Popularly known as the “tree of life” and considered a natural antibiotic, it can provide many benefits to the human body if it is included in the diet

What is moringa?

Moringa is a tree originally from India, which is popular in Asia and South America and is starting to find its place in Europe. The high quantity of proteins in all of its parts (especially the leaves and stem) is one of the principal characteristics that have brought it to fame as a “superfood” with numerous virtues.

What benefits does it provide?

One of the great benefits of moringa is its high content in vitamins and potassium (the leaves alone contain 7 times more vitamin C than oranges and 15 times more potassium than bananas). Also, it provides minerals, calcium, iron, antioxidants and amino acids.

Thanks to its properties, experts recommend consuming moringa to reduce cholesterol and swelling, and to fight against memory loss. This superfood is also used to treat arthritis, high blood pressure, hepatic damage caused by medicines, asthma, chronic constipation, colitis or diarrhoea. It is also increasingly being used to prevent liquid retention, to relieve migraines or headaches and to fight against respiratory allergies.

In short, moringa helps to strengthen the immune system in an effective way.

How to include it in our diet

Moringa can be found in health food shops and is consumed in tablets, powder or directly by including its seeds, leaves and stems in the dishes that we eat.

One good way of consuming it is to make moringa tea, boiling water with leaves or stems. To include it in cooked dishes, it’s recommended to include a spoon of powdered moringa to soups or purées during preparation. Another way of including it in our diet is to add some moringa leaves to stewed meat dishes. It can also be added to salads, mixing the stems with other foods.

Moringa is the new superfood to take into consideration if you want a healthy and varied diet, what are you waiting for to add it to your diet?

Sources:

• ICRAF (World Agroforestry)
• Medical News Today
• Web Queries

This post is also available in: Portuguese (Portugal)