What is Dihydroberberine (GlucoVantage)?

First let’s briefly go over what berberine is. Berberine is an active compound extracted from herbal plants such as Goldenseal, Chinese goldenthread, Rhizoma coptidis, Phellodendron, and barberry The majority of Berberine is extracted into a salt form known as Berberine Hydrochloride.

Berberine is famously known for its hypoglycemic and cholesterol-lowering effects. It possesses significant support on lowering blood glucose, increasing insulin sensitivity, and decreasing overall Hb1Ac levels. One of its main mechanism of action is its activation of AMPK. This special activator metabolizes cellular energy throughout our body. It breaks down glucose for energy, prevents glucose storage and increases glucose uptake into the muscle. It also inhibits lipogenesis (fat production), lowers total cholesterol and oxidizes fatty acids. (1)

Although it presents wonderful benefits for glucose and cholesterol support it lacks intestinal absorption which makes it difficult for our body to utilize berberine’s functionality. With poor bioavailability, we would need to consume large amounts of berberine in order to receive the effects. Another issue with high doses of berberine is that it leads to gastrointestinal discomfort. (2)

When berberine is ingested into our body, it reduces it into its derivative form, dihydroberberine. As dihydroberberine goes through our system, the chemical process oxidizes dihydroberberine back into berberine and enters into our bloodstream. This multi-conversion causes poor absorption. This leads to less berberine in the body to begin with. By ingesting dihydroberberine first, it bypasses the reduction process and immediately converts it back to berberine thus increasing absorption rate by 5-fold. (3)

This eliminates the need to consume high doses of berberine and avoid any possible GI discomfort. Dihydroberberine can be dosed much lower than berberine while providing the same if not, better results than berberine. (4)

Let’s go over scientific research of dihydroberberine.

1. A 2008 comparative study was conducted between dihydroberberine’s and berberine’s AMPK activation on insulin activity. Researchers grouped mice with one having berberine at 560mg dose and the other with DHB at 100mg dose. The DHB group, were also on a high fat diet, reported greater efficacy in hindering increased adiposity, tissue triglyceride formation, and insulin resistance at lower doses than berberine. (5)

Upon further analysis, researchers also investigated bioavailability of both compounds to deduce if DHB enhance absorption was the underlying factor in its efficacy. They administered 20mg of berberine and DHB orally and sampled the mice blood samples. Researchers observed no berberine concentration in the plasma however DHB was quickly detected with a half life of 3-4hrs. (6)

In conclusion, dihydroberberine’s biochemical structure allowed an increased plasma concentration due to its enhanced bioavailability factor. Because of its higher absorption rate than berberine, it led to an improved efficacy in treating glucose and lipid parameters at much lower doses. (7)

"Furthermore, in HFD rats, the beneficial effects of dhBBR at 100 mg · kg⁻¹ · day⁻¹ were of a similar magnitude to those previously reported for 380 mg · kg⁻¹ · day⁻¹ of BBR (3). Examination of the structure of BBR reveals that it possesses an extremely flat configuration, which is likely to have limited absorption across the intestinal epithelia. However, derivatization to dhBBR was predicted to open up the structure, making it more amenable to uptake." (7)

2. A 2014 published study explored comparative results of berberine, dihydroberberine, and 8,8-dimethyldihydroberberine on atherosclerotic plaques. The study was conducted on mice while each group was divided and given berberine, dihydroberberine, and 8,8-dimethyldihydroberberine at equal doses as well as fed with a western diet.The treatment lasted for 16 weeks and the mice’s total cholesterol (TC), triglycerides (TG), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) were evaluated. (8)

All groups demonstrated reductions in total cholesterol while dihydroberberine group revealed greater reductions in LDL. Triglycerides and HDL displayed no differences between the groups. (9)

In terms of anti-atherosclerotic effects, both dihydroberberine, and 8,8-dimethyldihydroberberine groups presented far significant benefits in anti-inflammatory effects, decrease atherosclerotic plaque size and improve plaque stability. (10)

In summary, berberine and its derivatives all showed cholesterol-lowering benefits. But berberine did not seem to be an effective approach for anti-atherosclerotic effects. When it comes to reducing plaque build up in the artery walls both dihydroberberine and 8,8-dimethyldihydroberberine demonstrated greater ability in atherosclerotic benefits. Berberine’s derivatives display far better absorption which ultimately improves its efficacy through various molecular signaling and cellular expressions than berberine itself.

"However, BBR at the same dosage did not show beneficial effect on atherosclerosis in apoE−/− mice. Take together, our results have shown that dhBBR and Di-MeBBR have better anti-inflammatory effects than BBR, and dhBBR and Di-MeBBR, but not BBR, reduce atherosclerotic plaque size and improve plaque stability in apoE−/− mice." (10)

TAKEAWAY: Dihydroberberine, a derivative of berberine, possesses greater bioavailability and efficacy than that of its predecessor. Through its biochemical processes, dihydroberberine overcomes absorption barriers that many supplement ingredients face. DHB has shown through various studies to provide significant benefits to both glucose and lipid parameters at lesser dosages than berberine. In conclusion, DHB is an effective and efficient supplement targeting both glycemic and cholesterol health.

Luckily! You too can have all the benefits of dihydroberberine. One of the trademark ingredients in our supplement (Glycemic Control) is called GlucoVantage. The only trademark ingredient that is able to deliver all the powerful benefits of berberine for superior absorption. Our product proudly has GlucoVantage along with other powerful trademark ingredients to provide you the best formula for glucose health.