Phytochemicals for Diabetes Management

ABSTRACT

Diabetes mellitus is a complex metabolic disorder resulting from either insulin insufficiency or insulin dysfunction. Diabetes mellitus affects most of the people in both developed and developing countries. The treatment of diabetes with synthetic drugs is costly and chances of side effects are high. Phytomedicine has been used since ancient times in various parts of the world where access to modern medicine is limited. Medicinal plants and phytoconstituents play an important role in the management of diabetes mellitus especially in developing countries where resources are meagre. Phytochemicals identified from medicinal plants present an exciting opportunity for the development of new types of therapeutics for diabetes mellitus. Most prevalent among phytochemical groups are the alkaloids, glycosides, polysaccharides, and phenolics such as flavonoids, terpenoids and steroids. Despite considerable progress in the development of synthetic drugs, the discovery of phytomedicine as an alternative therapy is progressing. This article aims to provide a comprehensive review on various plant species from globe and their constituents, which have been shown to display potent hypoglycemic activity.

Keywords:

Antidiabetic, diabetes management, diabetes mellitus, hyperglycemia, hypoglycemia, insulin, phytochemicals.