Written by Marcia J. Egles, MD. Adult diabetic rats, when fed 0.5 or 1 gram of fenugreek per kilogram of body weight for 30 days, had improved hyperglycemia and significantly improved hyperlipidemia, liver enzymes, body weight and measures of oxidative stress.
Diabetes mellitus and obesity are major worldwide health problems. A study in experimental rats examines a potential role of dietary fenugreek in lessening the metabolic problems associated with diabetes and obesity. Additionally, the study examined the potential of dietary fenugreek to lessen some of the harmful side-effects the chemotherapeutic drug cyclophosphamide. The study showed that fenugreek seeds demonstrated glucose lowering, lipid-lowering and immunoprotective effects in laboratory rats (1).
Fenugreek (Trigonella foenum-graecum ) seeds, common in India and the Middle East, have been used in foods and medicines since ancient times (6). Preliminary animal trials have suggested possible hypoglycemic (glucose lowering in the blood), hypolipedemic (lipid lowering in the blood) and immunomodulating properties of the fenugreek plant (2-5).
In the study, 60 adult male laboratory rats were randomly divided into 12 groups of five rats each. The groups included three heathy rat groups as well as three diabetic groups, three obese groups, and three immunosuppressed groups. Type I diabetes mellitus was induced in the diabetes groups by exposure to the substance alloxan, which damages the pancreas. Obesity was accomplished in the obese rat groups by overfeeding with a high cholesterol diet. The immunosuppressed groups were achieved through exposure to cyclophosphamide.
In the healthy groups, one group received a regular diet without fenugreek, one group received daily dietary supplementation with low-dose Egyptian fenugreek powder at 0.5 grams fenugreek per kilogram body weight. The third group of healthy rats received higher dose fenugreek at 1.0 grams per kilogram body weight per day. Likewise, in each of the diabetic, obese, and cyclophosphamide-exposed rat groups, one group received no fenugreek, one group received daily fenugreek at the low dose, and one group received the high dose of fenugreek. The fenugreek supplementation was daily for 30 days.
A dose-dependent alleviation of several measures of diabetes and obesity were observed in the fenugreek treated rats. For example, after the 30 days, the average serum glucose of the diabetic rats which received no fenugreek was 3028 mg per liter as compared to 1847 mg per liter in the low dose fenugreek group and 1163 mg per in the high dose fenugreek group. (Average serum glucose was 930 mg per liter in the healthy untreated rats.) In addition to lowering hyperglycemia, fenugreek seed powder supplementation significantly alleviated (P less than 0.05 to 0.001) hyperlipidemia, liver enzyme elevations, severe changes in body weight, and measurements of oxidative stress.
One test of immune function used in the experiments was a skin burn test performed on rats under anesthesia. Photos of the healing process were then taken weekly (and can be viewed online in the published study (1)). The immunosuppressed rats who received the high dose fenugreek had healing comparable to the healthy control rats. The immunosuppressed rats without fenugreek had much poorer and delayed healing of their skin burns. The immunosuppressed rats who received low dose fenugreek had improved healing as compared to the immunosuppressed rats who received no fenugreek, but not as pronounced as the healing in the high dose group.
One caution noted in this study is that fenugreek seeds contain coumarin-like substances and have the potential to interfere with the blood’s ability to clot. Since ancient times, fenugreek has been regarded as NOT SAFE for use during PREGNANCY (6). No adverse effects of fenugreek to the rats was noted in this study (1).
The researchers concluded that fenugreek may be a potential adjunct not only to the treatment of diabetes and obesity, but also as an immunostimulant in immunocompromised patients such as those receiving cyclophosphamide and other chemotherapies.
Source: Ramadan, Gamal, M. Nadia, and Hanaa F. Abd El-Kareem. “Anti-metabolic syndrome and immunostimulant activities of Egyptian fenugreek seeds in diabetic/obese and immunosuppressive rat models.” British journal of nutrition 105.07 (2011): 995-1004.
© The Authors 2010
Posted December 31, 2015.
References:
- Ramadan, Gamal et al. Anti-metabolic syndrome and immunostimulant activities of Egyptian fenugreek seeds in diabetic/obese and immunosuppressive rat models, British Journal of Nutrition (2010), 105,995-1004.
- Bin-Hafeez B, Haque R, Parvez S, et al. (2003) Immunomodulatory effects of fenugreek (Trigonella foenum graecum L.) extract in mice. Int Immunopharmacol 3, 257–265.
- Handa T, Yamaguchi K, Sono Y, et al. (2005) Effects of fenugreek seed extract in obese mice fed a high-fat diet. Biosci Biotechnol Biochem 69, 1186–1188.
- Hannan JM, Ali L, Rokeya B, et al. (2007) Soluble dietary fibre fraction of Trigonella foenum-graecum (fenugreek) seed improves glucose homeostasis in animal models of type 1 and type 2 diabetes by delaying carbohydrate digestion and absorption, and enhancing insulin action. Br J Nutr 97, 514–521.
- Belguith-Hadriche O, Bouaziz M, Jamoussi K, et al. (2010) Lipid-lowering and antioxidant effects of an ethyl acetate extract of fenugreek seeds in high-cholesterol-fed rats.J Agric Food Chem 58, 2116–2122.
- Yadav, Ulmesh Pharmacological effects of Trigonella foenum-graecum L. in health and disease. Pharmaceutical Biology. 2014 Informa Healthcare USA, Inc. DOI: 10.3109/13880209.2013.826247
