Traditional Chinese Herbal Medicine Helps Cure Diabetes

A traditional Chinese herbal medicine has been found to be an effective cure for diabetes, according to a recent study.

"With diabetes evolving into serious public health burden worldwide, it is crucial to take steps to stem the flood of cases. Patients often struggle to make the necessary lifestyle changes to control blood sugar levels, and current medications have limitations and can have adverse gastrointestinal side effects," said Dr. Chun-Su Yuan of University of Chicago and one of the study's authors. Yuan also claims that traditional Chinese herbs can be used to control blood sugar levels either by consuming alone or in combination with other treatments.

The researchers involved in the study asked 389 participants at 11 research sites in China to take either Tianqi - a capsule containing a mixture of ten Chinese herbal medicines or a placebo, thrice a day before meals, for an entire year. The participants were also asked to maintain their fitness. The researchers found that 36 participants who belonged to the Tianqi group developed diabetes when compared to 56 from the placebo group. Those who belonged to the Tianqi group lowered the risk of diabetes by 32.1 percent.

"Few controlled clinical trials have examined traditional Chinese medicine's impact on diabetes, and the findings from our study showed this approach can be very useful in slowing the disease's progression," said Dr. Xiaolin Tong of Guang'anmen Hospital in Beijing, China. Dr. Xiaolin is also one of the authors of the study. She said that in order to determine how Chinese herbal medicines can help prevent and control diabetes per se, more tests should be employed. Their study was published in the journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism (JCEM).