Abstract

PHARMACOLOGICAL IMPACT OF VARIOUS HERBS IN THE TREATMENT OF DIABETES

Samreen Saifi* and Dr. Manish Kumar Shakya

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Abstract

Diabetes mellitus is one of the major chronic disorders because it causes disturbances of high levels of sugar in the blood. Though effective, conventional medications against diabetics have their own set of pitfalls-most seriously side effects, excessive cost, and in-access to remote low- resource parts of the earth. Such reasons have motivated people increasingly about medicinal herbs displaying hypoglycaemic effects, also an alternative route for therapeutics. The review concerns the pharmacological characteristics of different herbs, their active components, mechanisms of action, and supposed therapeutic activity in diabetes treatment. Some of the key herbs shown to lower blood glucose levels, enhance insulin sensitivity, or both include Momordica charantia (bitter melon), Allium sativum (garlic), Trigonella foenum-graecum (fenugreek), Curcuma longa (turmeric), and Gymnema sylvestre (gurmar). Their mechanisms include enhancing insulin secretion, increasing glucose uptake, suppressing glucose absorption, and displaying antioxidant effects. Moreover, these herbs act on more than one pathway, supporting blood glucose regulation, decrease in oxidative stress, modulation of lipid levels, and inflammation-the factors that contribute to diabetic complications. The paper integrates the findings of various preclinical and clinical studies to evaluate the effectiveness, safety, and limitations of these herbs as complementary therapies. The results of these studies support the possibility that phytomedicine might be a natural and low-cost approach for managing diabetes, which thus demands integration into mainstream healthcare.

Keywords: Diabetes mellitus, Medicinal herbs, Hypoglycaemic effects, Phytomedicine,