Using Raw Honey for Diabetes...

Does it Improve the Effectiveness of your Meds?

Diabetic rats were randomized into six groups and administered distilled water, honey, glibenclamide, glibenclamide and honey, metformin or metformin and honey. The animals were treated orally once daily for four weeks.

What the scientists found was that honey significantly increased insulin, decreased hyperglycemia and fructosamine (fructosamine are used to identify blood glucose concentration over time).

Although the two drugs alone significantly reduced hyperglycemia, when they were combined with honey they produced significantly much lower blood glucose as compared to glibenclamide or metformin alone.

Similarly, glibenclamide or metformin combined with honey produced significantly lower fructosamine levels whereas glibenclamide or metformin alone did not decrease fructosamine.

Even more interesting was that glibenclamide or metformin combined with honey also significantly reduced the elevated levels of creatinine, bilirubin, triglycerides (blood fats), and VLDL cholesterol. (VLDL cholesterol is considered a type of "bad" cholesterol because elevated levels are associated with an increased risk of coronary artery disease) 

The scientists concluded that these results indicate that the combination of glibenclamide or metformin with honey improves glycemic control, and provides additional metabolic benefits that can not be achieved with either glibenclamide or metformin alone.

Wow. It seems to counterintuitive that honey actually lowers blood sugar levels. But the science clearly shows that it does. And furthermore, it appears to lower cholesterol as well. This supports what I often see with clients and customers. While the study didn't state how much honey was administered each day, we see amounts of 1 - 2 tablespoons per day working effectively.

The full study can be found in the International Journal of Biological Sciences, 2011; 7:244-252.

Honey For Diabetes?

Glycemic control is the control of your blood sugar (keeping it low). Controlling blood sugar, especially in diabetics is a very good thing.

Besides its hypoglycemic effect, studies also indicate that honey reduces lipid abnormalities (for example, cholesterol) in rats and humans with diabetes.

So what is the cause of this? Recently available data suggests that the "good bacteria" in our guts has something to do with how conditions such as obesity, insulin resistance, and diabetes manifest.

Recent findings are indeed linking gut flora as a potential contributor of obesity, insulin resistance, and diabetes. These findings also underline data that demonstrate the beneficial effects of oligosaccharides (special sugars found in honey) on various abnormalities commonly associated with these conditions.

Based on the similarities of some of these findings with those of honey, together with the evidence that honey contains oligosaccharides, scientists hypothesize that oligosaccharides present in honey might contribute to the antidiabetic and other health-related beneficial effects of honey.

So, if you suffer from diabetes or insulin resistance, consuming raw honey might just be of benefit to you. Notice I said "raw" honey. Not just any honey will do!

This study can be found in the journal Molecules, 2011 Dec 28;17(1):248-66.

Tips on what to look for in a pure, raw honey

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