About Gymnema Sylvestre

Gymnema Sylvestre is a stout, large, woody climbing plant that grows abundantly in central and southern India and is also widely distributed throughout equatorial Africa. For centuries, particularly in India, it has been used in Ayurvedic medicine for the management of blood sugar levels and related indications.

Chewing the Gymnema Sylvestre leaves destroys the ability to discriminate the "sweet" taste, giving it its common name, gurmar, or "sugar destroyer." The leaves have the peculiar property of being able to induce temporary anesthesia of the tongue, and thus block the transfer of sugar or sweet flavors from the taste buds lining the tongue to the limbic portion ("pleasure center") of the brain.

Recent scientific studies have linked Gymnema Sylvestre to the body's ability to maintain healthy blood sugar levels by stimulating insulin secretion of the pancreas. While studies confirm Gymnema Sylvestre's role as the "sugar destroyer" because it suppresses the taste of sugar, more importantly, it has the ability to block the absorption of sugar during digestion. The primary clinical application for this botanical is as an antidiabetic agent. Gymnema Sylvestre has been the object of considerable research since the 1930s, with promising results for Types 1 and 2 diabetes. Numerous human and animal studies have confirmed the hypoglycemic effect of Gymnema Sylvestre.

Gymnema Sylvestre is contained in D-Care's Sugar Blocker product.