In a controlled study, Canadian researchers have shown that extracts of the seed lowered blood glucose levels by 12 to 19 percent when fed to diabetic rats.

The study may lead to new uses of the grain as a dietary supplement to help diabetic people and others suffering from elevated glucose conditions, the researchers claim.

Their findings will appear in the December 3 issue of the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Chemical Society, the world's largest scientific society.

"With diabetes on the rise, incorporation of buckwheat into the diet could help provide a safe, easy and inexpensive way to lower glucose levels and reduce the risk of complications associated with the disease, including heart, nerve and kidney problems," says the study's lead author Carla G. Taylor, an associate professor in the Department of Human Nutritional Sciences at the University of Manitoba in Canada.

Until similar studies are done on humans with diabetes, no one knows exactly how much buckwheat - in flour or extract form - must be eaten in order to obtain a beneficial effect on glucose levels, Taylor says. Further studies are needed, she adds.

Source: Diabetes In Control.com: ANI.

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