Endocrinologist and professor of medicine at Ladoke Akintola University of Technology (LAUTECH), Professor Michael Olamoyegun, has stated that he is working on a combination of two readily available medicinal plants as a potential complementary alternative medicine in the management of diabetes.

The consultant physician and diabetologist at LAUTECH Teaching Hospital, Ogbomoso, stated this in an interview while speaking about his work and research on diabetes.

Professor Olamoyegun said many plants in the country are medicinal and their bioactive compounds have been identified, isolated and characterised, and their functional activities are well proven.

The professor, who is also a pharmacologist and a public health expert, further said that the results of their research into herbal alternative medicine in the management of diabetes are encouraging.

He stated that there are already preliminary findings concerning the efficacy of many of these medicinal plants that have been done in animals with excellent results and that subsequent steps including clinical trials and production will require significant financial support and equipment.

“Some of these our plants have been taken abroad, converted to tablets, and now sent to us to buy as drugs. A good example is Vernonia amygalina (bitter leaf) which is sold as medication for many disease conditions,” he added.
He said the research will also aid the discovery of other drugs that will help manage diabetes from the numerous medicinal plants available in Nigeria.

“We have to look inward for indigenous ways to manage diabetes and other medical conditions,” he said.
The don revealed that he is a member of a nanotechnology research group at LAUTECH, one of the foremost research groups at the university.

“The members of this group have worked on the use of different plants for industrial, pharmaceutical, and medical uses, among other important uses,” he said.

On how their research will impact diabetes studies and treatment in Nigeria and beyond, he emphasised that the adoption of local production of diabetic medications from the available medicinal plants will significantly reduce the cost of managing diabetes, ensure that more people can afford their treatment, and can lead to the reduction of diabetes-related complications and death.

“It will also help conserve the much-needed foreign exchange used to import these medications,” he added.

However, he stated that the research requires financial assistance to execute and that grants from the government or other sponsors will assist with its progress.

He further stated that the research will also require collaboration between university and industry, adding, “It is high time the government ─ federal and states ─ set aside funds yearly specifically for research as it is done in many climes.”