How does Irvingia Aid in Improving Diabetes

Irvingia is the product of the African tree Irvingia gabonensis that produces a yellow edible fruit that looks like mangos. Irvingia gabonensis seeds delay stomach emptying, which leads to a gradual absorption of dietary sugar. This can reduce the elevation of blood sugar levels that is typical after a meal. Studies were performed to determine if Irvingia aids in improving diabetes and also to learn how does Irvingia aid in improving diabetes.

Researchers identified specific biological mechanisms that cause people as they age to gain weight, no matter how little they eat. Leptin is a hormone that tells our brain we have consumed enough and can stop eating. As people age, cells, including the appetite control center of our brain, become leptin resistant which renders leptin unable to effectively regulate body weight. More research was conducted to find a way to block the resistance to leptin. One product researched was Irvingia to determine how Irgvingia aids in improving diabetes.

It was discovered that Irvingia helps maintain healthy body weight in four ways. Fat cells produce C-reactive protein, a pro-inflammatory compound that leads to leptin resistance. Overweight people who took Irgvingia had lower levels of CRP, and therefore had less blocking of the activity of leptin. This, in itself, would indicate why Irvingia aids in improving diabetes. As a diabetic loses weight, sugar levels are more manageable; therefore anything that aids in weight loss would aid in improving diabetes. Irvingia also reduces the adiponectin, a hormone that helps support insulin sensitivity. The third way Irvingia aids in weight loss is by inhibiting glycerol-3-phosphate dehydrogenase, which converts glucose into triglycerides; and the fourth way is by reducing carbohydrate absorption.

As carbohydrates are consumed, they must be converted to sugar by the amylase enzyme in the digestive tract in order be fully absorbed. Irgingia inhibited amylase and reduced the amount of starches that were absorbed as sugar. This lowered the blood sugar of the diabetic when tested after a meal because the amount of carbohydrates consumed are not the same amount that are converted to sugar and enter the blood. This is how Irgingia aids in improving diabetes.

These studies have led researchers to conclude that Irvingia does aid in improving diabetes both in curtailing the amount of carbohydrates consumed and also by controlling the overall weight of the diabetic.