Diabetes mellitus: Treatment challenges and the role of some herbal therapies

Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a chronic metabolic disorder with devastating complications affecting millions of individuals across the world. Alarmingly, the incidence of DM continues to rise steadily. Hence, it is not surprising that both modern and traditional medicine researchers have been consistently experimenting antidiabetic agents for the treatment of DM and its complications. Despite the promises and convincing scientific evidence that lie beneath the prescription of drugs, a significant number of DM patients opt for herbal preparations. The popularity of herbal supplements for treating DM and its complications is attributed to the cost effectiveness and lesser side effects. The three main domains of complementary and alternative medicine i.e. western herbalism, Chinese and Ayurvedic medicine have been tried for the effective treatment of DM. The main aim of the present review is to highlight the advances of the used herbal antidiabetic preparations. Besides, we have discussed the various macrovascular and microvascular complications occurring in DM with the potential role of herbal supplements in this regard. For the purpose of this review, we have retrieved some related articles from Pubmed, Ebsco and ScienceDirect published between the years 1980 and 2013.