Compound or practice · Supplement
Banaba (Corosolic Acid)
A glucose-lowering leaf whose corosolic acid shows small post-meal effects in limited trials.
- Overall grade
- Grade C
- Last revised
- 1
- graded outcome
- 0
- references listed
A structured monograph in Prometheus's bundled library. Its grades are the monograph's own reading of the evidence, not a peer-reviewed review.
2 at grade C — 2 graded rows
What is known
Each outcome with its grade (how strong the evidence is, A to D), the size of the effect where the entry records one, and how often studies agree.
- Post-meal glucoseEvidence grade C
Small trials
Smallmixed
Conditions
How the entry reads its effect on diagnosed conditions: the direction first, then the grade. Never a substitute for the person who treats you.
- Type 2 diabetes / prediabetes May improveEvidence grade CAdjunctGrade C
What is uncertain
Read off the same rows as above. Nothing here is added that the entry does not itself record.
- Thin evidence: Post-meal glucose (grade C).
- Caution with Metformin: Additive glucose lowering.
Interactions
Documented pairings with supplements and medicines. A medicine on this list is a conversation for whoever prescribes it.
MetforminCaution
Additive glucose lowering.
The evidence in words
What it is
Banaba (Lagerstroemia speciosa) leaf, standardized to corosolic acid, is used for blood sugar.
How it works
Corosolic acid appears to enhance glucose uptake and insulin sensitivity.
What the evidence shows
A few small studies show reduced post-meal and fasting glucose; evidence is thin and short-term. Safe, minor.
How to use it
Standardized to ~1% corosolic acid, dosed with meals.
Safety & interactions
Generally safe; additive glucose lowering. metformin — Additive glucose lowering.
Bottom line
A minor glucose-support option with limited data. Adjunct only.
How it is used
As the entry records it, from the studies it summarises. Not a recommendation for you — doses that suit a trial population may not suit you.
- Standard
- Standardized corosolic acid with meals.
Related reading
Entries that share this one's tags or conditions.
- CinnamonA modest, inconsistent glucose helper — and a reminder that cassia cinnamon's coumarin can stress the liver at high doses.Evidence grade C
- Apple Cider VinegarThe acetic acid modestly blunts post-meal glucose — small, real, and easy to overhype.Evidence grade C
- BerberineA plant alkaloid that behaves like a metabolic drug — real glucose and lipid effects, and it deserves drug-level caution.Evidence grade B
- Gymnema SylvestreThe 'sugar destroyer' herb with modest glucose data and a genuine ability to blunt sweet taste.Evidence grade C
Sources
This entry lists no references of its own.
Last revised . A grade is this entry's reading of the evidence, not medical advice.