MANILA, Philippines -- Following the recent discovery of malunggay's power in boosting male potency, Senator Loren Legarda is urging the government to make horse radish among its priority for propagation.

Legarda, who credits her morning habit of taking malunggay soup for her youthful good looks, said: "The Department of Agriculture and the Department of Science and Technology should quickly draw up a plan to purposely encourage the cultivation and use of malunggay. Congress can then support the plan with an extra budget, if necessary."

Legarda said the Department of Education should also "consciously integrate malunggay in the government's feeding program for school children," Legarda said. "This is an inexpensive way for us to enrich the household diet as well as the school-feeding program, and put in check pervasive malnutrition among children."

"Malunggay can be planted and grown just about anywhere, is cheap and in some areas, even free," she said.

Interest in malunggay (Moringa oleifera), has shot up following a study by experts from the Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI) showed that a steady diet of this fruit boosts the sperm count of men which improves their chances of fertilizing an egg.

For women, Legarda said that malunggay lead to youthful-looking skin as it improves female skin tone.

Malunggay was also found to be rich in vitamins C and A, iron, and high density lipoprotein or good cholesterol.

Citing the BPI report, Loren said that malunggay leaves, ounce for ounce, contain the calcium equivalent of four glasses of milk, the vitamin C of seven oranges, the potassium of three bananas, three times the iron of spinach, four times the vitamin A in carrots and two times the protein in milk.

Malunggay or "Moringa" in English, is a popular tree that grows in the Philippines, Malaysia, Thailand, India, West Africa, and most recently, in the US. Many Asians consume both the leaves and fruits of the tree, much like spinach and asparagus.

Legarda said that aside from supercharging male potency, malunggay also helps to purify water which makes it a cheaper alternative to the mechanical filtration of dirty water.