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Review
. 2023 Nov 14;18(1):151.
doi: 10.1186/s13020-023-00854-1.

Non-drug interventions of traditional Chinese medicine in preventing type 2 diabetes: a review

Jingying Liu  1 , Chun Yao  2 , Yitao Wang  1 , Jinmin Zhao  3 , Hua Luo  4   5
Affiliations
Review

Non-drug interventions of traditional Chinese medicine in preventing type 2 diabetes: a review

Jingying Liu et al. Chin Med. .

Abstract

Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is increasingly used to manage type 2 diabetes and its nonpharmacological interventions are showing potential for preventing type 2 diabetes. This study mainly reviews relevant research. The most mentioned non-drug treatments for preventing type 2 diabetes in TCM are healthy diet, physical activity, emotional therapy, and acupuncture. In most studies, blood glucose status in patients with prediabetes and type 2 diabetes was significantly improved after TCM non-drug interventions, and there was no significant difference between the adverse effect of TCM and control groups or other intervention groups, while the methodological quality of the clinical trials involving TCM generally kept a low level. The effectiveness of TCM in preventing type 2 diabetes has yet to be validated in large randomized controlled trials and the underlying mechanism also needs further exploration.

Keywords: Nonpharmacological intervention; Prevention; Traditional Chinese medicine; Type 2 diabetes.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare they have no competing interest.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
11 defects contributing to hyperglycemia
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Non-drug interventions for preventing type 2 diabetes
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Benefits of non-drug TCM intervention
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
Main possible mechanism of non-drug TCM intervention
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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