Mwiti Kibiti Cromwell, Jide Afolayan Anthony
1 Medicinal Plants and Economic Development (MPED) Research Centre, Department of Botany, University of Fort Hare, Alice, South Africa.
Int J Vitam Nutr Res. 2015;85(1-2):88-103. doi: 10.1024/0300-9831/a000226.
Diabetes mellitus is a chronic physiological glucose metabolic disorder. Its high prevalence globally has a significant impact on the quality of life. The management of diabetes includes non-pharmacological and glucose lowering agents. Although these methods are effective, they have drawbacks. This has led to a search for alternative therapy in macro and micro-minerals from dietary foods and plants. There is therefore a need to review, identify and classify their modes of action in diabetes mellitus therapy.
This review was carried out using comprehensive literature reports on the use of mineral elements in the management of diabetes. Empirical online searches were conducted for different elements that have been studied for their anti-diabetic potentials both in vivo and in vitro. The University of Fort Hare's online database was also used.
The results indicate that magnesium, molybdenum, zinc, vanadium and manganese facilitate glucose catabolism. Chromium, vanadium, zinc, molybdenum and magnesium can enhance insulin activity while molybdenum, manganese and zinc stimulate lipogenesis. Zinc and iron can modulate glucose, metabolizing enzymes in the gastrointestinal tract and limit oxidative stress, respectively. These agents have similar mechanisms to conventional drugs in ameliorating diabetic status and other associated complications.
The mechanisms of these elements are well known, however, the synergetic effects of their combinations are still obscure. Literature on their safe dose(s) is still scanty. Evaluation of other useful macro and micro-minerals should also be undertaken. It is envisaged that the use of mineral supplements will promote good health in diabetics.
糖尿病是一种慢性生理性葡萄糖代谢紊乱疾病。其在全球的高患病率对生活质量有重大影响。糖尿病的管理包括非药物治疗和降糖药物。尽管这些方法有效，但也存在缺点。这促使人们从膳食食物和植物中寻找宏量和微量矿物质的替代疗法。因此，有必要回顾、识别并分类它们在糖尿病治疗中的作用模式。
本综述利用了关于矿物质元素在糖尿病管理中应用的综合文献报告。对已在体内和体外研究其抗糖尿病潜力的不同元素进行了实证在线搜索。还使用了哈雷堡大学的在线数据库。
结果表明，镁、钼、锌、钒和锰促进葡萄糖分解代谢。铬、钒、锌、钼和镁可增强胰岛素活性，而钼、锰和锌刺激脂肪生成。锌和铁可分别调节胃肠道中的葡萄糖代谢酶和限制氧化应激。这些物质在改善糖尿病病情和其他相关并发症方面与传统药物有相似的作用机制。
这些元素的作用机制已为人所知，然而，它们组合的协同作用仍不明确。关于其安全剂量的文献仍然很少。还应评估其他有用的宏量和微量矿物质。预计使用矿物质补充剂将促进糖尿病患者的健康。
