Hypoglycemic Activity of Plant-Derived Traditional Preparations Associated with Surinamese from African, Hindustani, Javanese, and Chinese Origin: Potential Efficacy in the Management of Diabetes Mellitus

Diabetes represents one of the most frequent causes of morbidity and mortality in the world. Despite the availability of a wide range of efficacious forms of treatment, many patients use traditional (plant-derived) preparations for treating their disease. The Republic of Suriname (South America) has a relatively high prevalence of diabetes. Due to its colonial history, the Surinamese population comprises descendants of all continents, the largest groups being those from enslaved Africans and from indentured laborers from India (called Hindustanis), Indonesia (called Javanese), as well as China. All these groups have preserved their cultural customs including their ethnopharmacological traditions, and are inclined to treat their diseases with plant-based preparations, either alone or together with allopathic medications. This chapter opens with some generalities about diabetes; subsequently provides some information about the history, worldwide epidemiology, diagnosis, types, and treatment of this disorder; then focuses on Suriname, giving some information about its geography, demographics, and economy, as well as the epidemiology of diabetes in the country; then extensively evaluates eight blood-glucose-lowering plants that are mainly associated with the four largest ethnic groups in Suriname by reviewing phytochemical, mechanistic, preclinical, and clinical literature data; and concludes with a consideration of the potential clinical usefulness of the plants against diabetes