A native shrub plant found in the forests of India and Sri Lanka, Salacia oblonga is popular in the Ayurvedic and traditional Indian medicine for treating obesity and diabetes. The herb is thought to work similarly to oral diabetes drugs called alpha-glucosidase inhibitors, which impede the body's absorption of carbohydrates. In Japan, the extracts of this herb are used as an ingredient in foods and supplements intended to manage diabetes and obesity.

American researchers studied 66 diabetics and asked them to drink one of the following 3 high-carbohydrate liquid meal replacements after overnight fasting. This was either the meal alone along with a dose of Salacia oblonga extract, either 240 mg or 480 mg. The findings indicated that a smaller Salacia oblonga dose decreased participants' peak blood sugar response by 19 percent, while the bigger dose lowered it by 27 percent. Both doses also tempered the normal post-meal increase in insulin, a hormone that regulates blood sugar.

Thus, Salacia oblonga can be an ideal nutritional therapy for diabetes. Since patients find it tough to stick to diet restrictions, a supplement like Salacia oblonga can allow them to eat a carbohydrate rich meal without an increase in their sugar levels.