Neem Benefits: Discover ALL The Benefits Of Neem Trees,Neem Oil And Neem Leaf,

The Neem Tree - Azadirachta Indica

Thousands of years ago the ancient Indians used Ayurveda to treat a number of ailments. They perused all that nature had to offer as a way of promoting all natural healing remedies. Among some of the natural elements they used was Neem, an evergreen tree found throughout India. Today, Neem is still used for a variety of purposes. The fruit and seeds of the tree are made into topical oil that can be used to treat a number of ailments ranging from lice to eczema, psoriasis, acne, dry skin, and irritation. These are just some of the benefits of Neem.

Growing Neem - The Neem Tree's Many Uses And Benefits

The neem tree has lately been called the world's most researched tree.

That is not surprising. Just look at the many medicinal and other uses that all parts of this fascinating tree have.

Neem has been used traditionally for many centuries. In India it is known as "the village pharmacy". But neem is still relatively unknown in the western world. 

However, word about neem is slowly spreading, and so are neem products: neem oil, neem capsules, neem soap, dried neem leaves neem leaf and more.

As for other medicinal plants or herbs you can find many recipes for home remedies using neem.

So naturally people are getting curious... Some would like to grow their own neem plant. Some are wondering, "What is this neem tree? What can I use it for? What are the benefits of neem?"

Discover The Neem Tree

Azadirachta indica - That's the botanical name for neem. Indica gives away the tree's origin, India.

The whole name, though of course latinized, comes from the Persian language Farsi:

• Azad means free
• Dirakht means tree
• i-Hind means of Indian origin

So the botanical name translates into: "The Free Tree Of India"

Another common name for neem is Margosa. (It has many more names.)

Neem belongs to the botanical family Meliaceae. That means it is related to the mahogany tree. (The Meliaceae family is also called the mahogany family)

Neem is a very attractive, fast growing and evergreen tree.

It has a straight trunk and the tree can reach a height of 30 metres and more, though 15 to 20 metres is the average. The bark is hard, rough and scaly, fissured even in young trees. It's often brown, but in older trees it can be pale or greyish-black.

Spreading branches with dark green leaves form a dense, round canopy, up to 20 metres across. (It makes a very good shade tree).

Leaves are alternate (not opposite each other along the branches) and consist of several leaflets with serrated edges. You can see the leaves in the banner of this site.

The flowers are large clusters of up to 250 individual white blooms. The whole cluster can be quite large, but the individual flowers are only a few mm across. They look inconspicuous, however, the scent is just heavenly. You can smell a flowering neem tree from miles away.

The olive like, edible fruit is oval to round and thin skinned. (Edible does not mean tasty...) It is green initially and turns yellow when ripe. Every fruit contains one, and sometimes two or three, seeds.

Neem is easy to grow in a wide range of temperatures and conditions, and the tree can live for 150 to 200 years.

All parts of the neem plant have been used for many centuries in India. From India the tree and the knowledge about its many uses and benefits has spread. Today neem grows in many countries across the world, and wide range of neem products is available commercially.

Benefits Of Neem Trees

And there are more neem benefits. Growing neem trees takes little water. Their deep tap roots break through hard clay pans and mine the subsoil for nutrients. The nutrients are returned to the surface as leaf litter, for other plants to use.

Neem trees are especially good at accumulating calcium. Growing neem trees can bring acidic soils back to neutral and so reclaim exploited soils.

Neem trees can grow in very marginal areas, and improve those soils over time.

Increasing use of neem in the western world, and increasing demand, would open up economic opportunities in third world countries. Those countries have the ideal climate for growing neem Neem benefits are many and varied. Using neem offers both health benefits and environmental benefits.

Neem leaf should also get the attention it deserves.

So far it doesn't. Not in the western world, that is.

Many people have heard of neem oil as insecticide, but few are aware of the amazing and varied medicinal properties of neem leaves.

In India the situation is different. Ayurvedic medicine has always strongly relied on the leaf.

Over 75% of Ayurvedic remedies contain neem, usually in form of leaf (or extract), sometimes the bark/fruit/flowers, and almost never the oil.

The majority of scientific neem studies was done with neem leaf or neem leaf extracts.

Neem oil is neem seed oil, not neem leaf oil as some people wrongly assume. It can be made safe for consumption, and especially the use of neem oil for  birth control (as a "male pill") continues to generate a lot of interest. However, it really needs special knowledge and treatment before neem oil can be taken internally.

Not so for the leaf. Neem leaves are considered safe to take internally on a regular or daily basis (provided you aren't pregnant or trying to conceive.) In the thousands of years that people across India have been taking neem there have never been any reports of negative side effects from leaves.

Benefits Of Taking Neem Leaf

Neem Leaf is an essential ingredient in many Ayurvedic remedies. Indians have known for thousands of years that taking neem has many benefits. It stimulates the immune system, improves liver function, detoxifies the blood, generally promotes a healthy circulative, respiratory and digestive system. It is famous as a malaria treatment and for diabetes.

In the western world people mostly drink neem tea or take neem capsules  to boost immune function and for the blood cleansing effect, especially people with skin problems.

More Medicinal Benefits Of Neem

Neem is just about anti-everything:

• anti-bacterial
• anti-viral
• anti-septic
• anti-diabetic
• anti-fungal
• blood-purifying
• spermicidal

Spermicidal. Neem also shows great promise as a natural means of birth control and oral care and oral care and periodontal diseaseis a big one, too. You can't beat neem when it comes to caring for your teeth and gums.

Of course, you should still use common sense, as you should with any herbs. Start by trying a little to make sure you don't show any allergic reaction, and generally don't overdo it. As magical as all the medicinal properties sound, neem is not a magical cure all that will simply fix anything if you just take enough... But it can help with a lot, if taken sensibly.

In 2005 scientists published a research report, Medicinal properties of neem leaves: a review. It is a compilation of existing scientific studies and clinical trials. It shows very impressively just how versatile the leaves are.

 Here is what it says about the benefits of neem leaves:

"Neem leaf and its constituents have been demonstrated to exhibit immunomodulatory, anti-inflammatory, antihyperglycaemic, antiulcer, antimalarial, antifungal, antibacterial, antiviral, antioxidant, antimutagenic and anticarcinogenic properties."

What are the biggest neem benefits?

Well, to start with neem trees can cure any disease, halt the spreading of the desert, end poverty and stop global warming.

Health Benefits Of Neem

Both neem oil and neem oil and neem leaf are fantastic skin care ingredients:

• Neem relieves dry skin.
• It soothes itchines, redness and irritation.
• It improves general skin health and immunity, combating bacterial infections, as in acne, boils and ulcers.

But neem doesn't promote resistance in bacteria. Antibiotics are over-prescribed and are becoming blunt as a weapon in our fight against diseases. Neem is an interesting alternative, and one that will never stop working.

One of the top neem benefits is that it lets you avoid harsh chemicals and nasty insecticides when treating conditions like

• psoriasis,
• eczema,
• scabies,
• head lice and more.

Nobody wants to douse themselves in insecticides, or use corticosteroids forever... Neem can often do the same job, even better.

Used as hair oil neem promotes shiny, healthy hair, combats dryness, prevents premature greying and may even help with some forms of hair loss.

Neem oil also makes a great nail oil. No more brittle nails and no more nail fungus.

The biggest benefit of neem oil and neem leaf is that they are good for your general health, the condition of your skin and body, and your immune system. So whether you use them to fight some skin condition, or just to prevent any skin related problems in the first place, you are doing yourself something good.

The range of diseases that has been traditionally treated with neem, or where research is being done, is huge:

AIDS, cancer, malaria, diabetes, hepatitis, duodenal ulcers, kidney disorders, fungal infections, yeast infections, STDs, all kinds of skin disorders, periodontal disease, mononucleosis, blood disorders, heart diseases, nerve disorders, allergies... and the list goes on.

Beauty benefits of neem leaves

Purifying water
Boil a concoction of neem leaves (about 50 leaves in two litres of water) till the leaves are soft and discoloured, and the water turns green. Strain and store in a bottle. Add about 100 ml of this to your bath water to rid the skin of infections, acne and white heads.
Skin toner
This can also be used as a skin toner — just dip a cotton-ball into the liquid and wipe your face with it every night. This will clear acne, scars, pigmentation and blackheads. This potion can be used as a hair rinse to treat dandruff and excessive hair fall.
Face pack
Cut about 10 neem leaves and boil them with small segments of orange peel in a little water. Pound them to a pulp. Add a little honey, yoghurt and soy milk, to form a smooth paste. Apply this to your face (can be done thrice a week). This will clear acne and breakouts, dry up white heads, pull out blackheads and even reduce the appearance of pores. Honey and neem are excellent moisturisers.
Hair conditioner
A paste made of neem leaves boiled in water and honey, and applied to the hair, leaves it well-conditioned, without frizz and dandruff free.
Healer
Extracts of neem leaves and seeds produce pain-relieving, antiinflammatory and fever-reducing compounds that can aid in the healing of cuts, burns, ear aches, sprains and headaches.
Root cure
The bark and roots of the neem tree have medicinal properties; in powdered form, they can be used to control lice and dandruff. Neem has anti-bacterial properties that help fight against skin infections such as acne, psoriasis, scabies and eczema among others.