Villegas, Kimberly C.

2013-04760
UP Diliman
Charantia Herbal Tea Capsule (Ampalaya Supplement)
Based on the set of information gathered, it can be concluded that Charantia Herbal Tea of the
Herbacare Corporation is a safe and potentially helpful adjunct to type-2 diabetic patients diet. It is the
very first Ampalaya herbal tea approved by the Food and Drug Administration (then Bureu of Food and
Drugs) in 2007 as ideal for diabetics special dietary needs and was recognized by the Association of
Municipal Health Officers of the Philippines as an effective food supplement for diabetis on October
2001. Consumers can also assure safe consumption because a clinical trial of Charantia concluded that it
has no effect on blood pressure and is well- tolerated and safe with minor gastrointestinal side effects of
increased bowel frequency.
Charantia claims to be made up of 100% fruits and seeds of Mormodica charantia (Bitter Melon
or Ampalaya) which had been proven by a study conducted by Pesupa Khanna, S. C. Jain, A. Pangaria
and V. P. Dixit on 1981to be a good source of Polypeptide-p which is a very effective hypoglycemic
agent when administered subcutaneously to humans. Moreover, on his article on Manila Bulletin last May
2012, Dr. Eduardo Gonzales of De La Salle Universitys College of Medicine reiterated the 10-year study
conducted by the Philippines Council for Health Research Development (PCHRD) that compared
ampalaya leaves with the anti-diabetes drug Glibenclamide. The results of the trial showed that the blood
sugar lowering effect of a 100 milligram per kilo dose per day of ampalaya is comparable to 2.5
milligrams of the anti-diabetes drug Glibenclamide taken twice a day.
However, he made it clear that Ampalaya cannot cure diabetes, but it can help control the
disease. He also wrote that clinical studies on the sugar lowering effect of ampalaya have so far been
limited to its leaves either eaten as food or in the form of tablets, capsules and teas and there are no
conclusive studies on the effect of the fruits and roots yet. Consumers may also realize that processes
which the Ampalaya would undergo to produce the Charantia herbal tea may diminish, alter, or remove
its medicinal properties. But that was falsified by a clinical trial conducted by independent diabetologists.
The result which was published in the July-August 2001 issue of the Philippine Journal of Internal
Medicine concludes that Ampalaya fruits and seeds prepared as a tea can be useful dietary adjunct in the
treatment of diabetes. Thus, although the raw material undergoes dehydration process to produce the
Charantia, it maintains the ampalayas key anti-diabetic compounds.