MEDICINAL PLANTS IN VISION 20:2020: THE CASE OF Moringa oleifera IBRAHIM, Yusuf El-ladan PhD Department of Geography, Umaru Musa Yar’adua University, Katsina.

ABSTRACT: Moringa oleifera, commonly known as the moringa tree sounds like a ‘Designer tree’, the brainchild of a Genetic Engineer, tailor-made for Developing countries. Almost every part of the tree, the roots, trunk, bark, flowers, fruits and seeds is utilized for some purpose in the countries where it is found. It is used as food, medicine, domestic cleansing agent, fertilizer, dye, foliar nutrient, and green manure, forage, ornamental and tanning; in water purification, oil production, gum production, pulp production, rope making, plant disease prevention, honey production and clarification, fencing, alley cropping and bio-gas production. The tree has great potentials to become one of the most economically important tree crops for the tropics, sub-tropics and particularly Nigeria. With all its many attributes, its ability to thrive under difficult conditions, fast growth rate, draught resistance, it is surely no exaggeration to call moringa the ‘Designer tree’. This paper intends to highlight specifically on the therapeutic values and potentials of moringa, with a view to spurring its massive production and harnessing these potentials by the Nigerian citizens, thus, relieving our lean resources of wasteful spending on massive importations of synthetic and dangerous drugs and subsequently helping the country in attaining its 20:2020 vision.

INTRODUCTION:   Over the past few decades, there has been a rapid growth in interest surrounding moringa the world over. Considerable new researches are been carried-out on its cultivation, extraction of its oil, use in agro-forestry systems, water purification properties and its nutritional benefits. Consequently, one may be right in asserting that a very simple and readily available solution to the multitude problems of hunger, malnutrition and diseases in developing world has been found. This paper intends to review the numerous medicinal and nutritional properties of moringa.

NUTRITIONAL BENEFITS OF MORINGA: The leaves, flowers, roots and immature pods of moringa tree are edible and they form part of the traditional diets in many countries of the tropics and sub-tropics. Lowell (2001) pointed out that, as a source of nutrition, moringa leaves probably rank as the best of all tropical vegetables. They contain very strong concentration of vitamins A and C, B-complex vitamins, Fe, Ca, protein, Zn, Se and, unusual for a plant source, all of the essential amino acids.

NUTRITIONAL BENEFITS… CONT’D A major advantage of moringa is the fact that it is a local resource. This contrasts with many of the on-going programmes designed to fight malnutrition, which depend on imported products and outside donor supports.

MEDICINAL VALUES OF Moringa oleifera: Every part of moringa tree is widely used to make a variety of traditional as well as orthodox medicines. For example, Limaye, et al (1995) stated that laboratory studies have confirmed moringa leaf extract to be effective in lowering blood sugar levels within a span of three hours. The same extract had shown an impressive ability to heal ulcers in laboratory animals. Furthermore, this extract taken from dried powdered leaves was found to have very potent depressive effect on the CNS, resulting in significant muscle relaxation, decreased body temperatures and increased sleep time among laboratory mice.

MEDICINAL VALUES… CONT’D Moringa products have high scientific potentials as antibiotic, antipyretic, antihypertensive, antihypertensive, anti-diabetic, anti-inflammatory, antiseptic, antiepileptic as well as analgesic effects among others. the leaves are treated variously and used wholly or in combination with one or more additives to treat hypertension, diabetes, diarrhea, dysentery, colitis, gonorrhea, fever, bronchitis, eye and ear infections, scurvy and catarrh. Moringa leaves were also discovered to be anthelmintic, antiseptic, and purgative, and are believed to increase woman’s milk production as well as prescribed for anemia (Odee, 1998).

MEDICINAL VALUES… CONT’D The flowers are used as tonic, diuretic, abortifacient, anthelmintic and are believed to suppress cold symptoms and treat hysteria. The pods are used in the treatment of articular pains, apart from being anthelmintic. The roots are useful as laxatives, counterirritants (antihistamine), in the treatment of scurvy, epilepsy, nervous debility and hysteria. Stem bark and root bark are used as appetizers and digestives. The anesthetic effect of the root bark also makes it a choice in the treatment of earache and toothache as well as pains caused by rheumatism, scorpion bites and sprains. The roots, chewed and applied to snakebite will also keep the poison from spreading, while a concoction of the root bark is considered useful in calculus affections (kidney stones/mineral buildup). Moringa gum is used in treating asthma, syphilis, typhoid, headache, earache and rheumatism. The seeds are effective in reducing the pain and inflammation of arthritis as well as easing back pains. Likewise, a paste made from crushed seeds, when applied to warts, cures them. The seed oil is considered to be a tonic and a purgative. It is also applied topically to relieve pain and swellings in cases of rheumatism, several skin complaints, prostate and bladder troubles and scurvy (Palada, 1996).

CONCLUSION: I want to conclude by imploring us to concert efforts towards educating our populace, particularly the vulnerable ones, on the values of moringa as a source of medicine and nutrition, by training them on the best methods of preparing the products to get optimum benefits. The future of moringa seems assured world over. All parts of the tree are useful to the human race in solving one problem or the other. The uses of moringa oil, which is edible, and from which by further processing, perfume, soap, shampoo and other cosmetics can be produced, use of the residues after oil extraction as a livestock feed should also be given serious attention. Moringinine, anthonine, spirochine and benzylisothiocyanate and related compounds are also being exploited for natural pesticidal applications. In this respect, for our great country Nigeria to achieve its vision 20: 2020, all stakeholders must join hands to ‘rediscover’ Moringa, a ‘Multipurpose tree’ with a variety of potential uses.

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