Promising Herbs to Diminish Diabetes

Image Gallery A combination of diet, exercise and herbs helps battle diabetes.

t is estimated that 7.2 percent of American adults (about 17 million people) have diabetes. According to the American Diabetes Association, 5.9 million of those people don’t even know they have it. The prevalence of diabetes is increasing rapidly, at a rate of 7 percent per year. At this rate, the diabetic population will just about double every decade.

Diabetes, or diabetes mellitus, is a chronic disorder of carbohydrate, fat and protein metabolism. Its chief complications include arterial plaque (atherosclerosis), heart disease and stroke, kidney disease, nerve degeneration, foot ulcers, gum disease and, occasionally, dementia. There are two major types of diabetes: type 1 and type 2.

Type 1, or insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus, usually is diagnosed in children, teens and young adults (before age 25) and accounts for 5 to 10 percent of American diabetics. This form involves complete destruction of the cells in the pancreas (called beta cells) that produce the hormone insulin.

The remaining 90 to 95 percent of diabetics in the United States have non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus, or type 2, which usually is diagnosed after 40 years of age. Type 2 diabetes is characterized by a loss of sensitivity to insulin. Typically, insulin levels in the blood are actually increased, but the tissues have lost their ability to respond to the hormone.

Herbal Support

While diet and exercise are essential in managing diabetes, several herbs have shown great promise in supporting the battle against this disease.

American ginseng (Panax quinquefolius) is making news in the United States as an aid to controlling blood sugar. A number of studies conducted by scientists at the University of Toronto verified ginseng’s ability to smooth out the after-meal blood sugar spikes that type 2 diabetics experience.

The first paper, published in 2000, explained that a single 3-gram capsule of a prepared ginseng extract reduced these blood sugar rises. In healthy, non-diabetic people, ginseng only suppressed post-meal blood glucose when taken 40 minutes before eating carbohydrates, while diabetics got results when they took ginseng either 40 minutes before or with the carbohydrate.