title: Eight Weeks of Cosmos caudatus (Ulam Raja) Supplementation Improves Glycemic Status in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes: A Randomized Controlled Trial.
abstract: Objectives. Optimizing glycemic control is crucial to prevent type 2 diabetes related complications. Cosmos caudatus is reported to have promising effect in improving plasma blood glucose in an animal model. However, its impact on human remains ambiguous. This study was carried out to evaluate the effectiveness of C. caudatus on glycemic status in patients with type 2 diabetes. Materials and Methods. In this randomized controlled trial with two-arm parallel-group design, a total of 101 subjects with type 2 diabetes were randomly allocated to diabetic-ulam or diabetic controls for eight weeks. Subjects in diabetic-ulam group consumed 15 g of C. caudatus daily for eight weeks while diabetic controls abstained from taking C. caudatus. Both groups received the standard lifestyle advice. Results. After 8 weeks of supplementation, C. caudatus significantly reduced serum insulin (-1.16 versus +3.91), reduced HOMA-IR (-1.09 versus +1.34), and increased QUICKI (+0.05 versus -0.03) in diabetic-ulam group compared with the diabetic controls. HbA1C level was improved although it is not statistically significant (-0.76% versus -0.37%). C. caudatus was safe to consume. Conclusions. C. caudatus supplementation significantly improves insulin resistance and insulin sensitivity in patients with type 2 diabetes.
authors.affiliation: Department of Nutrition and Dietetics, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43300 Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia.
authors.forename: Shi-Hui
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Cheng
authors.affiliation: Department of Nutrition and Dietetics, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43300 Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia ; Research Centre of Excellence for Nutrition and Non-Communicable Diseases, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43300 Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia.
authors.forename: Amin
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ismail
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43300 Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia.
authors.forename: Joseph
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Anthony
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43300 Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia.
authors.forename: Ooi Chuan
authors.initials: OC
authors.lastname: Ng
authors.affiliation: Department of Food Science, Faculty of Food Science and Technology, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43300 Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia.
authors.forename: Azizah Abdul
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Hamid
authors.affiliation: Department of Nutrition and Dietetics, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43300 Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia ; Research Centre of Excellence for Nutrition and Non-Communicable Diseases, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43300 Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia.
authors.forename: Mohd Yusof
authors.initials: MY
authors.lastname: Barakatun-Nisak