Effect of a polynutraceutical juice (Indian gooseberry, ginger and curry leaves) as an adjunct to oral antidiabetic drugs on fasting blood glucose in type 2 diabetes: A randomized controlled trial
Radhika Ravindran, Bamini Devi Nagarajan, Helen Shaji John Cecily, Navaneetha MurugesanBackground
Diabetes is an escalating global health priority, significantly impacting low- and middle-income countries like India.
Aim
To evaluate the effectiveness of a polynutraceutical juice comprising Indian gooseberry–ginger–curry leaves on fasting blood glucose (FBG) levels in individuals with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM).
Methods
A 1-month open-label randomized controlled trial was conducted among 120 adults with T2DM attending a non-communicable disease clinic in Puducherry, India. Participants were randomly allocated to receive either the polynutraceutical juice plus standard oral antidiabetic drugs (OADs) (n = 60) or OADs alone (n = 60). FBG was measured at baseline and after 4 weeks. Within-group changes were analysed using the Wilcoxon signed-rank test, between-group differences using Bonferroni-adjusted comparisons, and a post hoc analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) was performed to adjust for baseline FBG, age and gender.
Summary
Of the 120 randomized participants, 112 completed the study. The experimental group (n = 55) showed a significant reduction in FBG (mean decrease: 20.3 mg/dL;