Effect of Artemisia extract on glycemic control: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trial

Background and aim Animal and human studies have indicated anti-diabetic effect of Asteraceae. The present study aimed to systematically review and analyse randomized controlled trials assessing the effect of Artemisia extract on glycemic status in patients with impaired glycemic control. Methods Web of Science, Cochrane library, EMBASE and PubMed databases were searched from the earliest possible date up to 7th October 2020. Results Six studies were included in the meta-analysis. Analysis showed that supplementation with Artemisia extract decreased homeostatic model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) (-0.734, 95% CI: -1.236 to -0.232, P = .019) in comparison to placebo. However, reductions in fasting blood glucose (FBG) (-0.595, 95% CI: -1.566 to 0.376, P = .164), insulin (-0.322, 95% CI: -1.047 to 0.404, P = .286) and glycated haemoglobin (-0.106, 95% CI: -0.840 to 0.629, P = .678) were not statistically significant. Conclusion Supplementation with Artemisia extract may reduce HOMA-IR, but beneficial effects on other markers such as FBG requires further investigations.