Abstract

BENZOIL TREE: A REVIEW ON USES OF MORINGA OLIEFERA TO OVERCOME MALNUTRITION IN INDIA

Ruchi Vyas*, Hemraj Chhipa and Kanika Sharma

ABSTRACT

Moringa is a nutritive plant, which has shown wide potentials in nutraceutical, pharmacological and mitigating climate change in developing countries. Moringa contains good amount of protein, fatty acid, vitamins and antioxidants, which can fulfil the desired nutritional feed for malnourished community and can be a better source of nutrients for their growth and development. The extract of Moringa reported presence of niazirin and niazirinin, niaziminin, niazimicinniazirin, moringine, quercetin, isoquercetin, kaemopherol, kaempferitin, moringinine, spirachin, and 4-hydroxyl mullein type compounds in various parts of the tree and shown its wide applications in medical industry as antifertility, anti- inflammatory, hepato- protective, anti-diabetic and cancer therapeutic agent. In addition, moringa has also been used as animal feed fortification and phytoremediation of heavy metals. Above characteristics of Moringa have made it tree of Miracle but still people are unaware about well worthy properties of Moringa. The value addition of moringa in food industry is current need of research to be as alternative of malnutrition management in developing countries. Therefore, in the current review we summarized nutritional and medicinal properties along with industrial applications of Moringa tree. The benefits of moringa cultivation in Indian prospective has also been discussed in the view of malnourished population.

Keywords: Antioxidant; Malnutrition; Moringa; Moringinine; Phytoremediation.