A number of plants have insulin mimetic effects. For example, Fenugreek (Trigonella foenum) contains a chemical called 4-hydroxyleucine that may lower blood glucose by stimulating the release of insulin from the β-cells of the pancreas. Aloe vera contains a bitter principle that may also cause stimulation of the β-cells of the pancreas. Isolated compounds from Aloe vera including pseudoprototinosaponin AIII and prototinosaponins AIII may cause a hypoglycaemic effect by modifying hepatic gluconeogenesis or glycogenolysis. Berberine, a plant compound found in a number of plants including goldenseal, goldenthread and barberry may exacerbate the effects of insulin in the presence of glucose. The spice cinnamon (Cinnamon zeylaniucm) has been shown to result in enhanced insulin release, which may relate to its high chromium content. Caffeine, present in tea and coffee, can also stimulate glucose dependent insulin release from the pancreas. Further to this, tea (Camellia sinensis) contains polyphenols including Epigallocatechin gallate that increases the activity of insulin, perhaps through its ability to reduce insulin sensitivity. Gymnema (Gymnema sylvestre) has also been shown to possess hypoglycaemic effects because it can stimulate the release of insulin from the pancreas. The fig tree (Ficus bengalensis) has also been shown to raise levels of serum insulin and at the same time have a pronounced hypoglycaemic effect. Nigella sativa oil and Momordica charantia fruit juice can also decrease blood glucose and stimulate insulin release. These insulin mimetic effects may explain the weight loss effects seen in many of these herbs, spices and plant compounds.
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Patel, D. K., Prasad, S. K., Kumar, R. and Hemalatha, S. 2012. An overview on antidiabetic medicinal plants having insulin mimetic property. Asian Pacific journal of tropical biomedicine. 2(4): 320-330
