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Before insulin, botanical medicines were used to treat diabetes. They are remarkably safe and effective. However, because many botanical medicines function similarly to insulin, people taking oral diabetes medications or insulin should use caution to avoid hypoglycemia. Botanical medicines should be integrated into a regimen of adequate exercise, healthy eating, nutritional supplements, and medical support.
Cinnamon. Cinnamon has been used for several thousand years in traditional Ayurvedic and Greco-European medical systems. Native to tropical southern India and Sri Lanka, the bark of this evergreen tree is used to manage conditions such as nausea, bloating, flatulence, and anorexia. It is also one of the world’s most common spices, used to flavor everything from oatmeal and apple cider to cappuccino. Recent research has revealed that regular use of cinnamon can also promote healthy glucose metabolism.
Coffee berry. Coffee berry contains some well-studied phytochemicals such as chlorogenic acid, caffeic acid, ferulic acid, and quinic acid (Charles-Bernard M et al 2005). Some of coffee berry’s most impressive effects can be seen in blood glucose management. Chlorogenic acid and caffeic acid are the two primary nutrients in coffee that benefit individuals with high blood sugar. Glucose-6-phosphatase is an enzyme crucial to the regulation of blood sugar. Since glucose generation from glycogen stored in the liver is often overactive in people with high blood sugar (Basu R et al 2005), reducing the activity of the glucose-6-phosphatase enzyme leads to reduced blood sugar levels, with consequent clinical improvements.
Green tea. The compounds in these plants, including epicatechin, catechin, gallocatechin, and epigallocatechin, are powerful antioxidants, particularly against pancreas and liver toxins (Okuda T et al 1983). Animal studies have shown that epigallocatechins, in particular, may have a role in preventing diabetes (Crespy V et al 2004). In studies with rats, epigallocatechins prevented cytokine-induced beta cell destruction by downregulating inducible nitric oxide synthase, which is a pro-oxidant (Kim MJ et al 2004; Song EK et al 2003). This process could help slow the progression of type 1 diabetes. In vitro studies have also shown that green tea suppresses diet-induced obesity (Murase T et al 2002), a key risk factor in developing diabetes and metabolic syndrome (Hung PF et al 2005). |
