from an Indian traditional medicine practitioner that moringa leaves can prevent 300 diseases. After looking into this claim, Mr. Mathur concluded, “the more we study, the more it seems that the Moringa oleifera tree truly delivers wonders.”

Research into moringa as a possible solution to the problem of malnutrition began in earnest in the early 2000s. Writing in the Trees for Life journal in 2005, Jed W. Fahey, who has a doctorate in science, even cautioned against viewing moringa as a panacea.

“While recent enthusiasm indeed appears to be justified, it is critical to separate rigorous scientific evidence from anecdote,” he wrote.

Just a year later, authors at NASEM in 2006 asserted that “throughout Africa, moringa could be immediately incorporated into programs tackling the misery of malnutrition.”

They also wrote, “It is reported by CWS [Church World Service] that three spoonfuls of moringa leaf powder (about 25 grams) contain 300 percent of a typical toddler’s daily vitamin A requirement, along with 42 percent of the protein, 125 percent of the calcium, 71 percent of the iron and 22 percent of the vitamin C.”

Mr. Mathur then wrote in 2008 that moringa has “the potential to deliver the nutrition needed to prevent and cure diseases and save populations.” Research since that time has shown Mr. Mathur had good reason to be optimistic.

A 2020 review of moringa’s nutritional and pharmaceutical applications in conventional and traditional Asian medicine concluded that moringa—in addition to its value in battling malnutrition—“[may confer] a supportive effect against COVID-19 disease.”

Because it’s a bitter herb, traditional Chinese medicine practices support moringa’s use “in order to clear heat and detoxify, purging the infection in the early stage, as well as to cool blood and remove blood stasis promptly in the middle and late stages,” the researchers wrote.

Although they didn’t recommend a specific protocol, the authors wrote that it seemed likely that moringa could be combined with Western medicine to treat COVID-19.

Most recently, a 2023 review looked into the use of moringa in South Africa as a “food fortificant” supplementing children’s diets. Noting that childhood malnutrition is on the rise in South Africa, the study in the journal Nutrients found that while moringa’s nutritional value is high and it’s readily available, it isn’t a popular food in that country. The authors recommend improving the appearance and taste of moringa-fortified foods to improve “consumer acceptability.”

“Studies could look at adding more than one food item to mask the [bright green] color and enhance the taste” of moringa, they wrote.

“Home-prepared complementary foods suitable for the incorporation of [moringa leaf powder] should be identified for the target population.”