The Impact of Moringa Oleifera - Coursework Example

Moringa Oleifera (Moringacea Medical Use and Impact in Today’s Society al Affiliation Moringa oleifera is a plantwith many purposes and whose growing importance cannot be ignored. Today, the plant is used as food, medicine and for commercial activities. The plant is made up of components such as nutrients, antioxidants, amino acids and medicinal elements. To administer medicine made from the plant, two methods are used; these are application on the skin or intake through the mouth. The medicine maybe in liquid, powder, paste or food form. The impact that Moringa oleifera has had in societies cannot be ignored, especially for people in developing and undeveloped nations, who have many limitations in terms of resources. The main benefit comes from the fact that they can have nutritious food from the plant and access medicine from it at little or no cost. The plant has no reported downsides or interactions but a side effect has been reported regarding consumption of its roots. Keywords: Moringa Oleifera, Uses, Food, Medicine, Industries, components INTRODUCTION What Moringa Oleifera is Moringa Oleifera is a plant species under the genus Moringacae, which has other twelve plant species (GFU, n.d.). The plant grows in all nations located in the tropics, although its native region is the foothills located on the southern part of the Himalayas. Moringa grows best at lower altitudes. Grubben states that “in East Africa, it is found up to 1350m altitude, but its adaptability is shown by a naturalized stand at over 2000m in Zimbabwe” (2004, p. 394). The plant can tolerate drought and has been found to grow in regions with rainfall as little as 500mm annually. Although well-drained and fertile soils are the best for the Moringa oleifera plant, it can also grow in other soils. The plant can also tolerate light frost. For Moringa oleifera, all parts of the plant have their uses; that is, the leaves, roots and seeds are used for various purposes. The purposes of the plant can be categorized to medicine, food and commercial. In medicine, Moringa oleifera is used to treat a number of illnesses and conditions such as liver damage, diabetes, HIV related illnesses and fighting malnutrition among others. For food, all parts of the plant are used. The roots are used for making horseradish condiments, the seeds are used in making curries and oil can be derived from them, the leaves are used as vegetables and the flowers are used to make tea or sauces. According to Grubben, “the whole or pounded seeds have long been used to purify water in Sudan…the seed cake, a residue from oil extraction, can also be used for water purification” (2004, p. 392). The main commercial use of Moringa oleifera has been the processing of oil from the seeds, which is in turn used in cooking, making lubricants, hair care products and perfumes. DISCUSSION Components Found in Moringa Moringa oleifera is a plant with many components. According to Life in Health, it has 46 different antioxidants and over 92 nutrients (2014). The following table shows the edible portions per 100g of the different parts of the Moringa oleifera plant (Grubben, 2004): Leaves Fruits Seeds Component Amount Water 78.7 g 88.2 g -- Energy 268 KJ (64kcal) 155 KJ (37kcal) -- Protein 9.4 g 2.1 g 29% Fat 1.4 g 0.2 g -- Carbohydrate 8.3 g 8.5 g -- Total dietary fiber 2.0 g 3.2 g 7.5% Calcium 185 mg 30 mg -- Magnesium 147 mg 45 mg -- Phosphorus 112 mg 50 mg -- Iron (Fe) 4.0 mg 0.4 mg -- Zinc 0.6 mg 0.4 mg -- Vitamin A 7564 IU 74 IU -- Thiamin 0.3 mg 0.05 mg -- Riboflavin 0.7 mg 0.07 mg -- Niacin 2.2 mg 0.6 mg -- Folate 40 µg 44 µg -- Ascorbic acid 51.7 mg 141.0 mg -- Oil -- -- 36-42% Other nutrients found in the plant are Vitamin B6, Vitamin B7, Vitamin D, Vitamin E, Vitamin K and 9 essential and 18 non-essential amino acids (Life in Health, 2014). The essential amino acids include Isoleucine, Leucine, Lysine, Methionine, Phenylalaine, Threonine, Tryptophan and Valine, while the non-essential amino acids include Alanine, Arginine, Aspartic Acid, Cystine, Glutamic Acid, Glycine, Histidine, Serine, Proline and Tyrosine (Life in Health, 2014). The following figure shows the general uses of Moringa oleifera (Foidl, Makkar & Becker, 2014): Relation between Components Found in Moringa and its Medical Use Moringa oleifera has antimicrobial, antihelmintic, anti-inflammatory, anti-cancer, antioxidant, antiurolithiatic, anti-ulcer, anti-asthmatic, analgestic, antipyretic, antihypertensive, antidiabetic, hepatoprotective, antifertility, antispasmodic and cardiac and circulatory stimulation properties (Miracle Trees Foundation, n.d.). All these are found from different parts of the plant. The following figure highlights the traditional medicinal uses of Moringa oleifera (Holistic Alternative Practitioners, n.d.): Studies on inhibitory activities against microorganisms such as pathogenic bacteria led to the discovery of antimicrobial properties in Moringa oleifera’s aqueous extracts. In a study conducted by Vieira, G., Mourão, Ângelo, Costa & Vieira, R. (2010), “water-based moringa extracts efficiently inhibited (halo > 13 mm) the growth of S. aureus, V. cholerae and E. coli isolated from shrimp samples, especially at 150 and 200 µL/dish” (p. 130). Extracts from the Moringa oleifera leaves have been used to investigate growth of fungi as well. The roots of the plant contain Spirochin and Anthonine, which are bioactive compounds. The leaves and flowers contain antihelmintically active compounds that have been used in controlling parasitic worms. Extracts from Moringa plant parts also have anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and immune-modulatory properties. These have been found to be helpful in treatment of inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD). Minaiyan, Asghari, Taheri, Saeidi and Nasr-Esfahani describe inflammatory bowel diseases as being “characterized by chronic intestinal inflammation and can be found in two forms: Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis” (2014, p. 128). In a study where they used rats with acid-induced acute colitis, they found that Moringa oleifera seeds hydro-alcoholic extract (MSHE) and Moringa oleifera chloroform fraction (MCF) are therapeutic in treatment of inflammatory and ulcerative inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) conditions (Minaiyan, Asghari, Taheri, Saeidi & Nasr-Esfahani, 2014). The anti-ulcer properties of the plant extracts can also be seen here. The anti-cancer properties of extracts from the Moringa oleifera leaves are reported only in a few studies. This is because “most of them have focused on the evaluation of their efficacy with respect to tumor-suppressive activity, but not on the molecular basis of the tumor-suppressive activity” (Jung, 2014, p. 1). The reason why the plant extracts can fight cancer is because they contain components such as “4-(α-L-rhamnopyranosyloxy) benzyl glucosinolate, 4-(α-L-rhamnopyranosyloxy) benzyl isothiocyanate, benzyl isothiocyanate and niazimicin” (Tiloke, Phulukdaree and Chuturgoon, 2013). Extracts from the Moringa oleifera leaves disrupt the growth of cancer cells, and generally, the plant parts extracts have an antiproliferative effect on cancer cells. Moringa oleifera presents antiurolithiatic properties. Renal calculi is an ailment with no satisfactory drug to treat it. People suffering from this ailment have stone constituents in their urine and usually complain of pain. Taking aqueous extracts from the bark of Moringa oleifera reduces the size of the stones in the urine of people suffering from renal calculi (Fahad et al., 2010). According to Adsejumo, Kolapo and Folarin, the antiurolithiatic properties of the plant “may also advance its use in SCD patients, particularly to enhance renal function” (2012). The seed kernels of Moringa oleifera are effective in treating bronchial asthma. According to a study carried out by Agrawal and Mehta, the kernel extracts reduce the severity of attacks from asthma and also improve impaired respiratory functions (2008). Extracts from the plant have also been found to have analgestic properties. This was confirmed through a study carried out on rats with induced arthritis, where the methanolic extracts of the leaves and roots of the plant reduced the pain in the rats (Manaheji, Jafari, Zaringhalam, Rezazadeh and Taghizadfarid, 2011). For different types of wounds, extracts from the leaves and seeds of Moringa oleifera can heal them. This is because the extracts contain ethanol and ethyl acetate, which have antipyretic properties. Evidence on this can be found from a study carried out on wounded rats (Hukkeri, Nagathan, Karadi & Patil, 2006). Moringa extracts can also lower and stabilize blood pressure. This is because they contain compounds such as thiocarbamate glycosides, nitrile and mustard oil glycosides, which have antihypertensive properties (Miracle Trees Foundation, n.d.). The blood glucose concentration inhuman beings ought to always remain stable, otherwise they suffer from diabetes. For those suffering from this illness, Moringa oleifera leaf extracts have the necessary components known as polyphenols (Miracle Trees Foundation, n.d.). Liver damage can also be prevented using the ethanolic extracts from Moringa oleifera leaves. According to Shukla, Mathur and Prakash, extract from the Moringa oleifera roots has antifertility properties (1988).This makes it a good form of contraceptive. Muscle spasms are also preventable through intake of Moringa oleifera plant extracts due to their antispasmodic properties, as well as regulation of cardiac and circulatory functions (Miracle Trees Foundation, n.d.). Administration Ways and Forms of the Medicine The two main methods that medicine from the Moringa oleifera plant is administered are through the mouth and application on the skin. In making medicine from the different plant parts, different methods can be used. The leaves are dried, but care is taken not to dry them at too high temperatures. Once dry, they are crushed using a mortar and pestle to make a powder. Once made into a powder, they can be taken as a form of tea, which is usually very rich in flavonoids (Moringa Facts, n.d.). Unlike other energy drinks, tea and coffee, tea made using Moringa oleifera leaf powder has no caffeine. Another way the leaves can be prepared is by cooking them and eating them cooked or boiling them to make a medicinal drink. To make medicine, the roots are used to make medicinal sauce. Care should be taken not to take the roots directly as they may contain substances that are toxic. An example of a toxin found in Moringa oleifera roots is spirochin and is dangerous if taken in large quantities, especially by individuals who are highly sensitive (Moringa Facts, n.d.). As for the seeds, they can be taken in dry or fresh forms. Just like the leaves, the seeds can be dried then crushed to make powder. From the seeds also comes oil which can be applied on the skin to treat wounds, stretch, marks, skin allergies, blemishes and irritations (Moringa Facts, n.d.). The flowers of the Moringa oleifera plant also have medicinal properties. To make medicine from them, they can be pressed to make juice or brewed to make tea. Impact of Moringa Oleifera in Today’s Society Moringa oleifera has had positive impacts in today’s society by being a source of food in some communities and providing populations with proper nutrition, acting as medicine for different ailments and conditions and earning income for those in different industries relating to the use of the plant. The plant can be said to be a valuable gift from nature. Tripathi states that “it has a good impact on the health, economy, environment and society” (2013, p. 143). The main impact of the plant can be witnessed in how it is slowly changing the health situations of societies at minimum or no costs at all. This is especially true for societies in developing and undeveloped nations. Tripathi concludes that “with help of Shigru or Moringa or ‘Miracle Tree’ we can keep the individual healthy thus society healthy” meaning ultimately healthy nations (2013, p. 143). Downside, Side Effects and Interactions So far, no downsides have been reported about Moringa oleifera in regard to its uses. As for the side effect, only one has been observed. This comes from the direct consumption of the plant’s roots and their extracts where due to the toxic components in some such as spirochin, individuals can suffer from paralysis and in serious cases, the result is death. In regard to interactions, no information has been found so far. CONCLUSION Among all herbs on earth, Moringa oleifera stands as the most nutritious and with the most purposes. The plant is known across the globe due to its many purposes. Unlike other plants where only some parts are useful, all parts of the Moringa oleifera plant are useful. The plant is used as food, medicine and for commercial purposes. As discussed, Moringa oleifera is a plant with many components. These include nutrients, antioxidants, amino acids and medicinal components. Medicine from the Moringa oleifera plant is administered are through the mouth and application on the skin. The main impact of the plant in today’s society is its transformation of the health situations of people, especially in developing and underdeveloped nations at minimum or no costs at all. No downsides or interactions have been reported about the uses of the plant so far. However, the plant’s roots may contain toxic components such as spirochin, which may lead to paralysis or even death. In future, Moringa oleifera is likely to increase in importance. A lot of research is being carried on the species and other uses of the plant may be discovered. Further pharmacological research on the plant may also lead to discovery of other medicinal applications of the plant.in industries, the use of Moringa oleifera for oil production and water purification may increase as more novel applications continue to be developed. Reference List Adejumo, O. E., Kolapo, A. L. & Folarin, A. O. 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PubMed 9(2), 216-222. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21288459. Minaiyan, M., Asghari, G., Taheri, D., Saeidi, M. and Nasr-Esfahani, S. (2014). Anti-Inflammatory Effect of Moringa Oleifera Lam. Seeds on Acetic Acid-Induced Acute Colitis in Rats. Avicenna Journal of Phytomedicine 4 (2), 127-136. Miracle Trees Foundation. (n.d.). Moringa Medicine: Health Benefits, Healing Properties, Uses. Retrieved from http://miracletrees.org/moringa_medicine.html. Moringa Facts. (n.d.). Moringa Oleifera. Retrieved from http://moringafacts.net/#. Shukla, S., Mathur, R. and Prakash, A. O. (1988). Antifertility Profile of the Aqueous Extract of Moringa Oleifera Roots. Journal of Ethnopharmacology 22(1), 51-62. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/3352285. Tiloke, C., Phulukdaree, A. and Chuturgoon, A. A. (2013). The Antiproliferative Effect of Moringa Oleifera Crude Aqueous Leaf Extract on Cancerous Human Alveolar Epithelial Cells. 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