Indian herb cuts insulin, blood
sugar levels
February 14, 2005
A herbal used in traditional Indian medicine to treat
diabetes seems to lower blood sugar and insulin levels
in the same way as prescription drugs.
A 1,000mg dose of the herb Salacia oblonga decreased
insulin levels in healthy adults by 29 per cent and
blood glucose levels by 23 per cent, report US researchers.
"These kinds of reductions are similar to what
we might see with prescription oral medications for
people with diabetes," said author Steve Hertzler,
an assistant professor of nutrition at Ohio State University.
The study, published in the January issue of the Journal
of the American Dietetic Association (vol 105, issue
1, pp65-71) was funded by the Ross Products Division
of Abbott Laboratories. Hertzler is carrying out further
work on the herb, native to regions of India and Sri
Lanka, for the US company.
It is thought that Salacia oblonga acts in a similar
way to diabetes medications by binding to intestinal
enzymes called alpha-glucosidases, which are responsible
for breaking down carbohydrates into glucose. When the
enzyme binds to the herbal extract rather than a carbohydrate,
less glucose gets into the blood stream, resulting in
lowered blood glucose and insulin levels.
Plant extracts are increasingly being investigated
by companies looking to market foods or supplements
for people with diabetes or at risk of the condition.
The health ingredients unit at German group Degussa
is currently waiting for results of a human trial on
a new herbal extract, said to improve insulin sensitivity.
Pre-diabetes conditions are rising in parallel to the
increasing incidence of obesity, now thought to affect
more than 1 billion adults. An estimated 24 per cent
of the US adult population has metabolic syndrome, a
collection of risk factors for type 2 diabetes.
The Ohio researchers carried out four separate meal
tolerance tests, spaced three to 14 days apart. The
39 participants were asked to drink 480ml of a beverage,
which contained 0, 500, 700 or 1,000 milligrams of Salacia
oblonga extract. Subjects fasted for at least 10 hours
before consuming the drink.
The researchers took blood samples from each person
every 15 to 30 minutes for three hours after consumption
of the beverage to gauge blood glucose and insulin levels.
The beverage with the highest concentration of the
herbal extract provided the most dramatic reduction
in insulin and blood glucose levels - 29 per cent and
23 per cent lower, respectively, than in people on the
control drink, which contained no herbal extract.
The other doses of the extract had no impact on blood
glucose or insulin levels.
The researchers also found that the Salacia drinks
caused an increase in breath hydrogen excretion, a measure
of intestinal gas. But reports of gastrointestinal discomfort
were minimal, Hertzler said.
“The increase in breath hydrogen excretion suggests
a mechanism similar to prescription á-glucosidase
inhibitors,” write the authors.
The team is now studying what dose of the herb is most
effective, and when it should be taken relative to a
meal.
"We want to know how long it takes for the herb
to bind to the enzymes that break down carbohydrates,"
Hertzler explained. "The participants in this study
took the herb with their meal, but maybe taking it before
eating would be even more effective."
The researchers are planning to study the extract’s
effects on diabetics.
"Lowering blood glucose levels lowers the risk
of disease-related complications in people with diabetes,"
Hertzler said.
He added that poor compliance with diabetes medications
often hinders their efficacy.
“It may be easier to get someone to take a herb
with food or in a beverage, as opposed to a pill."
Dr Joerg Gruenwald, president of herbals consultancy
Phytopharm, said the study “looks promising”
but that he had not seen any salacia on the European
market.
Source:www.nutraingredients.com
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