How cowpea seed oil improves diabetes complications.

Guardian. Lagos, Nigeria. 19.4.12

 

There is no cure yet for diabetes. This degenerative disease comes with so many complications if not properly managed such as kidney failure, erectile dysfunction in men, diabetic leg ulcer, blindness, loss of memory, heart failure, stroke, among others. But researchers have found out that eating meals rich in cowpea could improve the complications of diabetes. CHUKWUMA MUANYA writes.
DIABETES mellitus is a chronic metabolic disorder, which involves disturbances in the metabolism of carbohydrate, fat and protein, and characterised by hyperglycemia (high blood glucose level), abnormalities of lipoprotein, defect in reactive oxygen specific scavenging enzymes, altered intermediary metabolism of major food substances and raised basal metabolic rate.
There are several drugs for the treatment of diabetes but they have been shown to have prominent side effects.
But researchers have found that oral administration of cowpea seed oil produces significant hypoglycemic (blood glucose-lowering) and hypo-lipidemic (blood fat/lipid-lowering) effect, which lowers glucose level as well as total cholesterol and triglyceride (TG) and at the same time increases High Density Lipo-protein (HDL)- ‘good’ cholesterol to near normal range in alloxan-induced diabetic rats.
Commonly called cowpea (Akidi in Ibo language), Vigna unguiculata is an annual, warm season herbaceous legume. It was reported to have originated in Asia, Africa and South America.
Meanwhile, the yet to be published study by researchers from the University of Rajshahi, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University, Shahbagh and University of Science and Technology Chittagong, all in Bangladesh concluded, “this investigation reveals that cowpea/barbati seed oil has potent anti-diabetic and hypo-lipidemic effects in alloxan-induced diabetic rats.”
The study is titled: “Vigna unguiculata linn. Walp. Seed oil exhibits anti-diabetic effects in alloxan induced diabetic rats.”
However, another study published in Journal of Medicinal Food reported inability of legumes to reverse diabetic-induced nephropathy in rats despite improvement in blood glucose and antioxidant status.
The researchers from the Department of Biochemistry, University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, Ogun State, concluded, “while the legumes have beneficial effects on reduction of hyperglycemia and strengthening the antioxidant status of the diabetic animals, the increased kidney uric acid concentration should be of concern.”