Fenugreek
Fenugreek (Trigonella foenum-graecum) is a plant in the family Fabaceae. It is commonly known as methi (Hindi, Nepali, Urdu, Bangla,Gujarati, Marathi), Menthyada soppu (Kannada), venthayam (Tamil), menthulu (Telugu), Hilbeh (Arabic), or ulluva (Malayalam). Fenugreek is used both as a herb (the leaves) and as a spice (the seed). It is cultivated worldwide as a semi-arid crop.
Supplements of fenugreek seeds were shown to lower serum cholesterol, triglyceride, and low-density lipoprotein in human patients and experimental models of hypercholesterolemia and hypertriglyceridemia. Several human intervention trials demonstrated that the antidiabetic effects of fenugreek seeds ameliorate most metabolic symptoms associated with type-1 and type-2 diabetes in both humans and relevant animal models. Fenugreek is currently available commercially in encapsulated forms and is being prescribed as dietary supplements for the control of hypercholesterolemia and diabetes by practitioners of complementary and alternative medicine.
In recent research, fenugreek seeds were experimentally shown to protect against cancers of the breast and colon. The hepatoprotective properties of fenugreek seeds have also been reported in experimental models.