Moringa Oleifera
Stopping by a Planet Nutrition store yesterday to try to find a local source of Butterbur and Feverfew the owner tried to convince me to try, or at least, research Moringa Oleifera as a treatment for among other things migraines. I've been on line for 4 hours reading one peer reviewed study on migraine behavior in mice that sounds promising, a human trial for hypoglycemia / diabetes that sounded amazing and many unreviewed studies suggesting not only that this is the best thing you can ever eat but that it cures damn near everything! If I read this kind of "magical powder" superlatives on 1 or 2 websites I'd completely ignore it but there are thousands, and lots of people have been using this for thousands of years (literally it's mentioned in Exodus)! He's selling XM+ from Ziga corporation that includes Moringa (leaf, seed and fruit powder), ephedra, green tea, ginseng and garlic which costs roughly $3 / day. Surfing around I found organic powdered Moringa Oleifera for $21 for a 90 day supply. I haven't found any blogs about any migraineurs who have tried this. Does anyone know anyone who has tried this?
Probably best not to take anything that includes ephedra, as it is quite dangerous.
I'm not familiar with Moringa and will need to do more research to offer an opinion. However, I am familiar with ephedra. It was banned from sale in the U.S. back in 2004. It was removed from the FDA's GRAS (generally recognized as safe) list due to hundreds of reported adverse events, including sudden-onset high blood pressure, cardiac problems, and at least one death by heart attack that was connected to use of an Ephedra-containing weight loss product. It is now available only by prescription and is tightly regulated.
FDA Final Ruling on Ephedra10th Circuit Court of Appeals Upholds Ephedra Ban
I would also caution against any product claiming to be a "cure-all" or making outrageous claims. Herbs are great and they have their purpose for those trained to use them. However, they are MEDICINE and should be used cautiously by those who have the training. Otherwise, please consult with your doctor before adding any "natural" products. Please be careful. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
Tammy Rome
Moderator & HerbalistThanks kxn11 and Tammy, I'm really not interested in the XM+, even though talking about it at work I found out one of my friends tried it for 6 months in an attempt to reduce his cholesterol (it failed, but did not affect his migraines). He said it made him feel good with lots of energy! But he stopped using it. It looks to me like it might be a good supplement just do to the vitamins and amino acids it supplies and might even be cheaper than the Niacin, Riboflavin, D3 etc. I'm buying now. I'll keep researching it while I continue my feverfew / butterbur trial and may well try the Moringa powder made just from the leaves and nothing else, unless I can find a reasonable and safe version that includes the seeds and fruit. So far I've not found anyone with problems caused by the shade dried powdered leaves, the sun dried powder apparently loses nutrients, I've seen freeze dried powder but no reviews of its' potency. Pseudoephedrine never bothered my migraines, may have helped in fact, but is so hard to obtain now, but taking anything with a stimulant like ephedra seems way to risky to me so I'll avoid that.
Actual double blind study....on mice! At least it's a well constructed study that should be verifiable. The rest of my research shows that Moringa is one of the safest herbal supplements on the market, if you stick to those made exclusively from leaves and/or fruit and seeds. Next month I plan on trialing this. I'll keep you up to date.
