Mango fruit improves blood sugar balance

Posted on Wed, 8 Oct 14

In the case you wanted an excuse to enjoy a mango, a new study suggests that these delicious tropical fruits may help improve your blood sugar.

A research group from the Department of Nutritional Sciences at Oklahoma State University previously found that mango (Mangifera indica L.) fruit pulp improved body weight and blood glucose and lipid profile in mice fed a high-fat diet. They then went on to test the effects of mango in a group of obese people to see if it would help.

In a small pilot study 20 obese adults (11 males and 9 females) received 10 g per day of ground freeze-dried mango pulp (equivalent to about 1/2 a fresh mango fruit or 100 g) for 12-weeks. After the 12-weeks, mango supplementation had significantly reduced blood glucose in both male and female participants. However, there were no significant changes in body weight or composition in either gender.

“Our findings indicate that regular consumption of freeze-dried mango by obese individuals does not negatively impact body weight but provides a positive effect on fasting blood glucose,” concluded the investigators.

Mango is a rich dietary source of phytonutrients including carot­enoids, vitamin C, fiber, and flavonoids. Mangoes are also a source of mangiferin a phytonutrient unique to mangoes that has anti-diabetic effects and may help explain the beneficial effects of mango on blood glucose.

Reference:

Evans SF, Meister M, Mahmood M, et al. Mango supplementation improves blood glucose in obese individuals. Nutr Metab Insights. 2014 Aug 28;7:77-84.