Ulam refers to a group of traditional Malaysian plants commonly consumed as a part of a meal, either in the raw form or after a short blanching process. Many types of ulam are thought to possess blood glucose-lowering properties, but relatively little is known on the effectiveness of ulam in modulating blood glucose levels in humans. This review aims to systematically evaluate the effectiveness of ulam in modulating blood glucose levels in humans. A literature review was conducted using multiple databases with no time restriction. Eleven studies were retrieved based on a priori inclusion and exclusion criteria. In these 11 studies, only Momordica charantia, locally known as "peria katak", was extensively studied, followed by Centella asiatica, locally known as "daun pegaga", and Alternanthera sessilis, locally known as "kermak putih". Of the 11 studies, 9 evaluated the effectiveness of M. charantia on blood glucose parameters, and 7 of which showed significant improvement in at least one parameter of blood glucose concentration. The remaining 2 studies reported nonsignificant improvements in blood glucose parameters, despite having high-quality study design according to Jadad scale. None of the studies related to C. asiatica and A. sessilis showed significant improvement in blood glucose-related parameters. Current clinical evidence does not support the popular claim that ulam has glucose-lowering effects, not even for M. charantia. Hence, further clinical investigation is needed to verify the glucose modulation effect of M. charantia, C. asiatica, and A. sessilis.
ulam 指一组传统的马来西亚植物，无论是生的还是经过短暂的漂烫处理后都 是马来西亚人的食物之一。多种ulam 被认为具有降血糖的特性，但对ulam 调 节人体血糖水平的有效性知之甚少。本文旨在系统评估ulam 在调节人类血糖 水平的功效。不限时间的多个数据库被用于本文文献检索。根据先验的纳入和 排除标准检索到11 个研究。在这11 个研究中，只有苦瓜（当地称为“peria katak”）被广泛研究，其次是积雪草（当地称为“daun pegaga”）和莲子草（当 地称为“kermak putih”）。在这11 个研究中，有9 个研究评估了苦瓜对血糖的 影响，其中7 个显示至少有1 个血糖浓度指标有显著改善。其余2 个研究报告 血糖没有显著改善，尽管根据Jadad 评分这两项研究属于高质量设计。关于积 雪草和莲子草的研究显示对血糖没有显著影响。目前的临床证据不支持 ulam，即使是苦瓜，有降低血糖作用这一流行的说法。因此，需要进一步的临 床研究来验证苦瓜、积雪草和莲子草对血糖的调节作用。