One of my friends just sent me a link about the neem tree, which is the source of many cures and treatments in India (where he's from). We started talking about dental problems, which is one of the things that neem trees can treat, when he started telling me about the other things that scientists are discovering.

Would you believe, for example, that extracts from this tree can be up to 100 percent effective as birth control? Or that it repels athlete's foot, psoriases, herpes, etc.?

Yeah - I wouldn't believe it either if it weren't for the fact that scientists are researching this (i.e. it's not a bunch of witch doctors trying to get people to buy the stuff from them).

Anyway - check it out at about.com - the second page is where it really starts to get interesting.

i see, that must be realy good, do you have any idea if it cures asthma, ive tried allot of things,so many doctors tried giving me herbal medicines to get rid of asthma, but none worked, i was even given this thing its called something like black seed oil...or something like that....i wonder...

I regularly use organic toothpaste, and neem is one of their flavors. Ever since I've been using it my dentist tells me that my teeth became a lot more resistant to cavities, ect. because my enamel was strengthened.

@ narutorasengan17: I've had asthma when I used to live in Ukraine, but ever since I moved, it disappeared on its own. The trick with asthma is not to find the magic cure for it, but to eliminate whatever is causing it in the first place. This can apply to every disease. A black seed oil deficiency isn't causing the asthma, it's something else. That something else may be as simple as a preservative in soda or as complex as something in the air, which is a bit harder to get rid or, or get away from.

"trick with asthma is not to find the magic cure for it, but to eliminate whatever is causing it in the first place."
I agree with this completely. And not only "things" can cause asmatha. Some years ago I was haveing 2-3 severe attacks per week. They were bad ones, would knock me completely off my feet, sometimes for 2 days. However, since I divorced my husband, I have not had a serious attack in years. The stress of living in a very bad relationship was the cause, not particularly any one "ingredient."

yes... am an Indian. neem tree is like God over here in the south side of India.

neem has amazing properties of healing and purifying. it is used for treating hundreds of diseases.

here it is said by our forefathers that atleast one neem tree should be planted in front of each house.

it is said that it can purify the air surrounding it. some village people use its branch for brushing their teeth.

neem oil cake is very famous here. it is very useful.

people in other countries please try to plant atleast one neem tree. it will save pur earth from pollution and global warming!

good luck!

I am from BANGLADESH. Neem Tree is well known here to treat many diseases. Neem tooth past or Neem tooth powder is also popular here. Here it is believed that Neem Tree is able to reduce disease privilege. Leaf of neem tree is also used in disinfection. I also used neem leaf to disinfect in many poultry farm and found it working. You may test the effect of Neem leaf. I think, extract of neem leaf is very powerful disinfectant. It is very easy. Mix the extract of neem leaf with water and spray in an air tide room, take air sample (or exposure test) before and 1 hour after spray and make microbiological test. Then you will see the effect of NEEM.

Well, a lot of us don't have air tight rooms, nor the microbiological equipment (or time) to test it all.

However, Neem tree is much like the Tea Tree. I have been using tea tree essential oil as a disinfectant for cuts, for oral use (must be mixed properly with water), and for rooms (also mixed with water). Tea tree has been found to work as well as rubbing alcohol and peroxide, with the main difference being it doesn't destroy our body cells. Tea tree, because it's natural, and because it's an oil, our skin actually ABSORBS it, rather than repel it as it does with rubbing alcohol and peroxide. Which, especially in the case of infected cuts, means faster healing time, as it can get into where the infection sits, and kill it.

I have never personally tried Neem, but I think I may very well give it a shot. For us in the Western culture, I highly recommend picking up a small bottle of Tea Tree essential oil, as I know it's easy to come by, especially in holistic medicine shops. You can also mix it with water and spray in the air, to kill germs and bacteria, and also for general cleaning such as disinfecting counters.

It's also one of the only two essential oils that can be used neat on the skin (as in, it doesn't need to be diluted to be applied), the other being lavender. Only in oral use, and in spray use, does it need to be diluted.

So, give it a try. In the meantime, I'm going to keep an eye out for Neem...