The
International Knowledge Sharing Platform states that there are many okra uses,
as it’s an economically important vegetable crop because its fresh leaves,
buds, flowers, pods, stems and seeds have value. Okra may support improvement
in cardiovascular and CAD, type 2 diabetes, digestive diseases and even some
cancers. Okra is also abundant in several vitamins and minerals, including
thiamin, vitamin B6, vitamin B2, folic acid, riboflavin, zinc and dietary
fiber.
Study design: Single blind placebo controlled study.
Place and duration of study: National hospital Lahore from
January to June 2017.
Materials and method: Written consent was taken from
all patients. This consent was already approved by ETHICS COMMITTEE of the
hospital. These patients were divided in two groups. Group I (n=30) was on
placebo (capsules containing grinded wheat shell only) and Group II (n=30) was
advised to take 200 g raw ladyfinger in divided doses for three months.
Baseline fasting blood sugar (FBS) and lipid profile was determined at day 0,
day 30, day 60 and at the end of research period, i.e.; day 90. Serum
LDL-cholesterol was calculated by Friedwald formula (LDL-Cholesterol=Total
Cholesterol-(Triglycerides/5+HDL-Cholesterol). Glucometer made by Roch pharma
serial No: CE 0123 was used for estimation of FBS.
Results: For statistical analysis SPSS version 2010
was used. SD and ± SEM was determined from mean of the pre and post treatment
values. Paired ‘t’ test was applied to see p-value of the tested parameters.
P-value>0.05 was considered as non-significant change, <0.01 as
significant and <0.001 as highly significant change in the tested parameter.
Conclusion: It was concluded from the research study
that lady fingers or Okra can reduce LDL cholesterol and Fasting Blood Sugar (FBS)
of patient suffering from DMtype-2 and hyperlipidemia significantly when this
vegetable is used for specific time period.
Keywords: Okra, Hypolipidemic agent, Cardiovascular,
Lipid profile, Cholesterol, Fasting blood sugar
INTRODUCTION
The main risk associated with high
cholesterol is coronary heart disease (CHD). Your blood cholesterol level has a
lot to do with your chances of getting heart disease. If your cholesterol is
too high, it builds up on the walls of your arteries. Over time, this buildup
is known as atherosclerosis. This condition causes arteries to become narrowed,
and the narrowed blood vessels reduce blood flow to the heart. This can result
in angina (chest pain) from not enough blood flow getting to the heart or a
heart attack in cases when a blood vessel is blocked completely and the heart
muscle begins to die. Metabolic syndrome is a cluster of conditions, i.e.;
increased blood pressure, high blood sugar, excess body fat
MATERIALS AND METHOD
In this study Bhindi or ladyfinger was used
along with placebo to see exact potential of the herb to normalize increased
blood glucose and lipids levels. The study was conducted in National hospital
Lahore from January to June 2017. 60 patients suffering from diabetes mellitus
type-II and secondary hyperlipidemia were selected from medical OPD of the
hospital. Written consent was taken from all patients. This consent was already
approved by ETHICS COMMITTEE of the hospital. These patients were divided in
two groups. Group I (n=30) was on placebo (capsules containing grinded wheat
shell only) and Group II (n=30) was advised to take 200 g raw lady finger in
divided doses for three months. Baseline fasting blood sugar (FBS) and lipid
profile was determined at day 0, day 30, day 60 and at the end of research
period, i.e.; day 90. Serum LDL-cholesterol was calculated by Friedwald formula
[10] (LDL-Cholesterol=Total Cholesterol-(Triglycerides/5+HDL-Cholesterol).
Glucometer made by Roch pharma serial No: CE 0123 was used for estimation of
FBS. For statistical analysis SPSS version 2010 was used. SD and ± SEM was
determined from mean of the pre and post treatment values. Paired ‘t’ test was
applied to see p-value of the tested parameters. P-value>0.05 was considered
as non-significant change, <0.01 as significant and <0.001 as highly
significant change in the tested parameter.
RESULTS
After three months it was observed that lady
finger reduced blood LDL-cholesterol from 209.13 ± 2.22 mg/dl to 183.09 ± 1.58
mg/dl. Difference in pre and post treatment was 26.04 mg/dl (p-value<0.001).
FBS in 27 diabetic patients suffering from DM type-II was reduced from 166.61 ±
3.09 mg/dl to 149.98 ± 1.76 mg/dl. Difference in pre and post treatment values
was 16.63 mg/dl (p-value<0.01) (Table
1).
DISCUSSION
Type 2 diabetes is another disease linked to
high cholesterol because diabetes can affect the different cholesterol levels.
Even if blood sugar control is good, people with diabetes tend to have
increased triglycerides, decreased high-density lipoprotein (HDL) and sometimes
increased low-density lipoprotein (LDL). This increases the likelihood of
developing atherosclerosis. Cholesterol lowering drugs and drugs used in
diabetes mellitus has proved to have adverse effects; medical researchers are
trying to conduct trials of medicinal herbs for hyperglycemia and
hyperlipidemia. We used lady finger to see their lipid and blood glucose
lowering effects. In our results 90 days treatment with use of 200 g raw lady
finger reduced LDL-cholesterol in 27 patients 26.04 mg/dl. In these patients
fasting blood sugar reduced 16.63 mg/dl. These results match with results
obtained in trial conducted by John et al. [11] who observed almost same
results which support our results. Mackhil et al. [12], Johay et al. [13] and
Surta et al. [14] mentioned the mechanism of action of lady fingers to reduce
LDL-cholesterol that the herb reduces enterohepatic circulation of bile salts
so VLDL are not synthesized and so the LDL. Jittkaal et al. [15] mentioned the
antioxidant effects of ladyfingers. Polyphenolic compound like quercetin
present in lady fingers prevent oxidation of cholesterol. Gurhu et al. [16]
observed lesser hypolipidemic effects of ladyfingers as their results proved
16.98 mg/dl reduction in LDL-cholesterol in 19 hyperlipidemic patients. This
contrast may be due to lesser amount of herb used as they used 100 g raw
ladyfinger in 25 hyperlipidemic patients for 75 days. Our results proved 16.63
mg/dl reduction in fasting blood glucose (FBS) level when lady finger was used
by 27 diabetic patients suffering from diabetes mellitus type-II. These results
match with results of study conducted by Rochee et al. [17] who proved 18.76
mg/dl reduction in FBS level when this herb was used (150 g/day for two months)
by 56 patients suffering from diabetes mellitus type-II. Okra being rich in
fibres helps to normalize the blood sugar; it absorbs the excessive glucose
from blood and balances the level [18-20]. Fornh et al. [21] stated that
ladyfinger is used to treat cystitis, leucorrhea, impotence and premature
ejaculation in male. Saty et al. [22] explained that as ladyfinger is
anti-inflammatory herb, it reduces risk of synthesis of foamy cells during
development of atherosclerotic plaques in early stages. Sharma et al. [23]
wrote that the herb reduces FBS by various mechanisms; enterohepatic
circulation inhibition is one of them. Dosata et al. [24] warned the use of the
herb for prolonged time may cause acidity. Therefore antacids may not be used
by individuals who are already taking ladyfinger as medicinal purpose for
specific time. Inhibition of carbohydrate metabolizing enzymes, enhancement of
insulin sensitivity, regeneration of damaged pancreatic islet β-cells and
enhancement of insulin secretion and release is explained by Turtr et al. [25].
CONCLUSION
It was then concluded from the trial that
ladyfinger has significant hypolipidemic and hypoglycemic potential and may be
used in diabetic and hyperlipidemic patients safely.
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
We all researchers of the study acknowledge
efforts and financial help for the study by Roch Pharmaceuticals, Lahore
Division.
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