Malunggay: Nutrition-Packed Vegetable

English-speaking countries call it moringa (from its scientific name Moringa oleifera) or horseradish (because the roots looked nearly identical to real thing).  In India, where it is native, people there call it sajina.  Among Filipinos, it is known as malunggay or kamunggay.

“The tree is easy to grow, attaining tremendous height in a few months or even weeks if planted on good soil that is more or less loose and containing plenty of organic matter,” said Mac T. Ilaga, a former agronomy professor at the University of Philippines at Los Baños (UPLB).  “If its trunk attains the girth of a human body and cut to a man’s height, it will produce profuse shoots loaded with eighty or more pods to a single tree.”

Malunggay is one of the of the world’s most useful, yet often overlooked, plants.  The “natural nutrition for the tropics” is how the Florida-based Education Concerns for Hunger Organization described malunggay.  For centuries, people in India, Philippines, Malaysia, and Thailand have been eating malunggay leaves as a part of their food.

If apple is the food that keeps Americans from the doctor away, it should be malunggay in the Philippines.  It may sound like magic, but nutritionists aver that 100 grams of malunggay leaves yield the following: 75 calories of energy (higher than ampalaya, squash, tomatoes, or carrots), 5.9 grams protein (higher than cauliflower, lettuce, or mustard), 12.8 grams carbohydrate (higher than okra, papaya, or watermelon), 353 milligrams calcium (higher than gabi leaves, mung beans, squash, and camote tops), 3.7 milligrams niacin (higher than other vegetables analyzed).  And for thiamin, phosphorus, and ascorbic acid, malunggay is at the top of the list.

That’s only for starter.  Nutritionists also affirm that 200 grams of malunggay leaves would give a nutritive value roughly equivalent to four eggs and two glasses of milk.   Its iron compound prevents deficiency of red blood cells known as anemia.  And being a very rich source of calcium, it aids in maintaining healthy bones and teeth.

In addition, malunggay is rich in vitamin A (higher than red and green mung beans, radish, or eggplant), thus helping prevent xerophthalmia, a disease of the eye.   Adults are urged to eat malunggay leaves as its vitamin C content is higher than those of ampalaya leaves.

Filipino women consider malunggay as ally in nurturing babies.  In fact, they dubbed malunggay as their “best friend.” For lactating women, malunggay aids in the production of vitamin-rich milk for the newly-born baby.  The calcium content of malunggay, nutritionists claim, is four times those found in milk.

In the Philippines, malunggay is a well-known ingredient for many delicious and nutritious viands. Its leaves are for soups with either chicken, fish, sautéed with beef, mongo and sardines; blanched as salads; tasty for bola-bola, torta and others.  Its fruit pods and pulp are cooked asdinengdeng or law-uy and can also be sautéed.

The leaves are not the only parts that can be used for health reasons.  Its seeds contain 40 percent oil, which is considered excellent massage oil because it has good anti-oxidant properties and shelf life ranging from four to five years. As the oil is anti-oxidant, it is also good for cooking.  In fact, it can be an alternative for olive oil, as it is odorless and has a mild nutty flavor.

Malunggay is touted to be a “miracle vegetable” because it is not only a food, it is also a medicine.  The leaves are good for curing headache, bleeding from a shallow cut, and can be used as anti-inflammatory, or cure for gastric ulcers and diarrhea.  The seeds, on the other hand, can treat arthritis, rheumatism, gout, cramp, sexually transmitted diseases, boils, and urinary problems. It is also used as relaxant for epilepsy.   The roots, bark and gum of malunggay likewise have potential medicinal value.

Malunggay also helps in strengthening the immune system, control blood pressure, restores skin condition, relieves headache and migraine, reduces inflammation and arthritis pains, manage the sugar level thereby preventing diabetes, restrict growth of tumors and heal ulcers.

“Due to its high vitamins A, C, and E, which are very potent antioxidants, malunggay is a very good quencher of unstable free radicals that can react with and damage molecules that cause aging,” says the Food and Nutrition Research Institute.  “Antioxidants reduce the appearance of wrinkles and fine lines. They also prevent the onset of various chronic diseases like arthritis, cancer, and heart and kidney diseases.”

Planting malunggay trees would also help stabilize soil and contribute to fight against deforestation.   The malunggay tree is highly resistant to drought and needs little care.  It is fast-growing and lives for average of 50 years.   Each tree can produce approximately 10,000 seeds a year.  It also makes an excellent fuel and fertilizer.

(About the writer: Henrylito D. Tacio is a Davao journalist who writes for various publications, including the Asia edition of Reader’s Digest. He also writes for the World Mission, a Catholic publication. He has received more than a dozen journalism awards, including Hall of Fame in Science Reporting and 1999 Journalist of the Year from the Rotary Club of Manila.)