Effects of Namya Kanom Jeen powder extract on hypoglycemic and anti-oxidant properties in Alloxan-induced diabetic rats

Background: Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a major health care problem worldwide.  Major intervention control of DM is by using medical treatments and dietetic therapy.  Spices and herbs have been known to have anti-oxidant, anti-inflammation and anti-diabetic properties. Southern Thai foods known to contain phytochemicals in large amount, have been demonstrated to exhibit such properties and Namya Kanom Jeen (NKJ), a Southern Thai soup, shown to be most promising.  Here, we studied the effect of NKJ water extracts on hypoglycemic and anti-oxidant properties in Alloxan-induced diabetic rats.Methods: This study aimed to assess the effect of NKJ water extract on blood glucose, insulin, malondialdehyde (MDA), homeostatic model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) and high sensitive C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) levels in Alloxan-induced diabetic (DM) rats for 3 weeks.Results: In Alloxan-induced diabetic rats, the NKJ water soluble extracts at 200, 1,000 and 2,000 mg/kg body weight doses (n=7) significantly lowered blood glucose, insulin, MDA, HOMA-IR levels compared to diabetic control (Metformin, p < 0.05). Conclusion: In summary, feeding of NKJ aqueous extract effectively lowered baseline blood glucose, insulin, MDA and HOMA-IR in diabetic rats.Keywords: Diabetes mellitus; Anti-oxidant; Glycemic; Insulin resistance; HOMA-IR, Namya Kanom Jeen powder