Explainer | What is neem? The health benefits of what Ayurveda calls the world’s most versatile medicinal plant, from boosting immunity to fighting cancer
- Ayurvedic experts have for centuries promoted neem as ‘nature’s pharmacy’, with each of its parts – leaves, bark, flowers – full of potential health benefits
- Used for cleaning teeth, strengthening hair and healing skin wounds, neem has also displayed promise in boosting immunity, and fighting cancer and Covid-19
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Known in Ayurveda as “nature’s pharmacy”, the neem tree and its components have been an integral part of traditional Indian medical formulations for almost 5,000 years.
Also called Indian lilac in English, and “neemba” in Sanskrit, the plant – scientific name Azadirachta indica – teems with 130 biologically active compounds, some of which have antiviral and antibacterial qualities, some of which boost immunity, and lots more.
As a child I remember my grandfather – who lived to the age of 93 – not ever having to buy a toothbrush or toothpaste. Every morning he’d snap a twig from a neem tree growing in our courtyard and brush his teeth with it. He would also chew neem leaves to boost his immunity, apply neem oil to his hair, and sprinkle boiled neem bark water in his room to ward off pests and mosquitoes.
He knew what he was doing. Ayurvedic experts have for centuries promoted neem as the most versatile medicinal plant in the world, with each of its parts brimming with health benefits.
“From its bark to leaves, flowers, fruits, twigs, seeds and root, neem is full of health-giving properties,” says Bharti Raghav, a yoga and Ayurvedic expert based in the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh.
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Neem’s antimicrobial properties make it effective against several types of bacteria, viruses and fungi, Raghav adds.
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