Wonders of Wisconsin Last week, I told you about a new breath test to measure blood sugar levels that could be on the horizon. But that's not the only potential new development in the field of diabetes management. Researchers from the University of Chicago recently discovered that ginseng may be able to reduce blood sugar levels by as much as 30 percent. This part of the story isn't necessarily revolutionary: I read research back in 2005 that suggested ginseng's ability to lower blood sugar in people with type 2 diabetes. But the form of ginseng these researchers used in their study added a new twist. Typically, ginseng supplements come in tablet or capsule form, which are created using extracts from the root or leaves of the plant. The University of Chicago researchers, on the other hand, used an extract from American ginseng berries grown in Wisconsin in their study. (And here I thought that Wisconsin's only claims to fame were cheese and Brett Favre…) They measured its effects in a group of mice that had symptoms resembling those of type 2 diabetes. They took fasting blood glucose measurements before the study began and then again after the mice had been fed the ginseng berry extract for 10 days. At the end of the study period, the blood sugar levels of the mice who had been given the ginseng berry extract were 31 percent lower than they had been at the outset. And in an unexpected development, the mice's blood sugar levels stayed low even after the researchers stopped feeding them the ginseng berry extract. The researchers are hopeful that ginseng berry juice might soon join the ranks of other superjuices like pomegranate and acai. In the meantime, though, I wouldn't suggest going out of your way to track down ginseng berries for your juicer. There are plenty of other natural approaches to managing your blood sugar levels that work just as well -- if not better than -- the ginseng extract did for those diabetic mice. As I mentioned last week, Dr. Wright covered diabetes prevention in detail in the August 2001 issue of Nutrition & Healing. The April 2002 issue also features information about using an extract from cinnamon to control blood sugar (and quite possibly eliminate the need for diabetes drugs altogether). Subscribers can download these issues for free by visiting www.wrightnewsletter.com and logging in to the archives by entering the username and password located on page 8 of your most recent newsletter. (And if you're not already a subscriber, the website offers details on how you can become one.) Sources:
"Ginseng juice eyed as an anti-diabetic dietary supplement," FoodNavigator (www.foodnavigator.com), 9/20/07
"American ginseng berry juice intake reduces blood glucose and body weight in ob/ob mice," Journal of Food Science 2007; published online ahead of print 9/6/07 | 
