Diabetes has become an epidemic that is plaguing the American population. Many factors increase your risk of getting diabetes, including obesity, age, and hereditary factors. With this health epidemic on the rise, researchers are working overtime looking for ways to get this health crisis under control and better support blood sugar control. Could a plant compound known as berberine be the key? Keep reading to find out!
What is Diabetes?
Before we get into ways to prevent it, let’s talk about what diabetes is. There are actually three different types of the disease, and they affect different groups of people, for different reasons.
Type I Diabetes – This type of diabetes is typically diagnosed by a doctor in children and young adults. If you’re Type I, your body does not make insulin on it’s own and that means you are in turn, completely dependent on taking insulin every day to survive.
Type II Diabetes – This type means your body makes some insulin, but either not enough to run effectively, or your body doesn’t use it well. This is the most common type of diabetes and does usually require some insulin supplementation for blood sugar control.
Gestational Diabetes – This type only affects pregnant women. You can get gestational diabetes during pregnancy even if you’re never had issues with blood sugar control before. This type is often resolved after birth but can pose complications for mother and baby later in life.
Berberine and Blood Sugar Control
Each type of diabetes requires diagnosis and attention from a medical professional. But, there are things you can do on your own to maintain blood sugar control. Berberine is a bioactive compound that is found naturally in many plant species such as goldenseal. Research shows that berberine supplements may help the body better regulate sugar in the blood, which can be super useful for diabetics and pre-diabetics.
Berberine has been used for thousands of years in Chinese medicines for treat a variety of different ailments. The key function of berberine is to interact with your body at the cellular level to regulate metabolism. It seems to have a major impact on Type II diabetes, because of its ability to support balanced blood sugar levels.
If you’re interested in trying berberine supplements, look for products from trusted natural health brands such as Integrative Therapeutics, Douglas Labs, and Thorne Research.
Have you tried berberine for blood sugar control? We’d love to hear how it’s worked for you! Tell us in the comments below.
