Has moringa helped anyone with RA?
What I can gather from the Howicured Forum (posts + “books”) looks like this:
1. Summary
- I have not found on the forum or in the available books any specific stories like “moringa cured / stopped my RA.”
- In the literature, moringa is mainly described as:
- a plant with anti‑inflammatory and antioxidant effects,
- potentially supporting joints and overall inflammation,
- but rather as an adjunct to treatment, not a standalone therapy for RA.
- In animal studies and small human studies, promising anti‑inflammatory effects are visible, but there is a lack of strong evidence that moringa alone treats RA.
2. Symptoms and course of RA (for context)
RA (rheumatoid arthritis) is a chronic autoimmune disease in which the immune system attacks the body’s own joints.
Typical symptoms:
- pain, swelling, and stiffness of small joints (fingers, wrists, feet),
- morning stiffness > 30–60 minutes,
- fatigue, low‑grade fever, weight loss,
- over time, joint deformities and limited mobility.
Course:
- phases of flares and remission,
- untreated RA leads to permanent joint damage and increases the risk of heart disease.
3. Conventional medicine – what we know from the latest research
What causes RA?
- A combination of genes (e.g., HLA‑DRB1), environmental factors (smoking, infections, gut microbiome), and immune system dysregulation.
- The immune system produces autoantibodies (RF, anti‑CCP), which trigger chronic inflammation in the synovial membrane of the joints.
Sources:
- Smolen JS et al. Rheumatoid arthritis. Lancet. 2016.
- Aletaha D, Smolen JS. Diagnosis and management of rheumatoid arthritis. JAMA. 2018.
How is it treated today and what are the prospects?
The standard is so‑called disease‑modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs):
-
Conventional DMARDs
- methotrexate (the cornerstone),
- leflunomide, sulfasalazine, hydroxychloroquine.
- The goal is remission or low disease activity.
-
Biologic drugs
- TNF‑α inhibitors (adalimumab, etanercept, infliximab),
- IL‑6 inhibitors (tocilizumab),
- T‑cell costimulation inhibitors (abatacept),
- anti‑CD20 antibodies (rituximab).
-
Small molecules (JAK inhibitors)
- tofacitinib, baricitinib, upadacitinib.
Effectiveness:
- Early, aggressive treatment allows a large proportion of patients to achieve remission or very low disease activity.
- We are not yet talking about a “cure” in the sense of complete disappearance of the disease, but about long‑term remission without joint damage.
Sources:
- Smolen JS et al. EULAR recommendations for the management of rheumatoid arthritis. Ann Rheum Dis. 2020.
- Fraenkel L et al. 2021 American College of Rheumatology Guideline for the Treatment of Rheumatoid Arthritis. Arthritis Care Res. 2021.
Where does moringa fit in here?
In the EULAR/ACR guidelines moringa is not mentioned:
- it is not included in standard treatment regimens,
- there are no large clinical trials in RA patients that would recommend it.
If someone takes moringa:
- they should treat it as a supplement, not a replacement for DMARDs,
- it is worth consulting a rheumatologist (moringa may affect blood sugar, blood pressure, and drug metabolism).
4. Alternative / complementary medicine
What do the “books” and natural approaches say?
In the materials I have access to (e.g., “Nature’s Pharmacy: Evidence-Based Alternatives to Drugs,” “Natural Hygiene: Man’s Pristine Way of Life,” books on plant‑based diet), the main emphasis for RA is on:
- a whole‑food, plant‑based, low‑fat diet:
- improvement of inflammation, blood pressure, blood sugar, body weight,
- in one of the guides (“Nature’s Pharmacy…”, chapters on “Arthritis” and “Steroids/Corticosteroids”) they describe improvement of RA symptoms after switching to a plant‑based diet and reducing anti‑inflammatory drugs under medical supervision.
- avoiding processed foods, oils, meat, and dairy:
- similar recommendations appear in “MASTER PLANTS – Ancient Nutrition Wisdom for Today’s World” (Margarita Restrepo & Michele Lastella), where a plant‑based diet is presented as a way to reduce the risk and symptoms of chronic diseases, including inflammatory joint diseases.
- therapeutic fasting / intermittent fasting:
- in materials on water fasting (e.g., reports from the TrueNorth center) there are accounts of improved joint pain and reduced need for anti‑inflammatory drugs – but always under strict medical supervision.
In these sources, moringa is not a key element of RA therapy. It is rather one of many plants with anti‑inflammatory potential.
Sources:
- Nature’s Pharmacy: Evidence-Based Alternatives to Drugs (chapters: Arthritis, Steroids/Corticosteroids).
- Margarita Restrepo, Michele Lastella – “MASTER PLANTS: Ancient Nutrition Wisdom for Today’s World.”
- Materials on plant‑based diet and RA in brochures such as “plant-based diet for chronic disease reversal” (e.g., the cited passage about improvement of RA symptoms on a plant‑based diet).
What do studies say about moringa and inflammation?
Here I had to turn to scientific studies outside the forum:
-
Moringa oleifera contains:
- flavonoids, isothiocyanates, phenolic acids,
- in animal and cell studies it shows:
- anti‑inflammatory effects (inhibition of TNF‑α, IL‑6, COX‑2),
- antioxidant effects,
- blood sugar‑ and cholesterol‑lowering effects.
-
In small human studies:
- improvement of metabolic parameters (blood sugar, lipids),
- decrease in inflammatory markers (e.g., CRP) – but these were studies in people with metabolic syndrome / diabetes, not specifically with RA.
Example publications:
- Leone A et al. Moringa oleifera seeds and leaves: potential new sources of phytochemicals with antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activity. Phytother Res. 2015.
- Stohs SJ, Hartman MJ. Review of the safety and efficacy of Moringa oleifera. Phytother Res. 2015.
Conclusions from the studies:
- Moringa has anti‑inflammatory potential that could theoretically support people with RA.
- However, there are no large, well‑designed clinical trials showing:
- that moringa by itself stops the progression of RA,
- that it allows discontinuation of DMARDs.
How do alternative approaches explain the cause of RA?
In natural/naturopathic books:
- RA is often seen as:
- the result of chronic “toxemia” (accumulation of toxins),
- the effect of poor diet, stress, overload of the immune system.
- Treatment:
- cleansing the body (fasting, plant‑based diet, herbs),
- supporting the gut (fiber, fermented plant foods),
- stress reduction, emotional work.
Example:
- “Natural Hygiene: Man’s Pristine Way of Life” describes that chronic diseases (including inflammatory joint diseases) develop from repeated crises of “toxemia” and that the key is lifestyle change, not “treating” the disease itself.
Are there success stories with moringa?
- In the materials I have access to (books + this forum), I have not found specific accounts like:
- “I took moringa and my RA went into remission.”
- On the internet you can find individual reports (blogs, comments) that:
- moringa “reduced pain and stiffness,”
- “improved energy.”
- However, these are isolated, unverified stories, without control for other changes (diet, medications, supplements).
Summary for you
- As of now:
- There is no strong evidence that moringa alone treats RA.
- It may have supportive anti‑inflammatory and antioxidant effects, so some people may feel subjective improvement (less pain, better well‑being).
- If you are considering moringa:
- treat it as an adjunct to standard treatment (DMARDs, biologics),
- consult your rheumatologist (interactions, doses, liver/kidney status),
- monitor objective markers: CRP, ESR, DAS28, ultrasound/MRI of the joints.
If you want, I can:
- summarize specific forms/doses of moringa used in studies,
- or compile dietary strategies (plant‑based diet, fasting, herbs) that have the most data in RA, and show where moringa can reasonably fit into this.