Rosemary and Oregano May Combat Type 2 Diabetes with Natural Compounds

If you want a way to combat diabetes, you may not have to look any further than your own spice cabinet. While rosemary and oregano may seem like common culinary herbs, scientists have now found that they contained compounds that could work in much the same way as prescription anti-diabetic medication.

As of 2012, type-2 diabetes affected more than 8 percent of Americans. This, in turn, cost the country about $175 billion. Whiel some people manage to manage the disease with exercise and changes to their diet, others have to take medication. That's why learning new ways to help combat the disease is so important.

Recent research has shown that herbs could potentially provide a natural way to help lower glucose in blood. Intrigued by this fact, the scientists decided to take a closer look. In all, they tested four different ears-either greenhouse grown or dried commercial versions-for their ability to interfere with a diabetes-related enzyme, which is also a target of a prescription drug for the disease.

In the end, they found that the greenhouse herbs contained more polyphenols and flavonoids compared to the equivalent commercial herbs. However, this didn't affect the concentration required to inhibit the enzyme. In addition, they found that commercial extracts of Greek oregano, Mexican oregano and rosemary were better inhibitors of the enzyme than greenhouse-grown herbs.

While the new study shows that these herbs may help with diabetes, more research needs to be conducted in order to understand the role of these compounds in reducing the risk of type-2 diabetes in humans. That said, it does open a potential way for scientists to create new treatments for patients in the future.

The findings are published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry.