Phytochemicals with sodium-glucose co-transporter inhibitory effects for the management of diabetes; a narrative review on recent findings

Diabetes mellitus is a chronic condition suffering millions of people worldwide. According to the International Diabetes Federation (IDF), it is estimated that by 2045 about 783 million people will be affected by this disease. Diabetes can be treated today with various hypoglycemic drugs, including metformin and sulfonylureas. However, it has unwanted side effects, such as nausea, diarrhea, hypothyroidism, weight gain, liver failure, tachycardia, and lactic acidosis. A newer group of oral diabetes drugs, such as the sodium-glucose co-transporter inhibitors (SGLTi), are recognized as useful in treating blood sugar levels in diabetic patients. Natural phytochemicals derived from plants have long been used to treat chronic diseases such as diabetes, and traditional phytotherapy for diabetes has been recommended by the world health organization. Herbal medicines are believed to have fewer side effects, so nearly 80% of the drugs are derived directly from plants or modified plants. Given the importance of these results, we were inspired to investigate the impact of phytochemicals with his SGLT2 inhibitory effects on diabetes in order to develop the next generation of safer therapeutic strategies for diabetic patients.