Abstract

Type 2 diabetes is one of the most prevalent endocrine disorders worldwide. Traditionally, herbal plants and their derivatives are used to lessen complications of type 2 diabetes. The hypoglycemic and hypolipidemic properties have been reported for vinegar, but some cases of discrepant effects were also observed. In the current study, the impact of apple vinegar on some hematological and blood biochemical factors in type 2 diabetic patients was investigated. In this trial study, sixty patients with type 2 diabetes were divided into two groups. The first group took 15 ml of vinegar with their middle meal for one month. The second group received water as placebo. At the beginning and end of the study, blood samples were collected and biochemical factors including fasting blood sugar (FBS), glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c), triglycerides (TG), total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-C), high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL-C), urea, creatinine (Cr), uric acid, aspartate transaminase (AST), alanine transaminase(ALT), alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and complete blood count (CBC) were evaluated. Findings showed that FBS (P=0.006), HbA1c (P=0.002), MCV (P=0.0001) and mean cell hemoglobin (MCH; P=0.002) decreased where platelets(PLT) (P=0.005) increased significantly in first group. There was no significant difference in the studied parameters in placebo group. Based on the results of this study, it can be concluded that vinegar is a hypoglycemic agent that can be applied for treatment of type 2 diabetes.

Key words: Vinegar, acetic acid, type 2 diabetes, fasting blood sugar (FBS), glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c).