A review on diabetes mellitus: complications, synthetic anti-diabetic agents and herbal treatment

Abstract

Background Diabetes mellitus is a metabolic disorder with multiple symptoms and complications. The management of these conditions involve the use of synthetic anti-diabetic agents, natural products and medicinal plants. Synthetic anti-diabetic agents are associated with side effects whereas medicinal plants have minimal side effects and are less expensive. The aim of this work is to highlight various (i) complications associated with diabetes (ii) synthetic anti-diabetic agents used for treatment (iii) medicinal plants as anti-diabetic agents. Methods Electronic databases such as Web of Science, Google Scholar, Science Direct, Springer, Pub Med, Medline and Scopus were searched to identify complications linked with diabetes, synthetic anti-diabetic agents, and herbs used in the management of diabetes mellitus. Results The present article is an updated review of the published literature on types of diabetes and their complications, synthetic anti-diabetic drugs and medicinal herbs used for management of diabetes. Conclusions Given the complications associated with diabetes mellitus, a search for medicinal herbs with anti-diabetic properties will be useful in the management of this disease.