**3.3 Antidiabetic activity**

Diabetes mellitus is a chronic endocrine disease characterized by disorders in the metabolism of carbohydrates, lipids, and proteins due to a deficiency in insulin production by pancreatic beta cells and/or an increase in insulin resistance in peripheral tissues. Universally, this illness affects the majority of people in both developed and developing countries. Numerous synthetic drugs have been developed for the treatment, but a safe and effective paradigm is yet to be achieved. In terms of potential as a pharmacological alternative, chili has shown good antidiabetic effect because it contains α-amylase and α-glucosidase inhibitors, which are required for the degradation of polysaccharides and disaccharides. Especially, the species *Capsicum frutescens* (cayenne pepper) is often used as remedies for diabetes mellitus in African traditional medicine. Based on a previous report, Islam and Choi state that *Capsicum frutescens* increased serum insulin concentration in high-fat (HF) diet-fed streptozotocininduced type 2 diabetes rats after four weeks of treatment. The data of this study suggest that 2% of dietary *Capsicum frutescens* is insulinotropic rather than hypoglycemic in the experimental methods [78].
