|
|
|
Introduction:
Moringa (botanical name “Moringa
olefeira”) or Sahijan (सहजन) also called Drumstick
tree or Horseradish tree is a versatile tree useful not only for human beings but also for animals and also in various
industrial applications. People in India have been using it as an item of their daily food for nearly 5000 years.
The Moringa plant originated initially in the Northern part of India some 5000 years back and soon moved into
the Southern parts as well, where it was known as ‘Murungai keerai’
(Moringa leaves) and ‘Murungai kaai’ (Moringa vegetable). The Moringa tree had spread to most part of Asia, nearly the
whole of Africa, South America, southern part of North America and some pockets
in Europe. It has been found useful in nutrition, agriculture, soil control,
water purification, industrial applications, cattle feed etc and also for
treating various types of illnesses in humans and livestock. People in India have been using it as an item of their
daily food for nearly 5000 years.
Moringa used as a vegetable and oil source. Moringa pods are an important commercial vegetable crop throughout India.
The leaves have a high protein content of 27% and are rich in vitamins A and C, calcium, iron and phosphorus.
The Bureau of Plant Industry, in its report, stated that weight
per weight, Moringa leaves have the calcium equivalent of 4 glasses of milk, the
vitamin C content of 7 oranges, potassium of 3 bananas, 3 times the iron of
spinach, 4 times the amount of vitamin A in carrots, and 2 times the protein in milk.
Common Name:
Hindi - Sahjan (सहजन)
English - Moringa, Drumstick tree, Horseradish tree
Latin - Moringa oleifera
Sanskrit - Surajana
Tamil - Amukira
Kannada - Keramaddinagaddi
Telgu - Mulakkaya
Malayalam- Muringa.
Marathi - Shevga
Gujarati - Saragvo
Bengali Sojne danta
Oriya Sajana or Sujuna
Punjabi Surajana
Nepali Sajiwan or Swejan
Assamese Sojina
Sinhalese Murunga |
Sahjan flowers
Sahjan fruits
 |
|
Moringa oleifera Plant:
The Moringa plant is a perennial, evergreen tree that grows up to 20 ft (6.1 m) tall, with a straight trunk with corky, whitish bark. It grows well in hot, semi-arid and humid regions and in well-drained sandy or loamy soils. The tree has tuberous taproot and brittle stem is with corky bark. The leaves are pale green, compound, tripinnate, 30-60 cm (11.8 to 23.6 in) in length, with many small leaflets. The lateral leaflets are elliptic in shape while the terminal one is obovate and slightly larger than the lateral ones. The fruit pods are pendulous, green turning greenish brown, triangular and split lengthwise into 3 parts when dry. The pods are 1 to 4 ft (30-120 cm) long and 1.8 cm (0.7 in) wide and tapering at both ends.
The pods contain about 10 to 20 seeds embedded in the fleshy pith. The seeds are dark brown and the kernel is surrounded by a lightly wooded
shell with three papery wings.
Chemical Constituents:
The main constituents
of Moringa plant are : deic, palmitic and stearic acid, saponins, glycoside, gum, protein
Vitamins: A (8855 IU per 100g), B1, B2, B3, C Minerals: calcium, iron, phosphorus, magnesium
The leaves, flowers and pods are used as significant sources of vitamins A, B and C, riboflavin, nicotinic acid, folic acid, pyridoxine, ascorbic acid, beta-carotene, calcium, iron, and alpha-tocopherol (Dahot, 1988).
The pods are considered good sources of the essential amino acids. A compound found in the flowers and roots of the moringa tree,
pterygospermin, has powerful antibiotic and fungicical effects (Das et al., 1957). More
recently the ben oil has also been shown to be particularly effective in the manufacture of soap producing a stable lather with high washing efficiency suitable for some African countries.
The root bark contains two alkaloids: moringine and moringinine. |
Moringa plant seeds
|
|
Cultivation
Seed must be relatively fresh to give a good
germination. Warm temperatures are important for germination. Keep planted seeds
well out of reach of mice and wood lizards, as the seed is nutty and considered
a tasty morsel by these little scavengers. Stem cuttings, 10-60cm long, can also be struck in spring and summer.
Plant young trees in well-drained soil in a sunny, frost-free position. Trees
are grown extensively in tropical, sub-tropical and warm temperature areas.
Trees grown in temperate climates (particularly when small), need to
be protected from strong winds and frost. Once trees have had 1-2 winters in
cold climates, they do adapt, but may still go dormant in winter.
Moringa oleifera as Medicinal Herb
The Moringa tree has great use medicinally both as preventative and
treatment. .Sonjna (Moringa oleifera) bark, sap, roots, leaves, seeds, oil, and flowers are used in traditional medicine in
several countries. A folk remedy for stomach complaints, catarrh, cancer, gastric ulcers, skin diseases, lowering blood sugar, increasing bone density, nervous conditions, diabetes, fatigue, increase lactation, hay fever, impotence, edema, cramps, hemorrhoids, headaches, sore gums; to strengthen the eyes
and the brain, liver, gall, digestive, respiratory and immune system, and as a blood cleanser and blood builder. A traditional folk remedy was to use the leaves as a poultice on the abdomen to expel intestinal worms. An infusion of leaves is used as an eye wash for treating conjunctivitis.
Soup prepared with drumstick leaves is extremely beneficial for the natural
prevention for tuberculosis, bronchitis, and asthma. The decoction of drumstick
leaves are taken as soup; for better taste lime juice, pepper, and salt can be added to it as per the discretion of the patient.
Decoction made with fresh drumstick flowers and cow milk is an excellent herbal
tonic for sexual weakness and functional infertility of both males and females.
The powdered form of the bark, as a medicine, improves quality of semen and
cures problem like premature ejaculation in male. The decoction of bark powder and water treated by honey is the herbal medicine
should be taken in curing the problem of premature ejaculation.
Drumstick is a natural medicine for digestive disorder.
The combination of fresh leaf extract, one teaspoon honey, and one glass of
tender coconut water is an excellent herbal antidote for cholera, diarrhea, dysentery, jaundice, and colitis.
Fresh leaf-extract of drumstick leaves mixed with cucumber or carrot juice is a
natural antidote for dysuria and high acid percentage in urine.
Drumstick leaf-extract treated by lime juice is helpful for the treatment for
pimples, black head, and age spots. On regular use it adds natural radiance on skin tone.
According to Hartwell (1967-1971), the drumstick flowers, leaves, seeds and roots are used for tumors. Roots are bitter, act as a tonic to the body and lungs, and are expectorant, diuretic and stimulant in paralytic afflictions,
epilepsy and hysteria. The juice prepared from root is applied externally to heal irritation of skin.
Moringa oleifera other uses
Pod: The Moringa fruit is a long thin pod
resembling a drumstick.The Moringa pod is known as "drumstick" or saragwa or saragwe in India. In South
India, it is used to prepare a variety of sambar and is also fried. It is also
preserved by canning and exported worldwide. It can be made into a variety of curry dishes by mixing with coconut,
poppy seeds, and mustard. It can just be boiled until the drumsticks are
semi-soft and consumed directly without any extra processing or cooking. It is
used in curries, sambars, korm. Drumstick dal is also a very tasty version of the traditional 'toor dal'.
Leaves: The Moringa oleifera leaves are highly nutritious, being a significant source of beta-carotene, Vitamin C,
protein, iron, and potassium. The leaves are cooked and used like spinach. In
addition to being used fresh as a substitute for spinach, its leaves are
commonly dried and crushed into a powder, and used in soups and sauces.
Amino acids in green leaf vegetables vary considerably, and many that are staples, are low in the sulphur bearing amino acids methionine and cystine
Flowers: The flowers are edible when cooked, and are said to taste like mushrooms.
Ben Oil: The Moringa seeds yield 38–40% edible oil (called ben oil from the high
concentration of behenic acid contained in the oil). The refined oil is clear,
odorless, and resists rancidity at least as well as any other botanical oil. The
seed cake remaining after oil extraction may be used as a fertilizer or as a flocculent to purify water.
Oil from the seed, called Oil of Ben, is used for earache and in ointments for skin conditions. The oil rubbed on the skin is said to prevent mosquitoes from biting. Flowers infused in honey are used as a cough remedy.
Water treatment: Seeds crushed to a powder are used to clarify turbid, dirty water. The cleansing
takes place by a process of electrical charges established between the muddy
particles suspended in the water and the pulverized seeds, and gradually, after
about an hour, the muddy particles are pulled to the bottom of the water by the
force of gravity. Research shows that the seed not only settles the mud, but can
carry with it over 90% of bacteria and viruses
A great fodder for cattle: Moringa tree has
been of great use not only to the human beings in terms of their health in one
form or the other but also for their livestock. Moringa makes a great fodder for
cattle. The weight of livestock increased upto 32 per cent through moringa
feed. And their milk yield of cows increased by 43 percent.
The dried leaves appear to be much more effective. One agriculturist fed his
cows with just 2 kg of dry matter of Moringa per day in addition to the normal
food he had been feeding them with and the milk production increased by 58
percent. Then he increased it to 3 kg per day, and the milk production increased by 65 percent.
Bio-gas: You can also produce methane out of the leaves. Experiments have established
that it is possible to produce 4400 cubic meters of bio gas per hectare per year.
Industrial uses: The seed oil is used in arts and for lubricating watches and other delicate machinery, and useful in the manufacture of perfumes and hairdressings. The pressed cake obtained after oil extraction may be used as a fertilizer. The industrial uses of the drumstick tree include the use of its wood in paper and textile industries, bark in the tanning industry, and the seeds in water purification
Economics
India is the largest producer of Moringa, with an annual production of 1.1 to 1.3 million tonnes of tender fruits from an area of 380 km². Among the states, Andhra Pradesh leads in both area and production (156.65 km²) followed by
Karnataka (102.8 km²) and Tamil Nadu (74.08 km²). In other states, it occupies an area of 46.13 km². Tamil Nadu is the pioneering state insomuch as it has varied genotypes from diversified geographical areas and introductions from
Sri Lanka.
Moringa seed contains 40% by weight of oil. Laboratory tests
confirmed that the presscake remaining after oil extraction still contains the active coagulants. It can be used to treat water.
Presscake can also be dried and stored. It may be obtained without cost as a by-product of oil extraction.
Thus Moringa seeds can be used first for oil extraction, without reducing their effectiveness for water treatment. Moringa oil is of high quality and potentially has a high market value. The oil is of equal value both for cooking oil and as the main ingredient for soap manufacture.
Recent research
Indian scientists have discovered an even more tantalising application of Moringa oleifera, the drumstick plant "murunga", liquid extracted from its leaves can prevent lethal radiation damage to living tissues. The discovery by radiobiologists at the Jawaharlal Nehru Cancer Hospital and Research Centre, Bhopal, raises fresh hopes that compounds from medicinal plants might emerge a major source of natural drugs that could prevent the harmful effects of radiation damage to living tissues.
The drumstick might one day find use in improving the efficiency of cancer treatment with
radiation because it can reduce the severe side-effects of radiotherapy. Radiation damage to normal tissues in the body lead to the adverse effects associated with radiotherapy.
Researchers in Japan and elsewhere had shown that Moringa Oleffera extracts had antitumour and
anti- inflammatory agents.
|
|
