the effects of ginger on fasting blood sugar, hemoglobin a1c, apolipoprotein b, apolipoprotein a-i and malondialdehyde in type 2 diabetic patients

diabetes mellitus is the most common endocrine disorder, causes many complications such as micro- and macro-vascular diseases. anti-diabetic, hypolipidemic and anti-oxidative properties of ginger have been noticed in several researches. the present study was conducted to investigate the effects of ginger on fasting blood sugar, hemoglobin a1c, apolipoprotein b, apolipoprotein a-i, and malondialdehyde in type 2 diabetic patients. in a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, clinical trial, a total of 41 type 2 diabetic patients randomly were assigned to ginger or placebo groups (22 in ginger group and 19 in control group), received 2 gr/day of ginger powder supplement or lactose as placebo for 12 weeks. the serum concentrations of fasting blood sugar, hemoglobin a1c, apolipoprotein b, apolipoprotein a-i and malondialdehyde were analyzed before and after the intervention. ginger supplementation significantly reduced the levels of fasting blood sugar, hemoglobin a1c, apolipoprotein b, apolipoprotein b/apolipoprotein a-i and malondialdehyde in ginger group in comparison to baseline, as well as control group, while it increased the level of apolipoprotein a-i (p<0.05). it seems that oral administration of ginger powder supplement can improves fasting blood sugar, hemoglobin a1c, apolipoprotein b, apolipoprotein a-i, apolipoprotein b/apolipoprotein a-i and malondialdehyde in type 2 diabetic patients. so it may have a role in alleviating the risk of some chronic complications of diabetes.