GERD Channel
Topics & Medications
Quicklinks
Related Channels
Benefits of Neem
There are many potential benefits of neem. When taken by mouth, it may be used for treating asthma, fever, or cough. It can also be applied to the skin to treat skin ulcers, head lice, wounds, and various skin conditions. Much more research is needed to confirm these claimed neem benefits.
Various parts of the neem tree, such as leaves, seeds, oil, and bark, are claimed to provide numerous benefits. People use neem in a variety of different ways for a variety of different uses. Neem is sometimes claimed to be beneficial when used in the following ways:
- By mouth, to treat the following conditions:
- Asthma
- Cough
- Diabetes
- Fever
- Gingivitis
- Heart disease
- Hemorrhoids
- Intestinal parasites
- Leprosy
- Liver dysfunction
- Malaria
- Nosebleeds
- Skin ulcers
- Stomach ulcers (peptic ulcers)
- Upset stomach or lack of appetite
- Various eye disorders
- Applied to the skin, for the following uses:
- Head lice
- Various skin conditions
- Skin ulcers
- Wounds.
Neem is also used as a male form of birth control (when taken by mouth) and as a female form of birth control (when applied vaginally). It is also used as a mosquito repellant and insecticide, as well as an ingredient in various skin creams and other beauty products.
It is not clear if neem really works for any of these uses (see Does Neem Work?).
Written by/reviewed by: Kristi Monson, PharmD; Arthur Schoenstadt, MD
Last reviewed by: Kristi Monson, PharmD