The Truth About Moringa
Marketers are promoting moringa as the most nutritious food on earth. But do the facts support the claims? Nutrition Diva takes a closer look.
Monica Reinagel, MS, LD/N, CNS
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The Truth About Moringa
Another year, another superfood. So far, this year appears to be the “Year of Moringa.”
At least, that’s the rumor that moringa marketers are trying to start! What makes moringa so special? According to promoters, it’s “jam-packed with more nutrients than any other food in the world.” That’s a pretty big claim.
You know me, I can’t resist taking a closer look.
What Is Moringa?
Moringa oleifera is a tree native to Africa and cultivated in other tropical locales. Its name means “drumstick.” Virtually all of the parts of the plant are edible, including the roots, seeds, and flowers, but (as with many plants) the leaves are the most nutritious part.>
Moringa could be a valuable source of nutrition for both people and livestock in hunger-prone areas of the world. Its natural antiseptic qualities may help reduce the risk of water-borne diseases in areas without modern sanitation. As a traditional medicinal herb, it’s also used to treat a wide variety of diseases.
But, as with many traditional herbal cures, there hasn’t isn’t much research on its effectiveness, or whether it is more effective than other available treatments for these conditions.
See also: Do Herbal Supplements Work?
But moringa’s true value to developing countries may be as an export. Ironically, farmers in poor countries are scaling up production in order to meet the growing demand, as moringa is pitched to well-nourished Westeners as a nutritional supplement.
Is Moringa the Most Nutritious Plant on the Planet?
People selling moringa often compare its nutritional profile to other foods—and these comparisons can be pretty impressive: it appears to provide way more calcium than milk, lots more potassium than bananas, many times the amount of vitamin A found in carrots, and so on.
But these comparisons are not quite what they seem, because they are almost always comparing dried moringa powder to equal weights of whole foods, where up to 80% of the weight is actually water. Drying and powdering a food always concentrates the nutrients. So what happens when we compare apples to apples? (Or in this case, dried apples to dried apples?)
Well, ounce for ounce, dried moringa powder contains 3 times as much calcium as fresh milk. But what happens if we compare dried moringa powder to dried milk powder? Turns out that milk has 3 times more calcium than moringa. Similarly, moringa powder has about 4 times as much potassium as the same weight of fresh bananas, but slightly less than in the same weight of dried banana powder. Fresh moringa leaves have less than half the beta-carotene as in an equal weight of fresh carrots.
And if we were to compare foods according to serving size, rather than weight, you’d have to eat about 12 cups of fresh moringa leaves to get the same amount of vitamin A as in 1 cup of carrots, 7 cups to get as much calcium as a cup of milk, and 6 cups to get as much potassium as a medium banana. Moringa is relatively high in protein for a green vegetable, but not higher (or more complete) than most legumes.
There’s no doubt that Moringa is a very nutritious plant. But is it the most nutritious food on earth? That’s just silly.
More to the point, moringa would be of far more nutritional benefit in the countries where it’s grown—where malnutrition is rampant—than it is sitting on the shelf of a vitamin store in countries with a huge variety and abundance of healthy foods available. The nutrients you’d get from this supplement can easily be gotten from a varied diet of whole foods.
A Healthy Diet in a Pill?
Some people argue that if you can get all that nutrition from a pill, then you wouldn’t need to worry so much about what you eat. But here’s the thing about getting your nutrition from a supplement: Eating healthy foods isn’t just about getting the nutrients they contain, it’s also about what you’re not eating because you’re eating healthy foods instead.
After eating a meal of nutritious foods, you are both nourished and satisfied. But after taking a couple of capsules of a superfood powder, you still have to eat something. And maybe, having covered your nutritional bases, you decide to have a donut!
Of course, I’m sure none of you would do that (right?). And wouldn’t adding a tablespoon of moringa powder to your morning smoothie make a nutritious breakfast just that much better for you? Yes, it would add some additional nutrients. But in the context of a healthy diet, I’m not convinced that the benefits justify the cost. (This stuff ain’t cheap.)
I predict moringa will be a big buzzword for the next year. Celebrities will discover it, models will swear by it, bloggers and health coaches will tout its benefits. Bone broth will be forgotten in favor of moringa energy drinks, moringa gummy bears, and moringa lip balm.
But I don’t see it being a nutritional game-changer. At least, not for the people it’s being marketed to.
Resources
Abdull Razis AF, Ibrahim MD, Kntayya SB. Health benefits of Moringa oleifera. Asian Pac J Cancer Prev. 2014;15(20):8571-6.
Morton, Julia F. “The Horseradish Tree, Moringa pterygosperma (Moringaceae)—A Boon to Arid Lands?” Economic Botany. 45 (3), (1991): 318-333.
USDA Nutrient Composition Database: https://ndb.nal.usda.gov/ndb/search/list
West African Food Composition Table (WHO) https://www.fao.org/docrep/015/i2698b/i2698b00.pdf
Moringa flower, moringa powder, and next big thing images courtesy of Shutterstock.
About the Author
Monica Reinagel is a board-certified licensed nutritionist, author, and the creator of one of iTunes’ most highly ranked health and fitness podcasts. Her advice is regularly featured on the TODAY show, Dr. Oz, NPR, and in the nation’s leading newspapers, magazines, and websites. Do you have a nutrition question? Call the Nutrition Diva listener line at 443-961-6206. Your question could be featured on the show.