Berberine

I recently took a course in Functional Medicine, vitamins, supplements, and nutrition through the Elite Nurse Practitioner. The course is supported by the American Nurse Practitioner Academy for Continuing Education, offering CME hours for education hours including pharmacy credits.  The course provided some great information about evidence-based (research-supported) supplements.  One that was particularly intriguing to me was Berberine.  I do not recommend that everyone go to the health food store and start Berberine, but if your lab work indicates that you have insulin resistance or cholesterol problems it certainly has research to support its use under a primary care provider.

Research has demonstrated that Berberine can be used as an alternative therapy to the traditional medication Metformin for insulin resistance.  Berberne works similarly, but has fewer gastrointestinal side effects and is less harmful to the kidneys.  Tik Tok maintains that it is natural Ozempic, but I would not go that far to support it in that way unless you are taking it under supervision.

When a change in diet is not effective for cholesterol/lipid levels, the research on Berberine has been very promising as an alternative to Statin medications as well. 

However, I do stress that it is important to talk to your family doctor, nurse practitioner, or prescribing pharmacist to see if Berberine is right for you.  I just find that it is very promising as an alternative to traditional medicine and does have evidence to support its use.