Supplements and Diabetes Medicines: How to Check Before You Mix Them

Sometimes, but only after someone who knows your medicine list has seen the label.

The FDA does not approve supplements before they are sold (FDA: Q&A on dietary supplements). Many hold more than one active plant. Sugar Reset lists 23 actives. A few may lower glucose. Others touch blood pressure, heart rhythm or how some drugs are cleared.

Take a 48-year-old woman whose checkup showed an A1C of 6.1%. She takes no medicine yet, so her main question is caffeine and blood pressure. A 61-year-old on metformin and glipizide has a sharper question: could this add to a low?

No. In 2021 the FDA and FTC warned 10 companies selling supplements with diabetes treatment claims (FDA/FTC warning letters on diabetes supplements). The FDA said people who use such products instead of proven treatment could be harmed.

The Sugar Reset sales page has a headline about managing type 2. The label claims only "Promotes Metabolic Balance". It is a dietary supplement, not a diabetes treatment.

• Lows: shaky, sweaty, confused, or under 70 mg/dL. Take 15 to 20 grams of fast sugar and recheck in 15 minutes (NIDDK: Low blood glucose).
• Jitters, a racing heart or poor sleep: guarana and green tea are caffeine sources.
• Higher home blood pressure readings: ask about the licorice compound.

Never stop or lower a prescribed medicine on your own. If something feels off, stop the drops and call your doctor. For fit by health situation, see who Sugar Reset suits.

Each source was opened on October 11, 2026.

1. Diabetes and Dietary Supplements: What You Need To Know. National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NIH), 2023."For most supplements, there isn't evidence to support a beneficial effect on diabetes or its complications." It is very important not to replace medical treatment for diabetes with an unproven product; supplements may interact with medicines.
2. Low Blood Glucose (Hypoglycemia). National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIH), 2021.For many people with diabetes, low blood glucose means below 70 mg/dL; it can be a side effect of insulin, sulfonylureas or meglitinides. Treat with 15 to 20 grams of glucose or carbohydrate, recheck after 15 minutes; severe lows can cause seizures or loss of consciousness and need glucagon or 911.
3. FDA and FTC Send Warning Letters to 10 Companies Illegally Selling Dietary Supplements Claiming to Treat Diabetes. U.S. Food and Drug Administration, 2021.On September 9, 2021, FDA and FTC warned 10 companies whose supplements claimed to cure, treat, mitigate or prevent diabetes; FDA said people who use such products in place of proven treatments could suffer harm and may not receive appropriate treatment.
4. Licorice Root: Usefulness and Safety. National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NIH), 2025.Glycyrrhizin (glycyrrhizic acid) can cause serious adverse effects such as irregular heartbeat and cardiac arrest, especially in large amounts or long term; even small amounts have been linked to severe effects in people with high blood pressure or heart or kidney conditions. Interactions with corticosteroids reported; large amounts are unsafe in pregnancy.
5. Grapefruit Juice and Some Drugs Don't Mix. U.S. Food and Drug Administration, 2021.Grapefruit juice can block the gut enzyme CYP3A4 so more of some drugs enters the blood; examples include some statins (simvastatin, atorvastatin) and the blood pressure drug nifedipine.
6. Questions and Answers on Dietary Supplements. U.S. Food and Drug Administration, 2026.Under DSHEA, FDA does not have the authority to approve dietary supplements before they are marketed; by law FDA does not approve dietary supplements or their labeling. The firm is responsible for safety and for the accuracy of its labeling.