Comparative Effects of Moringa Oleifera Lam. Tea on Normal and Hyperglycemic Patients

This study evaluates the effects on taking tea prepared from Moringa oleifera Lam. on blood sugar levels in humans. Two groups of individuals were tested – people with normal fasting blood sugar levels (60-120 mg/dl) and those with hyperglycemic fasting blood sugar levels (>120 mg/dl). Among the 43 patients tested, 30 belonged to the normal group and 13 to the hyperglycemic group. Results showed that blood sugar levels of people in the normal group were not significantly changed 2 hours after taking the tea. However, for hyperglycemic individuals, the blood sugar levels significantly dropped after 2 hours. A mean drop of 28.15 mg/dl in the blood sugar levels was observed among the hyperglycemic patients. The results point to the benefit of using Moringa oleifera Lam. tea in the management of hyperglycemia. Introduction The Philippine government through the Department of Heath (DOH) has recently intensified the campaign on the use of medicinal plants to address the high cost of pharmaceutical products. One of the medicinal plants that show promising multiple benefits is Moringa oleifera Lam., or known as the “malunggay” in the local vernacular. In fact, the Philippine Information Agency (PIA 2007) issued a press release to emphasize the economic importance of M. oleifera specifically highlighting its medicinal properties. M. oleifera is a member of family Moringaceae and is commonly known in the Western world as horse-radish tree. It was first introduced to the Philippines from tropical Asia or Malaya way back in the prehistoric era (Guevara et al 1999). The medicinal properties of the different plant parts of M. oleifera have long been recognized in Philippine folk medicine (Quisumbing 1978). Subsequently, various studies have been conducted to validate the ethnobotanical practices of indigenous people pertaining to the use of this plant. A study con ducted by Guevarra et al (1999) indicates that one of the bioactive compounds of M. oleifera namely, niazimicin, has an antitumor promoter as it inhibits carcinogenesis when tested against mouse skin. Additionally, M. oleifera could also significantly reduce the lipid levels in blood (Mehta et al. 2003; Chumark et al 2008). The juice from the leaves and stem bark of M. oleifera was found to inhibit Staphylococcus aureus (Mehta et al 2003) and dermatophytes (Chuang et al. 2007). It is also suggested that low concentration of the M. oleifera plant extract can be used for the regulation of thyroid hormone metabolism (Tahiliani and Kar 1999). Moreover, an antidiabetic property is also included among the medicinal benefits of M. oleifera (Anwar et al 2007). Among the benefits of M. oleifera, the antidiabetic property may have a significant impact among Filipinos. The problems implicating diabetes have long been recognized by the National Diabetes Commission since its creation in 1996. A diabetes survey showed that eHEALTH INTERNATIONAL Moringa Miracle Tree