Crude drugs used for the treatment of diabetes mellitus in Taiwan.

A survey of hypoglycemic effective crude drugs in the market in Taiwan revealed 24 species of crude drug prescriptions, 34 kinds of crude drugs derived from 48 species of medicinal plants belonging to 25 families, all concerned with the treatment of diabetes mellitus. This paper updates a list of anti-diabetic crude drugs used as a remedy for the treatment of diabetes mellitus in Taiwan by means of ethnobotanical and pharmacological studies. Results showed that many of these crude drugs have hypoglycemic effects. Further investigation will be made.