Topic

Blood sugar and insulin

Fasting glucose, longer-run blood sugar, and how the body handles insulin.

This page is not a ranking. Ingredients appear in order of how much we have read here.

The 5 things measured here · ingredients read against each

Read here so far: 45 questions across 20 ingredients

Berberine

Berberine and Fasting plasma glucoseThree sources, all measured lowerModerate certainty, level 3 of 4
Berberine and Hemoglobin A1cTwo sources, all measured lowerModerate certainty, level 3 of 4
Berberine and HOMA-IRTwo sources, all measured lowerModerate certainty, level 3 of 4
Berberine and Fasting insulinTwo sources, all measured lowerLow certainty, level 2 of 4

Chromium

Chromium and Fasting insulinOne source, measured lowerVery low certainty, level 1 of 4
Chromium and Fasting plasma glucoseOne source, measured lowerVery low certainty, level 1 of 4
Chromium and Hemoglobin A1cOne source, measured lowerVery low certainty, level 1 of 4
Chromium and HOMA-IROne source, measured lowerVery low certainty, level 1 of 4

Silymarin

Silymarin and Fasting insulinTwo sources, saying different thingsModerate certainty, level 3 of 4
Silymarin and HOMA-IRTwo sources, saying different thingsModerate certainty, level 3 of 4
Silymarin and Fasting plasma glucoseTwo sources, all measured lowerLow certainty, level 2 of 4
Silymarin and Hemoglobin A1cTwo sources, all measured lowerLow certainty, level 2 of 4

Curcumin

Curcumin and AdiponectinOne source, measured higherModerate certainty, level 3 of 4
Curcumin and Fasting plasma glucoseOne source, measured lowerLow certainty, level 2 of 4
Curcumin and HOMA-IROne source, measured lowerLow certainty, level 2 of 4

Ginger

Ginger and HOMA-IROne source, measured lowerModerate certainty, level 3 of 4
Ginger and Fasting plasma glucoseOne source, measured lowerVery low certainty, level 1 of 4
Ginger and Hemoglobin A1cOne source, measured lowerVery low certainty, level 1 of 4

Ginkgo biloba

Ginkgo biloba and Fasting plasma glucoseOne source, measured lowerLow certainty, level 2 of 4
Ginkgo biloba and Hemoglobin A1cOne source, found no clear differenceLow certainty, level 2 of 4
Ginkgo biloba and HOMA-IROne source, measured lowerLow certainty, level 2 of 4

Coenzyme Q10

Coenzyme Q10 and Hemoglobin A1cOne source, measured lowerModerate certainty, level 3 of 4
Coenzyme Q10 and Fasting plasma glucoseOne source, measured lowerLow certainty, level 2 of 4

L-Carnitine

L-Carnitine and Fasting plasma glucoseOne source, measured lowerVery low certainty, level 1 of 4
L-Carnitine and Hemoglobin A1cOne source, measured lowerVery low certainty, level 1 of 4

Magnesium

Magnesium and HOMA-IRTwo sources, saying different thingsLow certainty, level 2 of 4
Magnesium and Fasting plasma glucoseOne source, found no clear differenceLow certainty, level 2 of 4

Myo-inositol

Myo-inositol and HOMA-IRTwo sources, saying different thingsLow certainty, level 2 of 4
Myo-inositol and Fasting insulinOne source, measured lowerVery low certainty, level 1 of 4

N-acetylcysteine

N-acetylcysteine and Fasting insulinOne source, found no clear differenceLow certainty, level 2 of 4
N-acetylcysteine and Fasting plasma glucoseOne source, measured lowerLow certainty, level 2 of 4

Panax ginseng

Panax ginseng and Fasting insulinOne source, found no clear differenceModerate certainty, level 3 of 4
Panax ginseng and Fasting plasma glucoseOne source, measured lowerModerate certainty, level 3 of 4

Psyllium

Psyllium and Fasting plasma glucoseOne source, measured lowerLow certainty, level 2 of 4
Psyllium and Hemoglobin A1cOne source, measured lowerLow certainty, level 2 of 4

Selenium

Selenium and Fasting insulinOne source, measured lowerModerate certainty, level 3 of 4
Selenium and Fasting plasma glucoseOne source, found no clear differenceModerate certainty, level 3 of 4

Thiamine (vitamin B1)

Thiamine (vitamin B1) and Fasting plasma glucoseOne source, found no clear differenceModerate certainty, level 3 of 4
Thiamine (vitamin B1) and Hemoglobin A1cOne source, found no clear differenceModerate certainty, level 3 of 4

Vitamin K2 (menaquinone-7)

Vitamin K2 (menaquinone-7) and HOMA-IRTwo sources, saying different thingsLow certainty, level 2 of 4
Vitamin K2 (menaquinone-7) and AdiponectinOne source, measured higherLow certainty, level 2 of 4

Astaxanthin

Astaxanthin and Fasting plasma glucoseOne source, found no clear differenceLow certainty, level 2 of 4

Biotin (vitamin B7)

Biotin (vitamin B7) and Fasting plasma glucoseTwo sources, all found no clear differenceLow certainty, level 2 of 4

Glycine

Glycine and Hemoglobin A1cOne source, measured lowerLow certainty, level 2 of 4

Piperine

Piperine and Fasting plasma glucoseTwo sources, all measured lowerModerate certainty, level 3 of 4

Where the sources say different things

Every side in full, because one line would have to pick one of them.

Each bar is one source’s range, drawn against the line of no difference: left of the line is lower, right is higher. Widths are not comparable between rows.

Silymarin and fasting insulin
Two sources here, and they say different things: one measured lower fasting insulin and one found no clear difference.
Moderate certainty, level 3 of 4The sources say different things
One source’s range, crossing no difference: these numbers fit no effect too. The sources here say different things. Systematic review, 2025
Silymarin and HOMA-IR
Two sources here, and they say different things: one measured lower HOMA-IR and one found no clear difference.
Moderate certainty, level 3 of 4The sources say different things
One source’s range. The sources here say different things. Systematic review, 2025
Magnesium and HOMA-IR
Two sources here, and they say different things: one measured lower HOMA-IR and one found no clear difference.
Low certainty, level 2 of 4The sources say different things
One source’s range, crossing no difference: these numbers fit no effect too. The sources here say different things. Systematic review, 2026
Myo-inositol and HOMA-IR
Two sources here, and they say different things: one measured lower HOMA-IR and one found no clear difference.
Low certainty, level 2 of 4The sources say different things
One source’s range. The sources here say different things. Systematic review, 2025
Vitamin K2 (menaquinone-7) and HOMA-IR
Two sources here, and they say different things: one measured lower HOMA-IR and one found no clear difference.
Low certainty, level 2 of 4The sources say different things
One source’s range. The sources here say different things. Systematic review, 2025 · 6 studies pooled

How much of this is one source

Read from 33 sources. 32 of the 45 questions here rest on a single source with nothing yet to check them against, and on 5 questions the sources say different things.

What is still to read is kept per ingredient, not per topic, so every ingredient named above carries its own list.

Still to read means nobody here has got to it, not that it was tried and did nothing or that no research exists. A pairing on no list is not a gap: we never set out to read it.

The other 14 topics

This is a library, not advice. No recommendation, no dose, no diagnosis, no ranking. We never ask about your symptoms, and nothing here is tailored to you.