Quantifying the effects of Nopal on Blood Glucose Concentration using Mathematical Modeling Techniques

Students: Alejandra Johnson, Logan Puntous

Faculty Mentor: Brigitte Lahme

Mathematics and Statistics

College of Science, Technology, and Business

Nopal is an indigenous plant to Mexico and has been widely used as a traditional Mexican medicine for diabetes treatment. Although the formal interactions of Nopal with the mechanism for glucose uptake from the blood are not fully understood, we see that including Nopal in your diet affects blood glucose concentration. To better understand the use of Nopal as treatment for diabetes, we analyzed a comparative study that looks at the difference in blood glucose levels between healthy individuals, individuals with type 2 diabetes, and individuals with type 2 diabetes who have included Nopal in their diet. By utilizing mathematical models to determine incremental area under the curve, average rate of change, and differential equations modeling change in blood glucose concentration over time, we are able to better understand how Nopal may influence these important biological processes. We found that individuals with diabetes who implemented Nopal into their diet had a slower increase in blood glucose concentration as well as a lower blood glucose concentration overall compared to the diabetes group without Nopal in their diet. Through calculating the incremental area under the curve, we determined that Nopal has a glycemic index of 30.5%, which is consistent with previous data. This shows that Nopal generates a slower and more gradual increase in blood glucose levels, which is thought to be healthier than a spike in concentration observed in the diet without Nopal.