Diabetes - What About Non-Traditional Therapies?

The immense growth in alternative therapies during the last 20 years has not bypassed diabetes treatment. Most people with diabetes who turn to alternative therapies do so to relieve the symptoms of complications, not to control their blood sugar levels.

For instance, acupuncture is sometimes used to control neuropathy, the painful nerve damage of diabetes. And biofeedback, which teaches people how to control some seemingly involuntary processes, is sometimes helpful for incontinence, one potential consequence of neuropathy.

While some mineral supplements have been studied to see if they can help people with diabetes control their blood sugar levels, so far not enough is known about such approaches to warrant recommending them. These are the most commonly studied supplements for managing diabetes:

Chromium. Chromium is needed to make glucose tolerance factor, which aids the action of insulin. Several studies report that chromium supplementation may yield better diabetes control in people who are chromium-deficient, a rare condition. However, supplementation has shown no benefit for those who have adequate amounts of the mineral.

Magnesium. Not having enough magnesium may increase insulin resistance. It may also impair secretion of insulin by the pancreas and contribute to certain complications of diabetes. But scientists still don’t fully understand the relationship between magnesium and diabetes. As with chromium, the available evidence doesn’t suggest that magnesium deficiency is a significant risk factor for diabetes, and the value of supplements remains speculative.

Vanadium. Some early studies of the compound vanadium found that it normalized blood sugar levels in rats with type 1 or type 2 diabetes. A more recent study found that when people with type 2 diabetes were given vanadium, they became slightly more sensitive to insulin and were able to lower their insulin doses. However, this effect did not extend to people with type 1 diabetes. And research on vanadium is limited. Researchers still don’t understand exactly how it works or whether it has any side effects.

Ginseng. Ginseng is found all over the world, with unique species native to China, America, and Japan. Largely touted for its effects on the immune system, concentration, and longevity, ginseng is thought to decrease the rate of carbohydrate absorption and modulate insulin secretion. Clinical trials indicate that ginseng decreases fasting blood glucose, HbA1c (a measure of blood sugar), and after-meal glucose levels, but more research is needed to confirm these effects.

Cinnamon. Most commonly known as a spice in baked goods and desserts, cinnamon is sometimes promoted as a substance that can exert a regulatory role on blood glucose level and lipids. Few studies have been conducted, and they have been small and had conflicting results.

A final word of warning: “Natural” and “alternative” are not synonymous with safe or effective. If you want to try an alternative therapy, talk to your doctor first.  

Diabetes: A plan for living, a report from Harvard Medical School, will help you better understand and manage your diabetes. Among other things, you’ll learn the basics of how your body metabolizes sugar, the tools of diabetes control, and the fundamentals of nutrition and exercise. You’ll get up-to-date information about recent innovations in treatment. Perhaps most importantly, you’ll see that it’s not just possible to live with diabetes; it’s possible to live well.

Click here to join the group Harvard Med: Talking About Health on Gather

You can find the following related articles on Gather:

The Avandia Crisis: What Do We Know, and What Have We Learned?
Diabetes and depression, a circular connection
Diabetes - Healthy Eating for Types 1 and 2