Other Ingredients: Cellulose, dicalcium phosphate, modified cellulose gum, stearic acid and magnesium stearate.

Insulin is a powerful hormone whose job it is to deliver energy and raw materials to the muscle and adipose (fat) cells in the form of blood glucose (from dietary carbohydrate) and amino acids (from protein).  Without it, your cells would starve and die. 

But over the years, bad genes, poor dietary habits, and the “normal” aging process make our muscles less and less responsive to insulin’s signal. As insulin becomes less and less able to do its job, the pancreas must produce more and more insulin to get cells the fuel and building blocks they need. This condition is called insulin resistance, and the elevated hormone level is known as hyperinsulinemia.

If this process continues long enough, the cells will become so insulin resistant that they will not take up enough glucose to normalize blood sugar no matter how high insulin surges. If so, blood sugar will become dangerously high even as insulin levels are too high and cells are deprived of needed fuel, and type II (“adult onset” or “non-insulin dependent” (NIDDM)) diabetes ensues. But even if this, the extreme case, is avoided, hyperinsulinemia is a major health hazard, leading to arteriosclerosis and hypertension. 

Also, all those calories that are not going into the muscles have to go somewhere — and “somewhere” turns out to be the adipose cells, which (unlike muscle cells) do not develop insulin resistance. Fat cells soon become engorged with the new deposits of energy, so that hyperinsulinemia can virtually be diagnosed by abdominal obesity. Finally, excessive insulin also activates 3-hydroxy- 3-methylglutaryl coenzyme a reductase (HMGCoA reductase), the enzyme responsible for cholesterol synthesis in the liver, resulting in high blood lipids. Put together, these deadly four — soaring insulin, a ballooning waistline, fat-saturated blood, and raging blood pressure — comprise a witches’ brew called Syndrome X, characterized by Dyslipidemia, Resistance to insulin, Obesity in the abdomen, and Pressure in the blood vessels that is simply too high: the DROP that could drop you!

In addition to the hazards of elevated insulin, glucose itself can be a threat to health and well-being. Just as the body needs oxygen, but its use produces free radicals (which rob needed electrons from proteins, DNA, and cell membranes), so too glucose — even in normal, “healthy” levels — has a dark side. Advanced glycation endproducts (AGEs) are abnormal proteins whose structure has been warped by binding to glucose — the same process that underlies the “browning” of fried foods. This problem, is accelerated by a process known as the sorbitol pathway, in which glucose reacts with the enzyme aldose reductase and is converted into other sugars with have an even greater tendency to warp proteins than glucose itself. In recent years, it has been discovered that AGEs underlie many diabetic complications, including neuropathy (peripheral and autonomic nerve dysfunction), cataracts, and kidney damage. And even in the nondiabetic population, the slow “browning” of body proteins by glucose is now believed to be one of the main factors which underlie the development of many age-related diseases, and the aging process itself.

A well-formulated blood-sugar balancing formula was designed to support healthy glucose metabolism and proper insulin function.

The key nutrient in a well-formulated blood-sugar balancing formula is thiotic acid, also known as alpha lipoic acid, or ALA (see our Alpha Lipoic Acid  (Thiotic Acid) write-up). In addition to being the body’s master antioxidant and the hub of the antioxidant network, ALA increases glucose uptake by the cells. On top of the extensive animal research, a double-blind, placebo-controlled trial by Jacob and colleagues reported that diabetics administered ALA had 27% higher rates of glucose disposal in response to insulin than the placebo group after just four weeks of supplementation — an astounding improvement. ALA also helps sheathe the sword of high blood sugar: because of its ability to help restore healthy glucose metabolism and its powerful antioxidant powers, ALA reduces the formation of AGEs.  As a result, clinical trials are now showing that ALA can restore healthy nerve function, reducing neuropathic deficits and improving diabetes-induced damage to the nerves servicing the heart.

The most exciting botanical in the formula is colosolic acid (2-alpha-hydroxyursolic acid), an extract from the Banaba plant (Lagerstroemia speciosa) sold under the trade name Glucosol™. Banaba has traditionally been regarded as a virtual panacea by the Filipinos, who drink the leaves as a tea. Initial animal experiments suggested that there was something to this tradition, and double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover trials in humans were initiated. 

The first trial, originally reported in Japanese Pharmacology and Therapeutics and summarized in Science, involved administering banaba extracts or placebo to NIDDM patients.  Amazingly, even at a low dose (colosolic acid equivalent to 16 mg of Glucosol), 91% of the active group experienced a drop in blood glucose: compared to controls, their glucose levels fell by an average of 13.5%, from 153.9 mg/dL to 133.1 mg/dL. When patients were switched over from active group to placebo, their glucose rose; and from placebo to active, it fell. The lead scientist, Dr. Yoshio Ikeda, was “surprised” by the result: “Frankly ... these kinds of remedies don’t usually have much effect.” Glucosol™ broke the trend. Other trials, using higher dosages, confirm these results and prove that higher doses of colosolic acid have even stronger glucose-optimizing effects.

Interestingly, experiments performed using Erlich ascites cells have found that this effect is not due to any direct effect on insulin or its receptor: rather, colosolic acid is a glucose transport activator, directly triggering a separate class of cellular glucose shuttles.

Several other nutrients and herbals are also present in the formula. Clinical trials confirm the power of supplemental chromium to potentiate insulin function. In one trial patients receiving high-dose chromium supplements experienced reduced glycated hemoglobin (a measure of AGE accumulation), fasting glucose, insulin, and total cholesterol as compared to those receiving placebo, confirming decades of animal research and smaller trials.

Another key mineral involved in insulin sensitivity is magnesium. Despite similar intakes and total plasma levels, diabetics’ cells consistently display lower levels of the mineral than the population as a whole— an effect also seen in the obese, in whom the very ability of the cells to absorb magnesium is actually reduced. Double-blind trials show improved acute insulin response and faster glucose clearance in supplemented NIDDM patients as well as normal elderly subjects. 

The reason for the magnesium phenomenon has yet to be elucidated. Interestingly, however, it appears to be somehow bound up with vitamin E  — or at least alpha tocopherol, which is only one eighth of the vitamin E complex (see Toco-3-Nols, Total E, and their write-ups). Alpha-tocopherol supplements increase insulin efficiency and hole-body glucose disposal while simultaneously elevating magnesium levels within the cell, as shown in double-blind, placebo-controlled trials.

The formula puts itself onto the cutting-edge with the inclusion of methylcobalamin, an uniquely neuroprotective form of vitamin B₁₂, which has shown exciting promise in disorders from Alzheimer’s disease to multiple sclerosis. Even in non-diabetic persons, B₁₂ deficiency can lead to forms of neuropathy, a fact that has been linked to methylcobalamin and its role in methylation and the homocysteine cycle. It is thus partially to support methylcobalamin in lowering homocysteine that folate and pyridoxine (B6) are included in the formula: they are both proven homocysteine-fighters. Consistent with this, Yaqub et al found that NIDDM patients supplemented with methylcobalamin showed statistically significant regression of diabetic neuropathy, including improvement in somatic and autonomic symptoms of the disease. Yet since methylcobalamin has the power to protect nerves from other assaults, including glutamate toxicity, mechanical stress, and demyelinization, it is likely that, exciting as the homocysteine connection is, there is much more to the phenomenon.

Although we are forced to work entirely from animal experiments, there is a strong suggestion from the literature that selenium may be of use in managing high blood glucose and its complications. In diabetic rats, various forms of selenium reduce serum glucose, prevent microvascular damage in the kidneys and retinas, and improve heart function.

The amino acid taurine  (see write-up for Taurine) is vital to many bodily processes. Two separate groups have recently reported that taurine administration increases insulin sensitivity and reduces abdominal fat accumulation and blood pressure in insulin-resistant lab rodents  — results highly suggestive of benefits for  “Syndrome X.”  In rodents whose beta cells have been destroyed by streptozoicin, it also inhibits development of diabetic kidney damage.

In one study, adding green tea (see write-up for Epigallocatechin gallate) to older experimental animals’ food or water was found to lower blood glucose by a remarkable 23.9%. As well, green tea polyphenols may protect the beta cells from toxins, a power of significance for autoimmune diabetes.

The bioflavonoid quercetin (see write-up) is an inhibitor of aldose reductase, the enzyme that catalyzes the AGE-enhancing sorbitol pathway. Animal studies prove quercetin’s ability to reduce sorbitol formation and inhibit diabetic cataract formation.

Gymnema sylvestre is among the best-known Ayurvedic herbals for healthy glucose metabolism (see write-up). A controlled trial in autoimmune diabetics demonstrated that the active group required only half the insulin and had lower blood sugar and glycated hemoglobin (a marker of AGE formation) compared with controls.   Open trials in type II diabetics suggest that Gymnema extracts improve blood lipids and glucose control in these patients. Early reports of rejuvenated insulin-secreting pancreatic cells remain unconfirmed; animal experiments point to reductions in absorption of sugar from the intestines as a more likely cause of the clinical data.

Another Ayurvedic herb included in a well-formulated blood-sugar balancing formula is Trigonella graecum (fenugreek). Several investigators have reported that animals whose beta cells have been destroyed have a reduced glucose “spike” after a meal when administered Trigonella.  The formula also contains bitter melon (Momordica charantia). While early reports of a “vegetal insulin” in the herb remain controversial, it has established blood-glucose-lowering properties in experimental animals, evidently caused by delayed gastric emptying by momordin Ic, an active saponin component.

Several other ingredients should be mentioned, which will mostly be of interest to persons with autoimmune (“type I” or “juvenile”) diabetes. Niacinamide has been proven in double-bind trials to enhance insulin secretion in subjects at risk for autoimmune diabetes, which may indicate beta-cell protection, although this interpretation is disputed. Biotin directly stimulates the beta cells to release insulin in response to glucose challenge and accelerates liver glycolysis, helping to balance blood sugar levels. Manganese deficiency inhibits normal insulin release in response to blood sugar. Finally, Bilberry, aside from its powerful antioxidant properties, has a proven role in strengthening small blood vessels, and is included as support for vessels stressed by AGE formation and homocysteine-driven arteriosclerosis.

Control of insulin and blood glucose is vital to our health, whether we are diabetics, have “syndrome X,” or are simply undergoing “normal” aging. Diet and exercise are vital to keeping these biomarkers under control, but supplements can play a powerful role as well. A well-formulated blood-sugar balancing formula fills this need, providing a powerful combination against everything “sweet and deadly.”

References

Judy WV, Hari SP, Stogsdill WW, Judy JS, Naguib YM, Passwater R. Antidiabetic activity of a standardized extract (Glucosol) from Lagerstroemia speciosa leaves in Type II diabetics. A dose-dependence study. J Ethnopharmacol. 2003 Jul; 87(1): 115-7. 

Liu F, Kim J, Li Y, Liu X, Li J, Chen X. An extract of Lagerstroemia speciosa L. has insulin-like glucose uptake-stimulatory and adipocyte differentiation-inhibitory activities in 3T3-L1 cells.  J Nutr. 2001 Sep; 131(9): 2242-7. 

Baskaran K, Kizar Ahamath B, Radha Shanmugasundaram K, Shanmugasundaram ER. Antidiabetic effect of a leaf extract from Gymnema sylvestre in non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus patients. J Ethnopharmacol. 1990 Oct; 30(3): 295-300. 

Jacob S, Ruus P, Hermann R, Tritschler HJ, Maerker E, Renn W, Augustin HJ, Dietze GJ, Rett K. Oral administration of RAC-alpha-lipoic acid modulates insulin sensitivity in patients with type-2 diabetes mellitus: a placebo-controlled pilot trial. Free Radic Biol Med 1999 Aug; 27(3-4): 309-14.

Takaya J, Higashino H, Kotera F, Kobayashi Y. Intracellular magnesium of platelets in children with diabetes and obesity. Metabolism. 2003 Apr; 52(4): 468-71.