Saudi Clinical Studies on Traditional Herbal Medicines for Diabetes: A Systematic Review

Background: Diabetic patients in Saudi Arabia commonly use herbal medicines (HMs) to manage their condition. Research studies indicate that up to 70% of this population has tried HMs, with popular choices including Cinnamomum verum, Zingiber officinale, Trigonella foenum-graecum, Allium sativum, Aloe vera, Olea europaea, and Nigella sativa. More clinical trials evaluating their safety and effectiveness are needed to increase the adoption of these herbal remedies. Objective: This systematic review aims to review clinical research in the Saudi Arabian context on the efficacy of commonly used HMs for diabetes. Methods: A comprehensive search of medical literature was conducted to identify the most popular herbs used by Saudi diabetic patients. The PubMed, Cochrane, Medline, and ScienceDirect databases were utilized to find research studies published in Saudi Arabia that examined the effectiveness of traditional herbal remedies for managing diabetes. Results: Only four relevant studies from Saudi Arabia were identified, with three specific herbs (Trigonella foenum-graecum, Zingiber officinale, and Nigella sativa) used in all four studies. Two of the studies were blind clinical trials, but only one was double-blinded. The methodological quality of these studies was assessed using the Jadad score, with scores ranging from 1 to 3. Discussion: The scarcity of high-quality clinical trials in Saudi Arabia, particularly double-blinded studies with robust methodologies (as indicated by low Jadad scores), suggests a significant gap in evidence-based research on the efficacy of common herbal medicines for diabetes within the local context. While a high percentage of diabetic patients use HMs, the limited rigorous research makes it challenging to draw definitive conclusions about their effectiveness and safety. This highlights an urgent need for more well-designed studies to inform clinical practice and patient guidance. Conclusion: Although Saudi Arabia has a large population of diabetic patients, its contribution to clinical research in this field remains limited. Establishing research groups and developing a sustainable infrastructure could help to address this problem and promote more rigorous studies on HMs.