Effects of Hydroalcoholic Nettle Extract on Insulin Sensitivity and Some Inflammatory Indicator in type 2 Diabetic Patients

Introduction & Diabetes mellitus is a common disease that almost 1.5 million people in Iran are affected, Regarding to the adverse effects of chemical drugs, the tendency to use medicinal plants, among which nettle was chosen to be studied, is growing. In this research the effect of hydroalcoholic extract of nettle on insulin sensitivity and some inflammatory factors in type II diabetic patients were studied. A blind randomized clinical trial on 50 men and women with type 2 diabetes; (mean age: 52.39±13.75) was designed to determine the aforementioned effect. Patients were randomly divided into intervention and control groups who received 100 mg/kg, Nettle extract or placebo respectively three times a day for 8 weeks. Fasting Insulin and some inflammatory factors (Interleukin-6 (IL-6), Tumor Necrosis Factor-α (TNF-α), and hsCRP (High Sensitive C-Reactive Protein) levels at the beginning and end of the study were measured. IL-6 and hsCRP showed a significant decrease (P <0.05), TNF-α, insulin sensitivity and hsCRP showed no significant change at the end of the study in the intervention group compared to the control. Statistical analysis was performed with SPSS software version 18 and P <0.05 was considered significant for all measurements. The hydroalcoholic extract of nettle showed significant decrease in IL-6 and hsCRP after 2 months of intervention in patients with type 2 diabetes.