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Ginseng may benefit diabetes mellitus
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TORONTO — Researchers at St. Michael's Hospital and the University of Toronto have found that taking American ginseng root before a meal reduces glucose levels in people both with and without diabetes by approximately 20%. The study, which appeared in the April 9 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, was one of the first to examine the effects of American ginseng in humans.
Study participants included nine people with non-insulin-dependent diabetes (type 2) and 10 people without diabetes. Participants were given 3 g of ground North American ginseng either 40 minutes before or during a test meal of 25 g of glucose. The type 2 diabetics experienced a 20% decrease in glucose levels when compared with placebo. The non-diabetics only experienced the same reduction when the ginseng was taken prior to the meal, suggesting that timing of administration may be important.
Lead researcher Vladimir Vuksan, PhD, who is the associate director of the Risk Factor Modification Centre at St. Michael's Hospital in Toronto, said that while sample size was small, the results were consistent. Researchers are still puzzled as to how American ginseng produces these effects, however.
"A working hypothesis is that ginseng effect either increases the production of insulin or improves its sensitivity," Dr. Vuksan told Ocular Surgery News. Dr. Vuksan will report on findings from a separate long-term study involving the effects of ginseng extract on humans at the American Diabetes Association Meeting in San Antonio.