Rosemary, oregano in diet naturally combats diabetes

New York, July 24 (IANS) Are you suffering from type-2 diabetes? You could soon cut down on your medicine bills as researchers have confirmed that including rosemary and oregano in the diet may help you control blood sugar levels naturally.

These popular culinary herbs contain diabetes-fighting compounds and they could work in much the same way as prescription anti-diabetic medication, the findings showed.

How the herbs are grown makes a difference, said Elvira Gonzalez de Mejia, a professor at University of Illinois in the US.

For the study, the researchers tested four different herbs, 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.

They found that greenhouse herbs contained more polyphenols and flavonoids compared to the equivalent commercial herbs.

But this did not affect the concentration required to inhibit the enzyme.

Commercial extracts of Greek oregano, Mexican oregano and rosemary were better inhibitors of the enzyme, required to reduce risk of type-2 diabetes, than greenhouse-grown herbs.

The study appeared in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, a publication of American Chemical Society.