Objective: High blood sugar can lead to diabetes, a chronic illness which is becoming a public health challenge in the 21st century in Thailand. The aim of this study was to survey the local vegetables traditionally used by traditional healers for reducing hyperglycemia and normally consumed in Surat Thani Province and to analyze the total phenolic content (TPC) in these local vegetables.Methods: Data were collected using in-depth interview of traditional healers from nine districts of Surat Thani Province, and TPC of the extracts of vegetables collected was determined by Folin–Ciocalteu reagent method.Results: A total of 16 local vegetables have been found to be used by traditional healers for reducing blood sugar: Ocimun tenuiflorum Linn., Musa acuminate Colla, Cassia siamea (Lam.) Irwin and Barneby, Coccinia grandis (L.) Voigt, Pandanus amaryllifolius Roxb., Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp. subsp. Unguiculata, Ipomoea aquatic Forssk., Phyllanthus emblica Linn., Solanum torvum Sw., Anacardium occidentale Linn., Momordica charantia Linn., Moringa oleifera Lamk., Archidendron jiringa Nielsen, Azadirachta indica A. Juss. var. Indica, Parkia speciosa Hassk., and Micromelum minutum (G. Forst.) Wight and Arn. In addition, the TPC results showed that the extract of A. occidentale Linn. exhibited the highest TPC (8.0±0.11 mg gallic acid equivalent (GAE)/g fresh weight) followed by the extract of M. minutum (G. Forst.) Wight and Arn. (3.99±0.10 mg GAE/g fresh weight).Conclusion: Local vegetables in Surat Thani were shown to be a good source of TPC, and the data from this study can serve as fundamental information for promoting consumption of selected local vegetables for diabetes prevention in the future.
local-vegetables-traditionally-used-for-reducing-hyperglycemai-in-surat-thani-province-thailand