It has a mild, fruity and naturally sweet taste.
Monitoring your blood sugar has become a daily health habit for many of us. For good reason: too repeated, blood sugar peaks tire the organs, particularly the pancreas, which can damage the body, lead to persistent fatigue, lack of concentration, desires to snack and weight gain.
Several plants are capable of “smoothing” our blood sugar levels. This is the case for cinnamon, fenugreek and gymnea sylvestre. Another plant that we love in autumn because it has a mild, fruity and naturally sweet taste, would have indisputable hypoglycemic properties. “I can only recommend it for people who would like to regulate their blood sugar because its leaves contain an active ingredient (1-deoxynojirimycin (DNJ)) which is an enzyme responsible for the digestion of carbohydrates (sugars). Which helps reduce the rise in blood sugar after meals and prevents blood sugar from dropping 2 hours after a meal” tells us Carmen Tanguy, naturopath and reflexologist. In addition, it sends a signal of satiety to the brain which curbs the appetite and the desire to snack.
This active ingredient lowers the glycemic index of carbohydrates and leads to a 30 to 40% reduction in calories absorbed. The positive effects on the glycemic index of several common starchy foods (such as rice, pasta) have notably been demonstrated in a study published in the journal Medicine. Where is this active ingredient found? In the white mulberry (Morus alba L.), replies our interlocutor, a fruit tree “whose dried leaves are consumed in an infusion or in capsules“. As a herbal tea, brew 1 tablespoon of dried leaves for a cup of hot water.
As a food supplement, take one capsule per day (choose capsules dosed at 5% DNJ which is the optimal dosage) for a course of 2 to 3 months. In herbal tea or in capsules, the effects on blood sugar are more noticeable when taken 5 to 15 minutes before breakfast. White mulberry should not be consumed during pregnancy or breastfeeding and when taking antidiabetics. Even if this plant is generally well tolerated, it is better to seek the advice of a health professional before starting a treatment.