Manojkumar N and Kiran O Mantri
Kottakkal Ayurveda College, India
Scientific Tracks Abstracts: J Diabetes Metab
Introduction & Aim: Diabetes mellitus is a multisystem disorder affecting 387 million people in the world and among them 78.3 million from South East Asia. By 2040, this is expected to rise to 131 million. Significance of Alternative medicine is increasing day by day as there is no cure for this condition in contemporary system of medicines. Many Ayurvedic doctors are effectively using pericarp of Myristica fragrans Houtt., in diabetes mellitus. But they are not documented scientifically yet. Moreover, need of adding new drugs to the Ayurvedic pharmacopoeia are essential in this era of drug scarcity and adulteration. Hence in this study, an animal model is selected to prove the efficacy of Myristica fragrans Houtt. Method: 30 Alloxan-induced diabetic animals were selected for the study and grouped into four each containing 6 rats, halfdose, therapeutic dose and double-dose of the cold infusion of the drug, the standard drug Glibenclamide (0.5 mg/Kg.b.wt.) and the control group with distilled water. Blood sugar level was assessed on day 0, 1, 2, 5, 10, 15 and 20 at time interval 0, 1, 2, 4 and 6 hours by using Glucometer. Hepatic and renal function and anti-oxidant action were also assessed. Result: Therapeutic dose and double-dose were found to be significantly effective in blood sugar level and also in the renal and hepatic parameters. Levels of antioxidant enzymes and glutathione were increased as compared to the control group. Conclusion: Pericarp of Myristica fragrans is therapeutically effective in Alloxan-induced diabetic rat model and also possesses significant antioxidant activity.
Manojkumar N is a Professor in Kottakkal Ayurveda College, Kerala University of Health Sciences, India. He has 15 years of experience in evaluation, teaching, administration and research. He is a Medical Doctor who has been practicing Ayurveda for the past 22 years.
