Frati-Munari A C, Gordillo B E, Altamirano P, Ariza C R
Department of Internal Medicine, Hospital de Especialidades del Centro Médico La Raza, Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social, Mexico D.F.
Diabetes Care. 1988 Jan;11(1):63-6. doi: 10.2337/diacare.11.1.63.
To assess the hypoglycemic effect of the nopal Opuntia streptacantha Lemaire (O. streptacantha Lem.), three groups of patients with non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM) were studied. Group one (16 patients) ingested 500 g of broiled nopal stems. Group 2 (10 patients) received only 400 ml of water as a control test. Three tests were performed on group 3 (6 patients): one with nopal, a second with water, and a third with ingestion of 500 g broiled squash. Serum glucose and insulin levels were measured at 0, 60, 120, and 180 min. After the intake of O. streptacantha Lem., serum glucose and serum insulin levels decreased significantly in groups 1 and 3, whereas no similar changes were noticed in group 2. The mean reduction of glucose reached 17.6 +/- 2.2% of basal values at 180 min in group 1 and 16.2 +/- 1.8% in group 3; the reduction of serum insulin at 180 min reached 50.2 +/- 8.0% in group 1 and 40.3 +/- 12.4% in group 3. This study shows that the stems of O. streptacantha Lem. cause a hypoglycemic effect in patients with NIDDM. The mechanism of this effect is unknown, but an increased insulin sensitivity is suggested.
为评估仙人掌（仙人掌科仙人掌属植物莱氏仙人掌）的降血糖作用，对三组非胰岛素依赖型糖尿病（NIDDM）患者进行了研究。第一组（16例患者）摄入500克烤制的仙人掌茎。第二组（10例患者）仅饮用400毫升水作为对照试验。对第三组（6例患者）进行了三项试验：一项用仙人掌，第二项用水，第三项摄入500克烤南瓜。在0、60、120和180分钟时测量血清葡萄糖和胰岛素水平。摄入莱氏仙人掌后，第一组和第三组的血清葡萄糖和血清胰岛素水平显著下降，而第二组未观察到类似变化。在180分钟时，第一组葡萄糖平均降低至基础值的17.6±2.2%，第三组为16.2±1.8%；180分钟时血清胰岛素降低，第一组达50.2±8.0%，第三组为40.3±12.4%。本研究表明，莱氏仙人掌茎对NIDDM患者有降血糖作用。这种作用的机制尚不清楚，但提示胰岛素敏感性增加。
