In your current issue there was a brief article (page109)about the benefits of mulberry leaf tea to diabetics. This seems worth investigating, but I have been unable to find further info/sources. Please advise.

-- Dorothy Rogers (BlsMonica@aol.com), December 27, 2000

Answers

Try the local health food store; and the trees aren't fussy at all, it seems. My folks have three of them in their yard. The berries make a good jam, esp. when blended with gooseberries! Only downside-- the birds LOVE the berries, too--then pass purple-red frui thru their system JUST as they go past a laundry line of white sheets and dish towels...UCCCCK!!!!

-- Leann Banta (thelionandlamb@hotmail.com), December 27, 2000.

Dorothy, your post got my curiosity up and I took a trip with my search engine. This article agrees with what you said about mulberry tea and diabetics:

Mulberry Leaves Effective against Diabetes

Recent research has revealed that mulberry leaves - a food for silkworms - may be effective in preventing human diabetes, as they are said to suppress the intestinal absorption of sugar.

Some movements to revitalize towns have given attention to the powers of the mulberry leaf, including the sale of mulberry leaf tea and bread made with mulberry leaves. Some medical institutions have also begun to use mulberry leaves to prevent the onset of diabetes.

The roots and leaves of the mulberry tree have long been used in Chinese medicine as a diuretic and cough suppressant, and in the region where the silkworm culture flourished people customarily drank tea made from boiling mulberry leaves, but the pharmacological effects have not been understood in any detail until recently.

Shuji Sato, chief of the Department of Food and Medical Science at the Kanagawa Prefectural Public Health Laboratory, and specialist researcher Chieko Miyahara investigated the effects of mulberry using rats that are genetically predisposed to diabetes. As expected, the rats that did not have powdered mulberry leaves added to their feed contracted diabetes. The blood glucose levels did not rise significantly for the rats in the two groups, which were given feed containing 2.5% and 5.0% powdered mulberry leaves, respectively. The rats that did not eat the mulberry leaves had poor secretions of blood glucose-lowering insulin, but insulin secretions were favorable in the rats that ate the mulberry leaves. Rats that were given mulberry leaf extract had a suppressed adiposity of triglycerides to the liver, even though they were given excess amounts of sugar, and the effect seemed to prevent the development of a fatty liver.

Sagamihara City, Kanagawa, an area where comparatively large numbers of mulberry producers remain, noticed the benefits of mulberry leaves, and this May farmers and businesses participated in establishment of the Sagami Mulberry Tea Federation Conference and began selling Sagami Mulberry Tea, a product made solely from mulberry leaves. They also sell capsules of powdered mulberry. Besides mulberry tea, businesses in Sagamihara City are manufacturing, bread and udon noodles made with powdered mulberry leaves and beer that contains mulberry leaf extracts, on an experimental basis. The movement, known informally as "town revival using the mulberry," seems likely to spread to mulberry producing areas in other prefectures.

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The only place I found where you could order it was in Thailand!! I did find this place in California, but I'm not sure if it's what you want:

http://www.happycookers.com/store.www/products/divulge/M1679.html

-- ~Rogo (rogo2020@yahoo.com), December 28, 2000.

Hello -- i found this an interesting subject as well since a friend's son is rather badly diabetic at only 10, and it runs on both sides of my family. I've been kicking around the web on this one and found this: http://ats-sea.agr.ca/public/htmldocs/e0087.htm#Mulberry Leaves Effective against Diabetes This is a little bit more about the use and the studies with rats.

These two have to do with sources for it. I have also been able to find a source for Mulberry bark (bulk),but I do not know if that is helpful -- my books say it is good for high blood pressure and toothache. I think that you want to specify that you are looking for Black Mulberry leaf (Morus nigra) in searching, rather than white (Morus alba), as that is the one that was specifically noted for diabetes.

http://members.aol.com/liuxw/cbclean_tea.html

http://www.herbalist-alchemist.com/chinese1.htm

-- Julie Froelich (firefly1@nnex.net), January 01, 2001.

Hi Dorothy, you might try Frontier Natural Products Co-op, 1-800-669- 3275, they have most everthing, or can get it for you, although you have to join the co-op to purchase things. It only costs 10 dollars to join, and then you get to purchase at wholesale cost, not retail, a BIG savings, and they ship within 3 days most anywhere in the country, they are great people. Good luck!

-- Annie Miller in SE OH (annie@1st.net), January 02, 2001.

I just posted this on the current thread on the board about dealing with diabetes, however, since this was somewhat related, and in the hopes of keeping information in pertinent threads in the archive, I'll add it here too. My sister just gave me this info. I haven't checked into it myself, but for those wanting to pursue it and do a 'grow your own' thing, this may be helpful too.

http://www.beanpodtea.com/index.htm Beanpod Tea is an all natural, mild and pleasant tasting tea which is very beneficial for diabetics. This tea is a natural detox tea that detoxifies the pancreas and other related organs. Beanpod Tea is comprised of a combination of the pods of kidney, white, navy, great northern and baby lima beans. Beanpod Tea contains the following amino acids: tyrosine, trytophan, arginine plus the B vitamin choline and the enzyme betaine *************************************

-- Julie Froelich (firefly1@nnex.net), February 17, 2001.

I found a supplier of mulberry leaf tea and other herbals. Unfortunately, it seems to be a wholesaler. They have a minimum order of 12 boxes. And you need an EIN number to get wholesale prices. http://www.healthkingenterprise.com/ Check under Products, then Sugar Control tea.

-- Joy F (So.Central Wisconsin) (CatFlunky@excite.com), February 18, 2001.

We are a new Teacompany and like to introduce also the Green Mulberry Tea to you. More more details please see our internet-page and shop : http://www.sang-jan.com . Best regards - Stephan

-- Stephan Heynert (info@sang-jan.com), April 18, 2001.