The miraculous moringa trees: From nutritional and medicinal point of views in tropical regions
Moringa plants are among high value trees, belongs to Moringaceae family which consists of 13 species and they are highly distributed in Africa and southern Asia. It is multi purpose tree with medicinal, nutritional, industrial and socio economic values. Moringa leaf extracts have potential antihypertensive, antispasmodic, antiulcer, diuretic, hepatoprotective and cholesterol lowering activities. This means, the leaf contain bioactive compounds which perform certain beneficial physiological and biochemical functions in humans. These miraculous tree also have significant activities against cancer, tumor, bacteria and fungus as well as they have anti leishmanial and anti fertility activities. Therefore, Moringa tree has potential application in pharmaceutical industry for drugs development. Nowadays Moringa tree become an important food commodity in tropical world. Except the wood, all part of the tree are edible and these edible portions are exceptionally nutritious. Fresh and dried leaves can be cooked in soups or supplements of sauce and immature seeds and pods are often cooked and eaten as a fresh vegetable. The flowers can be cooked or dried and steeped as tea. All these parts of the trees compose vital chemicals and minerals promoting growth and health, therefore, it is used to combat moderate malnutrition in children and nursing mothers. Additionally, it is used as alternative animal feedstock especially for the emerging poultry industries in tropics. The tree is used as a hedge, fence and wind break. The seeds of Moringa is one of the best natural coagulants for water treatments which can substitute expensive synthetic coagulants in developing countries. As compared to conventional oilseeds for edible oil production, Moringa oilseeds are more advantageous in terms of oil content, costs and agronomic properties. Furthermore, oil derived from Moringa seeds can be used as potential sustainable feedstock for biodiesel production. In this review, human healthcare through traditional medicine as well as multiple uses of Moringa trees are discussed. The socioeconomic values of M. stenopetala tree in southern Ethiopia is delineated. Finally, future prospects are proposed.