Okra and Blood Sugar Control
Okra has attracted interest as a food that might help people manage type 2 diabetes. Clinical trials have tested dried okra powder and extracts for their effects on blood sugar, cholesterol, and inflammation.
Three randomized trials offer a mixed picture. Two reported improvements in several measures, while a third, involving people with diabetes-related kidney disease, found no significant advantage over placebo. The findings suggest possible benefits, but they do not establish okra as a diabetes treatment or identify a reliable supplement dose (1–3).
Okra capsules improved blood sugar in a three-month trial
A randomized, double-blind trial assigned 100 adults aged 40–60 with type 2 diabetes to powdered okra fruit or placebo. Participants took 1,000 mg three times daily, totaling 3,000 mg per day, for three months. Both groups continued metformin, gliclazide, and their dietary plan (1).
The okra group had significantly greater improvements in fasting blood sugar, HbA1c, total cholesterol, and triglycerides. HbA1c reflects average blood sugar over roughly the previous two to three months.
Changes from the beginning to the end of the study included:
Fasting blood sugar: Decreased by 21.9% with okra, compared with 2.5% with placebo.
HbA1c: Fell from 8.61% to 7.67% with okra, a reduction of 0.94 percentage points, compared with 0.14 percentage points with placebo.
Total cholesterol: Decreased by 5.5% with okra, while increasing by 5.8% with placebo.
Triglycerides: Decreased by 13.8% with okra, compared with 4.3% with placebo.
Inflammation: The marker hs-CRP decreased by 17.5% with okra, while increasing by 9.7% with placebo (1).
These percentages describe changes within each group; they are not the additional reduction attributable to okra after subtracting the placebo response.
Researchers reported no adverse effects associated with okra, including adverse changes in liver or kidney tests or blood pressure. However, a three-month trial cannot establish long-term safety. The benefits were observed alongside usual diabetes care (1).
Okra powder in yogurt improved some measures
An eight-week randomized trial in Iran assigned 60 adults with type 2 diabetes to receive 10 g of okra powder mixed into 150 g of yogurt or yogurt alone, consumed with lunch and dinner (2).
The okra group experienced significantly greater average reductions in several outcomes:
Measure | Reduction with okra | Reduction with yogurt alone |
Fasting blood sugar | 15.61 mg/dL | 3.40 mg/dL |
Triglycerides | 22.30 mg/dL | 3.86 mg/dL |
Total cholesterol | 10.23 mg/dL | 2.03 mg/dL |
LDL cholesterol | 8.15 mg/dL | 2.31 mg/dL |
Insulin resistance measured by HOMA-IR | 1.17 points | 0.14 points |
Insulin sensitivity also improved more with okra. Together, these findings suggest that participants’ bodies became better able to respond to insulin, the hormone that helps regulate blood sugar.
However, HbA1c, fasting insulin, HDL cholesterol, and body measurements did not differ significantly between groups. The findings therefore support possible benefits for selected blood sugar and cholesterol measures, rather than an improvement in every aspect of diabetes management (2).
Putting the powder amount into everyday food terms: Fresh, raw okra is approximately 89.6% water, according to USDA nutrient data. This means that 100 g of fresh okra contains about 10.4 g of dry matter. Based on this moisture content, 10 g of dried whole-okra powder roughly corresponds to 100 g (3.5 ounces) of fresh okra, depending on the moisture remaining in the powder. This estimates food quantity; it does not establish equivalent blood sugar effects from fresh or cooked okra, and it does not apply to concentrated extracts.
Blood sugar changes in adults with diabetes related kidney disease
A separate 10-week trial enrolled 64 adults with diabetes-related kidney disease; 55 completed the study. Participants received a daily 125-mg capsule containing 80 mg of dried okra extract or a placebo (3).
Among participants who completed the trial, fasting blood sugar and HbA1c decreased significantly from their starting levels in the okra group:
Fasting blood sugar: Decreased from 158.28 to 138.64 mg/dL, a reduction of 19.64 mg/dL, or approximately 12.4%, with okra. In the placebo group, it rose from 116.86 to 128.17 mg/dL.
HbA1c: Decreased from 8.86% to 8.23% with okra, a reduction of approximately 0.63 percentage points, compared with 0.19 percentage points with placebo (3).
Insulin resistance also improved significantly from baseline within the okra group. However, the differences between the okra and placebo groups were not statistically significant for these blood sugar measures, urine protein, urine creatinine, or inflammation (3).
What these findings mean
Taken together, these trials suggest that okra may help improve fasting blood sugar and some cholesterol measures in certain adults with type 2 diabetes. Evidence for HbA1c and inflammation is less consistent (1–3).
The studies were relatively small and lasted only eight weeks to three months. They also used different preparations and doses, and enrolled people with different health conditions. Dried whole-fruit powder and an extract are not interchangeable, so the results do not identify a standard effective dose.
Summary
Okra shows promise as an addition to usual diabetes care, but the evidence remains preliminary. Two trials found improvements in selected blood sugar and cholesterol measures, while the kidney-disease trial found no significant benefit over placebo. Larger, longer studies are needed to determine which preparations work, at what doses, and whether the benefits last (1–3).
References
Tavakolizadeh M, Peyrovi S, Ghasemi-Moghaddam H, Bahadori A, Mohkami Z, Sotoudeh M, Ziaee M. Clinical efficacy and safety of okra (Abelmoschus esculentus (L.) Moench) in type 2 diabetic patients: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, clinical trial. Acta Diabetologica. 2023;60(12):1685–1695. doi:10.1007/s00592-023-02149-1. Correction published in Acta Diabetologica. 2023;60(12):1697. doi:10.1007/s00592-023-02170-4.
Moradi A, Tarrahi MJ, Ghasempour S, Shafiepour M, Clark CCT, Safavi SM. The effect of okra (Abelmoschus esculentus) on lipid profiles and glycemic indices in Type 2 diabetic adults: Randomized double blinded trials. Phytotherapy Research. 2020;34(12):3325–3332. doi:10.1002/ptr.6782.
Nikpayam O, Saghafi-Asl M, Safaei E, Bahreyni N, Sadra V, Asgharian P. The effect of Abelmoschus esculentus L. (Okra) extract supplementation on glycaemic control, inflammation, kidney function and expression of PPAR-α, PPAR-γ, TGF-β and Nrf-2 genes in patients with diabetic nephropathy: a triple-blind, randomised, placebo-controlled trial. British Journal of Nutrition. 2024;131(4):648–657. doi:10.1017/S0007114523002180.
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