Revisiting "Vegetables" to combat modern epidemic of imbalanced glucose homeostasis

Abstract

Vegetables have been part of human food since prehistoric times and are considered nutritionally necessary and good for health. Vegetables are rich natural resource of biological antioxidants and possess capabilities of maintaining glucose homeostasis. When taken before starch-rich diet, juice also of vegetables such as ridge gourd, bottle gourd, ash gourd, chayote and juice of leaves of vegetables such as radish, Indian Dill, ajwain, tropical green amaranth, and bladder dock are reported to arrest significantly the rise in postprandial blood glucose level. Juice of vegetables such as ash gourd, squash gourd, and tropical green amaranth leaves are observed to tone-down sweet-beverages such as sucrose, fructose, and glucose-induced postprandial glycemic excursion. On the other hand, juice of egg-plant and juice of leaves of Ceylon spinach, Joyweed, and palak are reported to augment starch-induced postprandial glycemic excursion; and juice of leaves of Ceylon spinach, Joyweed, and radish supplement to the glucose-induced postprandial glycemia. Vegetables possess multifaceted antihyperglycemic activities such as inhibition of pancreatic α-amylase and intestinal α-glucosidase, inhibition of protein-tyrosine phosphatase 1β in liver and skeletal muscles, and insulin mimetic and secretagogue activities. Furthermore, they are also reported to influence polyol pathway in favor of reducing development of oxidative stress, and consequently the development of diabetic complications. In the wake of emergence of modern maladaptive diet-induced hyperglycemic epidemic therefore, vegetables may offer cost-effective dietary regimen to control diet-induced glycemic over load and future development of diabetes mellitus. However, for vegetables have been reported to do both, mitigate as well as supplement to the diet-induced postprandial glycemic load, care is required in selection of vegetables when considered as medicament.

Organoleptic Characteristics of Dairy Products Supplemented with Raphanus raphanistrum subsp. sativus (radish) Powder: A Preliminary Study on Efficacy against Diabetes

“…sativus (radish) would have a potent antidiabetic activity, since Raphanus raphanistrum subsp. sativus (radish) could significantly reduce the starch inducedpostprandial glycemic load [17]. In other words, these proofs could prove that Raphanus raphanistrum subsp.…”

Plants Consumption and Liver Health

“…Other hepatoprotective plant foods from wild and semidomesticated origin consist of amaranth, Aralia elata Seem , asparagus, balloonflower root ( Platycodon grandiflorus ), buckwheat, capillary wormwood, celery, chestnut, Chinese chive, Chinese small iris (Iris lactea) , Chinese toon, heartleaf ( Cordate houttuynia ), cress, dandelion, daylily, devil's tongue ( Lilium brownii ), hawthorn, hazelnut, kelp, kiwi fruit, longan, longstamen onion bulb, lotus root, mango, Manyflower Gueldenstaedtid herb ( Herba Gueldenstaedtiae ), olive, papaya, philippine violet herb ( Herba violae ), purslane, red date, rivier ( Rhizoma amorphophalli ), shepherd purse, sow thistle, spring bamboo shoots, summer squash, tangerine, tzu tsai ( Porphyra haitanensis ), wild bracken, and yam [ 35 – 39 ]. The list is still growing and in-depth studies on different phytonutrients are warranted for rationale consumption of these plant foods to improve liver health.…”

Antihypergluco-lipidemic and Antioxidant activities in Aqueous methanol Extract of Some Vegetables Peel: An in vitro Analysis

“…30,31 Recently, vegetables were identified as rich natural resources of PTP1β inhibitors. 7,32 Data presented in table 2 shows that vegetable peels displayed varying degree of PTP1β inhibitory potentials. The extract of LS and CM peels displayed better PTP1β inhibitory activity than other vegetable's peels ( Table 2).…”