Art (California) on 01/31/2024
https://www.earthclinic.com/cures/berberine-for-diabetes.html
And Here :
https://www.earthclinic.com/cures/six-supplements-for-diabetes-art-solbrig.html
This very recent review of multiple studies adds further confirmation to the idea that berberine is quite useful for diabetes through multiple methods of action, not just for lowering glucose levels :
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10819502/
Here is a relevant quote from the review :
Based on previous research, BBR significantly reduced levels of fasting blood glucose, hemoglobin A1C, inflammatory cytokines, and oxidative stress markers. Furthermore, BBR stimulated insulin secretion and improved insulin resistance through different pathways, including up-regulation of protein expression of proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR)-γ, glucose transporter (GLUT) 4, PI3K/AKT, and AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) activation. Interestingly, it was demonstrated that BBR has protective effects against diabetes complications, such as diabetic-induced hepatic damage, cardiovascular disorders, nephropathy, and neuropathy. Furthermore, multiple clinical trial studies have emphasized the ameliorative effects of BBR in type 2 diabetic patients.
The sum total of the research on berberine for diabetes type two seems very convincing, with wide-ranging healthful effects!
Art
Replied By Beryl (UK) on 02/01/2024
With all due respect, I've tried taking Berberine in the past, and it did nothing to lower my blood glucose levels. Diabetes UK do not recommend it. The best way to lower levels is to go on a carbohydrate restricted diet.
Replied By Art (California) on 02/01/2024
Hi Beryl,Could you explain why they don't recommend it? It lowers blood glucose and HbA1c when taken at proper dosing and time. It reduces inflammation and damaging oxidative stress. It has synergy with metformin and has some very important health activities that would be highly beneficial for people with diabetes type 2. T2DM increases your risk for the following, stroke, AMD, dementia, cardiovascular disease (CVD), causes beta cell dysfunction or damage, peripheral neuropathy, Parkinson's disease, kidney disease, nerve damage, osteoporosis and liver disease while berberine can work against all of these health issues. I am not aware of any drugs that can do all that berberine can do for people with diabetes type 2.
So please come back and explain why they do not recommend it, because with all of the above incomplete list of benefits that berberine offers to diabetics as shown in multiple studies, I do not understand why they would not highly recommend berberine, but I would surely like to know why they don't? Please also mention how and when you are dosing berberine that it does not lower your glucose level.
Art
Replied By Beryl (uk) on 02/03/2024
Dear Art,I would love to be able to say that I've taken Berberine and it lowered my blood glucose levels, but this has not been the case. If I remember correctly I've taken it on three separate occasions as directed but there were no positive results. Perhaps I didn't take it for long enough. Also, it didn't make me feel great whilst on it.
There's a couple of websites here in the UK that I'm aware of, Diabetes UK and Diabetes Co. UK. You may care to look at these yourself.
This is a quote from Diabetes UK's website. "Diabetes UK does not recommend the use of herbal remedies and supplements as there is not enough evidence that they are safe and effective for people with diabetes to use." (This is not my viewpoint as I've taken many supplements over the years).
Also, I'm not aware of of NHS here in the UK recommending its use.
Having Type II Diabetes myself, I have trawled the forums of the two above websites a number of times. People write in with their queries, successes, etc, and Berberine is rarely mentioned. If it was so successful I feel sure there would be hundreds of Berberine devotees shouting from the rooftops extolling its virtues, but they appear to be non existent.
We have an excellent doctor here in the UK, a Dr David Unwin, who has pioneered the concept of reducing the amount of carbohydrates we consume to improve blood sugar levels, and this has proved very successful.
Hand on heart, I wish I could say that Berberine worked brilliantly for me, but it didn't. If it had been successful I would certainly be taking it now. However, there may be others for whom it may prove beneficial.
Respect and best wishes to you.
Replied By Art (California) on 02/03/2024
Hi Beryl,I understand now. If an organization does not wish to recommend herbal remedies, then of course, berberine would not be recommended by them.
As to why you may not see many people commenting on berberine in the UK, I just looked on Amazon UK and it looks like they don't offer a supplement that is just berberine, but they do have one supplement that has berberine and cinnamon in it as shown here when I searched for berberine :
https://www.amazon.co.uk/s?k=berberine&crid=12GHST2I69J62&sprefix=berberine,aps,224&ref=nb_sb_noss_1
It is also worth noting that this product costs roughly $60 US dollars, making it more than three times the price of a more potent product available on US Amazon which I linked to below :
Compared to here in the US Amazon, they are loaded with all types of Berberine supplements as shown here :
https://www.amazon.com/s?k=berberine&crid=1GGQLAW69DCXX&sprefix=berberine,aps,139&ref=nb_sb_noss_1
The following link takes you to a product on US Amazon that also contains berberine and cinnamon :
For a comparison to the UK product which contains 250 mg of berberine per capsule and 250 mg of cinnamon per capsule, the US product contains 600 mg of berberine per capsule and 100 mg of Ceylon Cinnamon per capsule.
Based on the effective dosage of berberine for diabetes established in human studies, 1500 mg total per day minimum, it will take 3 of the US capsules to get enough berberine to reach the effective dose. For the UK product it will take 6 capsules per day to get to the effective dose of 1500 mg/day. That means the 120 capsule UK bottle will last only 20 days whereas the US product which also has 120 capsules will last 40 days or twice as long for about one third the price of the UK product.
Given the above, I can see why people in the UK have little interest in using berberine as it is simply very expensive to use and there is very little in the way of choices of product if Amazon UK is a fair representation of availability and pricing.
You still didn't say what dose you used that was ineffective for you, but if you took the UK product at the effective dose, that would mean you are also getting 1500 mg of burmanii cinnamon a day and that is a lot. Just 1000 mg of cinnamon per day has shown to be beneficial for glycemic control. Given the high price and limited selection to use berberine at the effective dose in the UK, I can see where you may have been taking less than the effective dose, which of course would not work for the purpose of glycemic control.
To give you a better idea of the science of berberine for diabetes, this very recent (November 2023) meta analysis of multiple randomized controlled trials (RCTs) on the use of berberine for glycemic control in adults shows that berberine is effective for glycemic control :
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38016844/
Here is a relevant quote from the meta analysis :
' The finding of our umbrella showed that the supplementation of BBR could be effective in improving glycemic parameters and inflammatory marker in adults. '
When you also consider the other benefits that berberine has shown in working against many of the severe side effects of diabetes as I mentioned in my previous reply to you, berberine is clearly a very valuable supplement for the majority of diabetics in the world and likely is in a class by itself in that regard.
Art