One study found that sulforaphane, a compound in broccoli sprouts, significantly reduced fasting blood sugar levels in people with prediabetes. Researchers at the University of Gothenburg previously discovered that sulforaphane is a potential anti-diabetic compound that could be used to treat type 2 diabetes. A 2017 clinical study showed that diabetic patients experienced significant reductions in blood sugar levels after taking large doses of sulforaphane, which is extracted from broccoli sprouts.
In the latest study published in Nature Microbiology, Professor Anders Rosengren and his team focused on prediabetes - a condition that precedes type 2 diabetes and is characterized by a gradual increase in blood sugar levels due to impaired insulin secretion.
The study included 89 people with elevated fasting blood sugar, an indicator of prediabetes. Other criteria included participants being overweight or obese and aged 35-75.
Participants were randomly assigned to receive sulfamethazine or placebo for 12 weeks. Neither participants nor researchers knew who was assigned to which regimen. A total of 74 participants completed all phases of the study.
Study results showed that participants who took the sulforaphane complex experienced a greater average decrease in fasting blood glucose than those who took a placebo. The differences between the two groups in the study were considerable.
Greater differences were found when analyzing clinical subgroups. The group of people who showed the greatest improvement after taking sulforaphane had early symptoms of mild senile diabetes, a relatively low body mass index in the study, low insulin resistance, low incidence of fatty liver disease, and low insulin secretion.
In the third phase, in collaboration with Professor Fredrik Bäckhed of the University of Gothenburg, research was conducted on intestinal bacteria and found that one type of intestinal bacteria interacted with sulforaphane, further improving the efficacy of the broccoli compound.
Numerically, there was a 0.2 mmol/L difference in fasting glucose values among all participants taking sulforaphane compared to the placebo group, followed by a 0.4 mmol/L difference in the relevant clinical subgroup, and a 0.7 mmol/L difference in fasting glucose values among those in both the clinical subgroup and those with gut bacteria.
It is estimated that the incidence of prediabetes in Sweden is as high as 10%, and there is currently no clear treatment. Although this disease often goes undetected, early detection increases your chances of not developing type 2 diabetes. Anders-Rosengren emphasized the importance of early, personalized intervention in preventing disease.
He said: "Currently, treatments for prediabetes are lacking in many ways, but these new findings open the way to precision treatment using sufodecalin, a functional food derived from broccoli. However, lifestyle factors remain fundamental in treating prediabetes, including exercise, healthy eating and weight loss, and the findings also provide a general model of how pathophysiology and gut microbiota interact to influence treatment response."
Compiled from /scitechdaily