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Pycnogenol for high blood sugar and diabetes

Pycnogenol offers help in managing high blood sugar and diabetes complications

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Diabetes mellitus, often just called diabetes, is a group of chronic metabolic disorders, mainly characterised by high blood sugar levels (1). Worldwide, around 830 million people suffer from diabetes, with rising prevalence, especially in developing economies (2). Particularly in India, an epidemiology of diabetes has been called “a ticking time bomb” for over a decade with doubling numbers since 2010 (3, 4). A recent study estimates that over 100 million people in India, almost 12 per cent of the country’s population, are living with diabetes – a number that exceeds previous estimations considerably (5).

The most common type of diabetes mellitus is type 2 diabetes with over 95 per cent of all diabetics affected. People with type 2 diabetes have developed insulin resistance, often combined with a later-onset reduced insulin secretion (1). Insulin acts like a key, allowing glucose (sugar) from the bloodstream to enter cells throughout the body. Insulin is essential for preventing blood sugar levels from becoming too high (hyperglycemia), which can be very dangerous. In most cases, type 2 diabetes develops due to lifestyle factors like poor diet, obesity, stress and lack of physical activity. Diabetes can cause many health problems, like eye, kidney and cardiovascular diseases (1). In fact, with 6 per cent of global death attribution, high blood sugar/diabetes is one of the main cardiovascular risk factors and among the top 10 leading causes of death worldwide, accounting for over 1.6 million deaths directly and another half million indirectly in 2022 (2, 6).

Pycnogenol French maritime pine bark extract as part of a healthier lifestyle contributes to the reduction of high blood sugar levels (7-13) and diabetes complications (8, 10, 14-30), such as diabetic retinopathy, cardiovascular and kidney health conditions, diabetic ulcers or erectile dysfunction.

Normalised blood glucose

An ever-increasing number of clinical studies demonstrates the efficacy of Pycnogenol to lower high blood sugar (7-13).

In a clinical study, fasting blood glucose in the morning as well as blood glucose after meals of 30 subjects with type 2 diabetes was reduced with Pycnogenol in a dose-dependent manner (7). Subjects doubled their Pycnogenol intake every 3 weeks from 50 mg to 200 mg per day. Fasting blood glucose was reduced by 5.3 per cent with the lowest dosage, by 10 per cent with the medium dosage and by 13.3 per cent with the highest dosage of Pycnogenol. A similar trend was observed regarding blood glucose after meals. The long-term marker of blood sugar levels (glycated hemoglobin) continuously decreased by 8 per cent over the course of the 3-month study. Throughout the study, Pycnogenol intake did not affect insulin levels.

In another 3-month study, Pycnogenol supplementation was shown to lower fasting blood sugar levels by 16.7 per cent, which was significant compared to the placebo group (-3.8 per cent) (8).

The anti-diabetic effects of Pycnogenol were further investigated in another double-blind, placebo-controlled study, in which Pycnogenol was shown to lower blood glucose levels significantly compared to baseline by 16.1 per cent, while patients in the placebo group showed a blood glucose reduction by 9.3 per cent (9).

Another study involved 130 individuals with metabolic syndrome, a pre-diabetic condition characterised by elevated blood sugar levels, high blood cholesterol, high blood pressure and obesity (10). All subjects followed a management plan that comprised healthy food and moderate exercises. Half of the patients took Pycnogenol in addition to the program. Pycnogenol was shown to reduce key cardiovascular risk factors, including a 20 per cent decrease in elevated blood sugar levels compared to baseline and a 12 per centreduction compared to the control group.

A similar study with 38 obese women showed that Pycnogenol intake reduced metabolic syndrome risk and lowered fasting blood sugar levels by 11.5 per cent after 2 months, while in the placebo subjects it was reduced by only 2.7 per cent (11).

70 peri-menopausal women took part in an 8-week study investigating Pycnogenols effects on cardiovascular risk factors (12). Pyncogenol intake normalised most cardiovascular risk factors compared to the control group that only made healthy lifestyle changes such as regular sleep, a healthier diet and moderate exercises. In this study, fasting blood sugar was reduced by 8.9 per cent with Pycnogenol and by 1.8 per cent in the control group.

A possible mechanism to understand how Pycnogenol contributes to lower glucose blood levels is that sugar absorption was slowed down in patients supplemented with Pycnogenol by inhibition of α-glucosidase, the enzyme that disassembles starch (13).

Ameliorated diabetic microangiopathy by improved microcirculation

Diabetic microangiopathy, the impairment of microcirculation, is one of the main reasons for most complications of diabetes and is described by the abnormal growth and leakage of small blood vessels, resulting in local edema and functional impairment of tissues (32).

Pycnogenol has been shown to improve the microcirculation perfusion system in several studies (16-19, 33, 34). Patients with diabetic microangiopathy, who took Pycnogenol for six weeks, had better oxygenised tissues, whereas the tissue carbon dioxide levels were decreased compared with control patients, indicating better perfusion of the tissue (17). This helped heal diabetic ulcers on the subjects’ legs faster than in the control group. 

Healthy microcirculation is tightly connected to vascular permeability and capillary filtration. Another measure for capillary leaking is the rate of ankle swelling, which was significantly reduced after supplementation with Pycnogenol in subjects with diabetic microangiopathy (18).

Muscular cramps and pain are common in diabetes patients, as these discomforts are due to local microcirculatory disorders. Subjects with diabetic microangiopathy had a significant decrease in cramp severity and occurrence after taking Pycnogenol for four weeks (19).

A recent study confirmed that Pycnogenol improved microcirculation in people with diabetes and who suffer from chronic vein insufficiency (CVI) (20). As they have similar risk factors, oftentimes these two debilitating diseases affect the same individuals. After eight weeks, not only microcirculatory parameters improved but also clinical symptoms of CVI in subjects taking Pycnogenol.

 

Improved diabetic retinopathy 

Diabetic retinopathy is a very serious microvascular condition and the most common ocular complication in diabetics with approx. 40-45 per cent of diabetic people affected (1, 31). It is caused by high blood sugar (hyperglycemia) and high blood pressure (hypertension). These conditions lead to increased oxidative stress levels, which damage the retina, the light-sensitive, innermost tissue layer in the eye. Retinopathy progresses mostly without symptoms in the first stage. But if left untreated or even undiagnosed, diabetic retinopathy can eventually lead to microvascular damage and retinal dysfunction. In the worst case, these physiological changes can cause blindness by neovascularisation in the retina (the growth of new capillaries to compensate for the lack of oxygen in the retina, which interfere with normal vision) and maculopathy (macular edema from leaking microaneurysms) (31). Thus, regular screening by an ophthalmologist and healthy lifestyle management including potent antioxidants are very important for subjects with diabetes.

Pycnogenol showed beneficial effects against progression of retinopathy and ameliorated the eyesight of diabetics by stabilising leaky capillaries of the retina, limiting further outflow of blood (14-16).

In a, double-blind, placebo-controlled and randomised study, Pycnogenol was shown to reduce capillary leaking by decreasing the permeability of fine blood vessels by 16 per cent and 23 per cent for left and right eye respectively compared to baseline (14). Retinal vascularisation and the presence of macular edema was assessed by ophthalmoscopy, determining the severity of the retinal damage. Pycnogenol supplementation was shown to significantly ameliorate the ophthalmoscopy score by 9 per cent (left eye) and 17 per cent (right eye) compared to baseline, whereas there was no change observed in the placebo group. Furthermore, Pycnogenol intake increased visual acuity by 5.7 per cent (left eye) and 7 per cent (right eye), assessed by the Snellen Chart. With placebo, retinopathy continued to progress as did the visual acuity that was reduced by 3.2 per cent (left) and 7.5 per cent (right).

Four studies on the effects of Pycnogenol on diabetic retinopathy, including 1249 patients in total, showed that Pycnogenol supplementation slows down the progression of retinopathy and partly improves visual acuity (15).

Another study showed that Pycnogenol reduced retinal edema, improved microcirculation and visual acuity in early diabetic retinopathy (16). The authors found statistically significant improvements of the retinal edema score by 30 per cent in mild edema cases and by 35 per cent in moderate edema cases compared to control patients after 3 months of Pycnogenol supplementation. The retinal thickness, assessed by high resolution ultrasound, significantly decreased by 11 per cent in mild cases and by 25 per cent in moderate cases. The most significant outcome observed in this study was the improvement of the visual acuity of 21 per cent in Pycnogenol patients compared to baseline and control patients, which was assessed with the Snellen chart. Furthermore, the retinal blood flow increased by around 30 per cent with Pycnogenol supplementation. This study suggests that Pycnogenol improves microcirculation by counteracting enhanced capillary filtration and capillary leaking. 

Pycnogenol’s vascular benefits, supporting impaired capillary integrity and function, can help people suffering from diabetic retinopathy.

Capillary filtration was shown to be significantly improved with Pycnogenol which leads to better perfusion of retinal tissue and thereby helps to restore vision loss in diabetic retinopathy patients.

Reduced diabetes complications

Besides retinopathy, diabetes can lead to multiple severe health complications, due to widespread damaged blood vessels (2). In patients with diabetes mellitus, cardiovascular diseases are the leading cause of morbidity and mortality (1). Chronically elevated blood sugar levels contribute to endothelial dysfunction. The endothelium is the inner lining of blood vessels, plays a crucial role in many physiological functions, like regulating blood pressure by vasoconstriction and -dilation, controlling the exchange of substances between blood and tissues, preventing blood clot formation, and signaling during inflammation.

One of the key properties of Pycnogenol is its beneficial effect on endothelial health (8, 21-25). In patients with coronary artery disease, the effect of Pycnogenol on endothelial function was assessed (23). This 8-week randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled cross-over study showed that endothelial function was improved by 32 per cent in the Pycnogenol group, whereas it slightly decreased in the placebo group.

In another double-blind, placebo-controlled study reported similar effects in hypertensive patients with type II diabetes, taking an anti-hypertensive drug together with Pycnogenol for 3 months (8). In this study, blood levels of endothelin-1, a critical regulator of vascular function responsible for vasoconstriction, decreased by 17.8 per cent compared with scarcely any change in placebo patients, indicating improved endothelial function.

A third placebo-controlled 12-week study with hypertensive patients, taking anti-hypertensive drugs, showed clear indications of improved endothelial function after Pycnogenol intake by lowering the same blood-vessel-narrowing molecule by 20 per cent (24). In borderline hypertensive, hyperlipidemic and hyperglycemic patients, endothelial function significantly improved after 8 and 12 weeks of Pycnogenol supplementation (25). These studies confirm the beneficial effects of Pycnogenol on endothelial function in patients with cardiovascular diseases.

Improved endothelial function with Pycnogenol leads to improved ability of the vessels to relax when needed, which in turn helps to normalise elevated blood pressure (8, 24, 26, 27). This beneficial effect of Pycnogenol was investigated in a double-blind, placebo-controlled study in type II diabetic patients medicated with an ACE inhibitor (anti-hypertensive medication) (8). Every two weeks during the 12-week study, the individual anti-hypertensive drug dosage was adjusted so that a blood pressure below 130 mmHg was achieved. After 12 weeks 58.3 per cent of the patients taking Pycnogenol were able to cut the dose of their individual hypotensive medication in half. In the placebo group, only 20.8 per cent of the patients could reduce their ACE inhibitor medication to keep their blood pressure in a healthy range. At the same time, the diabetic study participants taking Pycnogenol had significantly lower blood sugar levels than the placebo subjects.

In addition, Pycnogenol was found to have beneficial effects on the blood lipid profile, a key cardiovascular risk factor by lowering LDL cholesterol and increasing HDL cholesterol (8, 10, 29, 30).

Damaged blood vessels due to high blood sugar also commonly affects kidney health if diabetes is not managed well. Pycnogenol has been shown to have diabetes-specific beneficial effects for kidney health which was demonstrated in two studies (27, 28). One study included overweight subjects with metabolic syndrome, including elevated blood sugar and blood pressure, as well as impaired kidney function. Glycated hemoglobin, a long-term blood sugar marker, decreased significantly in the participants, taking Pycnogenol over six months (27). In addition, the amount of albumin that was excreted with the urine – a marker of kidney dysfunction – was significantly decreased with Pycnogenol compared to the control group.

In another study, subjects with diabetic nephropathy (kidney disease) experienced a decrease in blood sugar levels and showed reduced oxidative damage after Pycnogenol intake for 3 months (28).

Furthermore, Pycnogenol has been shown to have beneficial effects for diabetic erectile dysfunction (29). Erectile dysfunction is more common in people with diabetes due to compromised blood vessels and nerves. Men with diabetes and erectile dysfunction had a significantly improved sexual function after taking Pycnogenol for one month and continued to improve over three months, compared to baseline and placebo (29). Their blood glucose and LDL-cholesterol levels were also significantly reduced already after one month of Pycnogenol intake.

Pycnogenol French maritime pine bark extract is a safe, natural and evidence-based solution for high blood sugar and diabetes symptoms. Pycnogenol has potent effects to improve diabetes-related health conditions, like symptoms of diabetic retinopathy, cardiovascular and kidney health, diabetic ulcers and erectile dysfunction. For more information, please visit www.pycnogenol.com .

 

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