Aloe Vera Helpful In Diabetes

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Diabetes is perhaps the biggest challenge that most of us face today. With each day there is an increase in the number affected by it, regardless of age.

NATURE OF DIABETES

The disease is hereditary in nature, meaning, when your great grandparents had it, you as a part of the family tree have a great tendency of acquiring the same condition. For ages, the treatment for the disease include taking in of insulin through injections. Insulin is known as a hormone regulator for glucose level in the blood and is usually produced in the pancreas.

PLANTS USED IN CURING DIABETES

Diabetes is a complex and multifarious group of disorders characterized by hyperglycemia, which has reached epidemic proportions in the present century. Several drugs such as biguanides and sulfonylureas are presently available to reduce hyperglycemia in diabetes mellitus. These drugs have side effects and thus searching for a new class of compounds is essential to overcome these problems. Management of diabetes without any side effects is still a challenge to the medical community. There is continuous search for alternative drugs. Therefore, it is prudent to look for options in herbal medicine for diabetes as well. Traditional anti-diabetic plants might provide new oral hypoglycemic compounds, which can counter the high cost and poor availability of the current medicines/ present day drugs for many rural populations in developing countries. India is well known for its herbal wealth. Medicinal plants like Trigonella foenum graecum, Allium sativum, Gymnema slyvestre and Syzigium cumini have been studied for treatment of diabetes mellitus.

ALOE VERA

Aloe vera (L.) Burm. fil. (synonym A. barbadensis Miller) (Tamil – Southakathalai, Hindi – Ghikanvar), is a cactus-like plant with green, dagger-shaped leaves that are fleshy, tapering, spiny, marginated and filled with a clear viscous gel. It is also known as ‘lily of the desert’, the ‘plant of immortality’, and the ‘medicine plant’ with qualities to serve as alternate medicine. Aloe Vera is as old as civilization and throughout history it has been used as a popular folk medicine. It is believed to be effective in treating stomach ailments, gastrointestinal problems, skin diseases, constipation, for radiation injury, for its anti-inflammatory effect, for wound healing and burns, as an anti-ulcer and diabetes.

STUDIES OF ALOE VERA ON DIABETICS:

A Japanese study (published on April 11, 2006 in Pharmaceutical Society of Japan) evaluated the effect of Aloe Vera gel on blood sugar. The study revealed the anti-hyperglycemic effect of Aloe Vera gel and isolated a number of compounds from the gel. On the basis of spectroscopic data, these compounds were identified as lophenol, 24-methyl-lophenol, 24-ethyl-lophenol, cycloartanol, and 24- methylene-cycloartanol. These five phytosterols were evaluated for their anti-hyperglycemic effects in type 2 diabetic BKS.Cg-m_/_Leprdb/J (db/db) mice. In comparison with the hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) levels of vehicle-treated mice, statistically significant decreases of 15 to 18% in HbA1c levels were observed in mice treated with 1mg of the five phytosterols. Considering the ability to reduce blood glucose in vivo, there were no differences between the five phytosterols. Administration of b -sitosterol did not reduce the blood glucose levels in db/db mice. After administration of the five phytosterols mice treated with 1mg of the five phytosterols. Administration of b - sitosterol did not reduce the blood glucose levels in db/db mice. After administration of the five phytosterols for 28 days, fasting blood glucose levels decreased to approximately 64%, 28%, 47%, 51%, and 55% of control levels, respectively. Severe diabetic mice treated with phytosterols derived from Aloe vera gel did not suffer weight reduction due to glucose loss in the urine. These findings suggest that Aloe Vera gel and phytosterols derived from Aloe Vera gel have a long-term blood glucose level control effect and would be useful for the treatment of type 2 diabetes mellitus. Researchers isolated a number of active phytosterol compounds from the gel that were found to reduce blood glucose and glycosylated hemoglobin levels.

Another study carried out jointly by Centre for Bio-Separation Technology, VIT University, Vellore 632 014, India and Diabetes Research Laboratory, Department of Physiology, Christian

Medical College, Vellore 632 002, India on “Anti diabetic activity of Aloe vera and histology of organs in streptozotocin induced diabetic rats (published in CURRENT SCIENCE, VOL. 94, NO. 8, 25 APRIL 2008) is an attempt to study the beneficial effects of Aloe vera (L.) Burm. fil. in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats. In diabetic induced rats fed with A. vera (300 mg/kg body wt), the fasting plasma glucose levels were reduced to normal and body weight was found to be increased. In the pancreatic sections of diabetic rats fed with A. vera, the islets were comparable to normal rats. In liver, the changes caused after induction of diabetes are granular cytoplasm, dilated sinusoids, shrunken nuclei and inflammation, which was reduced after feeding with A. vera. Excess proliferation of epithelium in the small intestine was observed in diabetic rats, which was reduced after A. vera feeding. In diabetic rats and diabetic rats fed with A. vera, no change was noticed in the kidney and stomach. In conclusion, the results of the present study showed that A. vera extract brings back the FPG levels to normal in diabetes-induced rats, i.e. shows hypoglycemic activity.

SOME FACTS ABOUT ALOE VERA FOR DIABETES

Several studies have shown efficacy of Aloe Vera to lower the glucose level of a person with diabetes. However, Aloe Vera is yet to be proven as an

treatment for the disease though it is to some extent administered for type2 diabetes. Despite many research findings prove the efficiency of Aloe Vera for hypoglycemia treatment; it is still necessary to perform more experiments to establish the plant’s effectiveness. It may help to lower down the glucose level which is the main cause associated with the disease. Sometimes administration of Aloe Vera may result in sudden hypoglycemic condition in patients and more so if taken along with allopathic treatment. It always advisable to consult your medical practitioner before taking Aloe Vera as a solo drug in this era of personalizededicine.

By Dr. S. Akila B Sc (Agri),MBA, PhD
 
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