Abstract

Lack of highly effective drug-therapy with existing synthetic drugs and their adverse effects motivated further search into traditional medicine in order to find new natural entities to be used as anti-diabetic products. To investigate the hypothesis that the combination of silymarin in adjunct with oral anti-diabetic drugs is useful in improving glucose profile in type 2 diabetes mellitus patients in comparison with placebo. In this study, 50 patients suffering from type 2 diabetes mellitus were recruited and randomly divided into two groups. The intervention (n=25) and control (n=25) groups received either 280 mg silymarin in two divided doses or placebo respectively for 60 days. All subjects were treated with standard oral anti-diabetic agents during the intervention period. Serum levels of fasting blood sugar, 2hours post-prandial glucose and glycosylated hemoglobin A1c were measured before and after the intervention. Addition of silymarin with standard oral anti diabetic agents led to a significant decrease in the levels of fasting blood sugar, 2hours post-prandial glucose and glycosylated hemoglobin A1c in the intervention group. The glycosylated hemoglobin A1c increased in placebo group significantly. None of the patients in the silymarin group reported any adverse effects of silymarin. Administration of 280 mg silymarin in two divided doses over 60 days showed a superior efficacy than standard treatment alone in type 2 diabetes mellitus. It resulted in significant decreased serum levels of fasting blood sugar, 2hours post-prandial glucose, and glycosylated hemoglobin A1c.