Fenugreek in the Prevention of Diabetes in Prediabetics

by | Apr 22, 2016 | 2015, Diabetes, Fenugreek, Pancreatic Health

Written by Marcia J. Egles, MD. Prediabetics who supplemented daily with 10 grams of fenugreek for 3 years had a 23% significantly lower rate of developing diabetes compared to a 55% rate in the control group.

Worldwide, an epidemic of diabetes threatens the health of individuals in both developed and developing countries. The transition from the early metabolic abnormalities that precede diabetes to diabetes may take many years; however, current estimates indicate that most individuals (perhaps up to 70%) with prediabetes eventually develop diabetes (2).   A three-year study from India found that prediabetics whose diets were supplemented with fenugreek powder had significantly lower rates of progression to diabetes compared to control subjects (1).

The fenugreek plant, grown in India and the Mediterranean region, has an extensive history of both culinary and medicinal uses. Prior studies have suggested an efficacy of fenugreek seeds (Trigonella foenumgraecum) in lowering blood glucose in patients with diabetes (3, 4, 5). The new study from Hyderabad, India is the first reported study to examine a role of fenugreek in prediabetes.

A three-year randomized, controlled parallel study for efficacy of fenugreek was conducted in nondiabetic persons aged 30 to 70 who met the criteria for prediabetes. The criteria included a body mass index (BMI) greater or equal to 19 kilograms per meter squared, and an impaired fasting plasma glucose level (fasting plasma glucose between 100 to 125 milligrams per deciliter) or an impaired glucose tolerance test. One hundred and forty subjects were randomized to a control group (66 persons) and a fenugreek group (74 persons). All the subjects received monitoring every 3 months over the three-year study, as well as dietary and exercise counseling. The fenugreek subjects were to consume 5 grams of “debitterized” powered fenugreek mixed in 200 milliliters of water twice daily. Compliance was assessed by the number of 5 gram packets consumed.

At the end of three years, 55 % of the control group were deemed diabetic, as compared to 23 % of the fenugreek supplemented group. (Diabetes mellitus was diagnosed by the common medical standard of a subject’s fasting plasma glucose level above 125 mg/dl and a post-prandial plasma glucose level above 200 mg/dl.) The cumulative incidence rates of diabetes at every six months for the length of three years were 10.6, 24.2, 34.9, 43.9, 51.5 and 55% respectively in the control group and 2.7, 6.7, 10.8, 13.5, 16.2 and 23.0 % in the fenugreek group. Compliance with the fenugreek intervention was stronger in the first 6 months of the study, with 62 participants demonstrating acceptable fenugreek consumption. By the final assessment, 36 persons (52 still participating) still had acceptable compliance.

The study demonstrated that supplementation of 10 grams of powdered fenugreek per day in prediabetic subjects was associated with a much lower rate of conversion to diabetes. No adverse effects were observed. The researchers expressed that indigenous and low-cost, food-based fenugreek may be useful to lessen the diabetes epidemic in India, and perhaps globally as well.

Source: Gaddam et al. Role of Fenugreek in the prevention of type 2 diabetes mellitus in prediabetes Journal of Diabetes & Metabolic Disorders (2015) 14:74; DOI 10.1186/s40200-015-0208-4

© 2015 Gaddam et al. Open Access article under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0

International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) 

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Posted November 24, 2015.

References:

  1. Gaddam, Arpana et al. “Role of Fenugreek in the prevention of type 2 diabetes mellitus in prediabetes”. Journal of Diabetes & Metabolic Disorders (2015) 14:74 (1).
  2. Nathan; et al. (Mar 2007). “Impaired fasting glucose and impaired glucose tolerance: implications for care”. Diabetes Care 30 (3): 753–9.
  3. Ansari R, Ansari S. Effectiveness of fenugreek for lowering hemoglobin (HbA1c) in patients with self-management of type 2 diabetes: a randomized, controlled trial. In: Croniger C, editor. Medical Complications of Type 2 Diabetes. Croatia: InTech; 2011. pp. 393–412.
  4. Neelakantan N, Narayanan M, de Souza RJ, van Dam RM. Effect of fenugreek (Trigonella foenum-graecum L.) intake on glycemia: a meta-analysis of clinical trials. Nutr J. 2014; 13:7. doi: 10.1186/1475-2891-13-7. [
  5. Roberts KT. The potential of fenugreek (Trigonella foenum-graecum) as a functional food and nutraceutical and its effects on glycemia and lipidemia. J Med Food. 2011;14:1485–1489. doi: 10.1089/jmf.2011.0002.
  6. Gupta A, Gupta R, Lal B. Effect of Trigonella foenum-graecum (fenugreek) seeds on glycaemiccontrol and insulin resistance in type 2 diabetes mellitus: a double blind placebo controlled study. J Assoc Physicians India. 2001;49:1057–61.