Gymnema Sylvestre
Gymnema sylvestre, a vine-like native Indian plant, rivals modern diabetes treatments except in one area. It has no known side effects.
I have joined the nearly 2000 year old tradition in the use of this herbal nutritional supplement and natural remedy for successfully treating diabetes.
The label on the Nature's Wonderland® brand that I use, tells of the effectiveness of this herbal supplement, noting that it has been called "sugar destroyer."
The supplement is in capsule form. I love this brand because the Vcaps® capsules are not made with animal products, as are many other natural supplements that claim to be vegan or vegetarian.
Check out these topics related to diabetes supplements:
Widely used diabetes supplement
One of the first citations on the use of gymnema sylvestre that I found was on the Kroger food company website.
Saxena and Vikram (2004) tell how the use of this plant that has long been known for its healing properties in the practice of Ayurveda, a science that uses herbal medicines extensively, is spreading in Europe.
Porchezhian and Dobriyal (2003) also found that gymnema sylvestre extracts "are widely used in Australian, Japananese, Vietnamese and Indian folk medicine," and have been for very many years.
Even though in another paper by Yeh, Eisenberg, Kaptchuk, and Phillips (2003) describes gymnema sylvestre as a herbal diabetes treatment "with positive preliminary results," it does not diminish fact that people have seen thousands of years of safe and successful use of this plant in normalizing blood sugar.
Gymnema Sylvestre has been
called the "sugar destroyer"
in Ayurvedic medicine
Herbalist-recommended supplement
A survey done in Italy poled several practicing herbalists to get information about the herbal remedy and dietary supplement they mainly recommended to subjects who required a "natural" treatment to control glycemia or diabetes.
Guess what was on top of the list of tem most recommended supplements? Gymnema sylvestre - you got it!
If you are on medication for diabetes or if you use insulin, please talk your doctor before you use any other supplement product or foods that lower blood sugar. There is a chance your doctor (who may have a bias against natural medicine) may be discouraging.
I had to make the choice myself based on information I researched. It has worked for me. Be informed and choose to be active in maintaining your health.
Personal Experience -
I have used the gymnema leaf in capsule form and it is a miracle supplement. Taking 1 or 2 caplets a few minutes before a meal gives me adequate blood sugar control.
References
Saxena A. , Vikram N. K. (2004). Role of selected Indian plants in management of type 2 diabetes. J Altern Complement Med. 2004 Apr;10(2):369-78.
Yeh G. Y., Eisenberg D. M., Kaptchuk T. J. , Phillips R. S. (2003). Systematic review of herbs and dietary supplements for glycemic control in diabetes. Diabetes Care. 2003 Apr;26(4):1277-94.
Porchezhian E., Dobriyal R. M. (2003). An overview on the advances of Gymnema sylvestre: chemistry, pharmacology and patents. Pharmazie. 2003 Jan;58(1):5-12.
Cicero A. F., Derosa G., Gaddi A. (2004). What do herbalists suggest to diabetic patients in order to improve glycemic control? Evaluation of scientific evidence and potential risks. Acta Diabetol. 2004 Sep;41(3):91-8.