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INDIA, July 20, 2003: Extracts from the Indian neem tree been shown to damage the DNA of sperm when fed in large quantity (up to 10% of their weight) to mice. Researchers who made the discovery think that neem could be a “long-term genetic hazard,” and have called for further investigation to ensure that eating neem products does not produce genetic abnormalities in adults or their children. Proponents of traditional Hindu Ayurvedic medicine dispute the relevance of the results. “Neem has been used by millions of people in India over several centuries, and there has been no genotoxic effect reported so far,” says Pramila Thakkar of the Neem Foundation, a Mumbai-based charity that promotes products from the neem tree (Azadirachta indica). Researchers are standing by their findings. Parimal Khan of the Patna Women’s College and Kripa Awasthy of KKM College in Pakur, made an extract of neem leaves and fed it daily to male mice for a week. They reported that as the dose of neem was raised the percentage of sperm-producing cells with chromosomal damage rose in tandem. Likewise, they found steadily rising rates of damage to sperm. However, critics dismiss the findings as irrelevant. “It is impossible to determine from this study how the dose of extract compares to the crude weight of neem leaves, the form in which it is usually consumed,” says Vishal Gulati, chairman of the International Ayurveda Foundation in London. HPI adds: One recommended dose of neem is 8 to 10 leaves daily, which weigh less than 1/10th of an ounce. The doses given to the mice appear equivalent to several pounds for a person. Studies with results such as this one can eventually lead to regulations or banning of the product.

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