Diabetes UK is extremely concerned about the advertising of Karela capsules that has been drawn to our attention by healthcare professionals. We see this advertising as being misleading to people with diabetes.
The hypoglycaemic effects of Karela are well documented. It is used traditionally in Asian cookery and as a traditional medicine to lower blood glucose levels. In practice it is difficult to take enough of the Karela plant to have a significant effect.
Karela capsules are an unknown entity. While certain components of Karela do have hypoglycaemic effects there have been no formal studies to indicate if it can be used safely in capsule form by people with diabetes. Many natural products and herbal medicines are not safe when used in conjunction with other pharmaceutical medicines and can cause problems.
As there is a lack of information both on the concentration of Karela in these capsules and the effects of other components Diabetes UK does not recommend their use until further evidence is available about their use in the management of diabetes.