Since the start of the covid-19 pandemic, many people have opted to engage in lifestyle changes for optimum health.
These positive, healthy changes include physical exercises, a nutritious diet, weight loss, and minimizing stress levels. However, there are other means to promote health, including using prescribed health supplements, more so natural ones.
Health-related supplements may offer an alternative approach to managing one’s health better. One of the supplements is the Berberine supplement. Berberine is an alkaloid found in many plants, notably in goldenseal, barberry, Oregon grape, and goldthread. These plants have a long history of medicinal benefits that have seen them treat several health conditions.
Today’s article will explain three essential health benefits of berberine supplements.
Regulates Blood Sugar
Diabetes is a medical condition that has affected many people around the globe. According to the World Health Organization, approximately 500 million people are affected by the ailment. An estimated 2 million deaths occur annually due to disease and its subsequent complications. According to statistics, 90 percent of people have Type 2 diabetes caused by a deficient production of the insulin hormone resulting in unusual blood sugar levels.
Diabetes, being a lifestyle ailment, can be treated in a combination of ways, including fixing your diet and adopting healthy lifestyle changes. Current studies demonstrate Berberine can significantly reduce blood sugar levels in individuals with Type 2 Diabetes.
Several research studies indicate that it is a powerful compound with numerous benefits for your body. These include increased insulin sensitivity, promoting insulin production, regulating metabolism, Increased glycolysis or its breakdown, reducing glucose production in the liver, increased nitric oxide production, which helps widen arteries, and slowing down carb absorption from the gut.
Some clinical research further indicates that berberine supplements should be taken twice daily for three months at 500 mg. In the process, it can reduce glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c), fasting plasma glucose (FPG), and postprandial glucose (PPG). The good thing about Berberine supplements is that they are relatively inexpensive, making them an attractive option for many.
Berberine Lowers Cholesterol and Supports Heart Health
Aside from diabetes, another leading cause of death globally is heart disease, linked to poor and unhealthy diet, smoking, and lack of physical inactivity. Studies have shown that Berberine can help lower Cholesterol to appropriate healthy levels by up to 35 percent.
Cholesterol has been labeled as the primary culprit in many heart-related ailments. Cholesterol is divided into LDL Cholesterol and HDL Cholesterol. LDL Cholesterol is classified as bad Cholesterol that attaches to the blood vessels, raising the chances of health problems.
Berberine is thought to reduce LDL cholesterol by about 25 percent and raise HDL cholesterol levels, which is considered good Cholesterol. The body’s cholesterol level impacts hypertension, which means high blood pressure.
Results of several studies suggest that chronic administration of 100 mg/kg/day berberine can reduce an individual’s blood pressure level to healthy levels. Besides, it would be best to use Berberine with other drugs, such as amlodipine. The 4 Best Berberine Supplements of 2022 include Berbamax, Berberine HCL, Synergetic Berberine, and Solaray Berberine Root Extract.
Berberine and Digestive Gut Health
Studies have demonstrated the importance of having a healthy gut considering its connection with the rest of the body’s organs, including the brain. Your gut’s immune system is an essential contributor to various metabolic diseases. Hence it is considered a therapeutic target when treating and preventing irregular metabolic functioning of the body, such as systemic inflammation in insulin resistance.
Altering your gut immunity is caused by different issues, including changes to the gut microbiota, intestinal barrier function, gut-residing immune cells, and tolerance to antigens entering the gastrointestinal system. Such an altered state may predispose you to increase the risk for pathogenic infections and chronic inflammation, whose combination could ultimately lead to chronic disease. Most chronic illnesses today are due to an unhealthy gut, including type 2 diabetes (T2DM), which often coexists with hypertension. Thus, it has become essential to consume nutritional support supplements
So, suppose you suspect that you have an unhealthy gut or are constantly suffering from one ailment to another. In that case, it is imperative to consider taking Berberine supplements for their several benefits. First, due to its low bioavailability, Berberine can influence gut microbiota composition and metabolism by directly interacting with gut microbiota. Gut microbiota composition and metabolism that is well regulated is an integral approach to treating diseases. Second, the Berberine supplement has antimicrobial effects in the gastrointestinal tract, such as preventing small intestine bacterial overgrowth (SIBO). Finally, Berberine supplements have anti-inflammatory compounds that support the gut microbiome preventing you from developing diarrhea, irritable bowel syndrome, ulcerative colitis, and other inflammatory bowel diseases.
