Phlorizin: Overview, Uses, Side Effects, Precautions, Interactions, Dosing and Reviews

Overview

Phlorizin is a substance found in some fruit trees, such as the unripe fruit and bark of apple trees. It is used to make medicine.

People use phlorizin for fever, malaria, diabetes, and other conditions, but there is no good scientific evidence to support these uses.

Phlorizin reduces the uptake and increases the removal of sugar from the blood.

How does it work ?

Phlorizin reduces the uptake and increases the removal of sugar from the blood.

Uses & Effectiveness

Insufficient Evidence for

Diabetes.
Fever.
Malaria.
Other conditions.

More evidence is needed to rate the effectiveness of phlorizin for these uses.

Side Effects

When taken by mouth: There isn't enough reliable information to know if phlorizin is safe or what the side effects might be.

Special Precautions and Warnings

When taken by mouth: There isn't enough reliable information to know if phlorizin is safe or what the side effects might be.

Pregnancy and breast-feeding: There isn't enough reliable information to know if phlorizin is safe to use when pregnant or breast-feeding. Stay on the safe side and avoid use.

Diabetes: Phlorizin might lower blood sugar. Watch for signs of low blood sugar (hypoglycemia) and monitor your blood sugar carefully if you have diabetes and use phlorizin.

Surgery: Phlorizin might lower blood sugar. There is some concern that it might interfere with blood sugar control during and after surgery. Stop using phlorizin at least 2 weeks before a scheduled surgery.

Interactions

Moderate Interaction

Be cautious with this combination

Medications for diabetes (Antidiabetes drugs) interacts with Phlorizin
Phlorizin might lower blood sugar. Diabetes medications are also used to lower blood sugar. Taking phlorizin along with diabetes medications might cause blood sugar to go too low. Monitor your blood sugar closely. The dose of your diabetes medication might need to be changed.

Some medications used for diabetes include glimepiride (Amaryl), glyburide (DiaBeta, Glynase PresTab, Micronase), insulin, pioglitazone (Actos), rosiglitazone (Avandia), chlorpropamide (Diabinese), glipizide (Glucotrol), tolbutamide (Orinase), and others.

Dosing

The appropriate dose of phlorizin depends on several factors such as the user's age, health, and several other conditions. At this time there is not enough scientific information to determine an appropriate range of doses for phlorizin. Keep in mind that natural products are not always necessarily safe and dosages can be important. Be sure to follow relevant directions on product labels and consult your pharmacist or physician or other healthcare professional before using.

View References

REFERENCES:

Rosenwasser RF, Sultan S, Sutton D, Choksi R, Epstein BJ. SGLT-2 inhibitors and their potential in the treatment of diabetes. Diabetes Metab Syndr Obes 2013;6:453-67.

Ehrenkranz JR, Lewis NG, Kahn CR, Roth J. Phlorizin: a review. Diabetes Metab Res Rev 2005;21(1):31-38.

Masumoto S, Akimoto Y, Oike H, Kobori M. Dietary phloridzin reduces blood glucose levels and reverses Sglt1 expression in the small intestine in streptozotocin-induced diabetic mice. J Agric Food Chem 2009;57(11):4651-4656.

Bradford BJ, Allen MS. Phlorizin induces lipolysis and alters meal patterns in both early- and late-lactation dairy cows. J Dairy Sci 2007;90(4):1810-1815.

Proksa B, Uhrin D, Odonmazhig P, Badga D. Isolation of phlorizin from leaves of Armeniaca sibirica. Pharmazie 1988;43(9):658-659.

Zhao H, Yakar S, Gavrilova O, et al. Phloridzin improves hyperglycemia but not hepatic insulin resistance in a transgenic mouse model of type 2 diabetes. Diabetes 2004;53(11):2901-2909.

Zhang S, Zhu M, Shen D. Experimental study on the treatment of diabetes by phloridzin in rats. J Tongji Med Univ 1998;18(2):105-7, 118.

Starke A, Grundy S, McGarry JD, Unger RH. Correction of hyperglycemia with phloridzin restores the glucagon response to glucose in insulin-deficient dogs: implications for human diabetes. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 1985;82(5):1544-1546.

Crespy V, Aprikian O, Morand C, et al. Bioavailability of phloretin and phloridzin in rats. J Nutr 2001;131(12):3227-3230.

Makarova E, Górnas P, Konrade I, et al. Acute anti-hyperglycaemic effects of an unripe apple preparation containing phlorizin in healthy volunteers: a preliminary study. J Sci Food Agric. 2015;95(3):560-8.

Zhang XY, Yi K, Chen J, et al. Purified phlorizin from DocynIa indica (Wall.) Decne by HSCCC, compared with whole extract, phlorizin and non-phlorizin fragment ameliorate obesity, insulin resistance, and improves intestinal barrier function in high-fat-diet-fed mice. Molecules. 2018;23(10). pii: E2701.

Ishida E, Kim-Muller JY, Accili D. Pair feeding, but not insulin, phloridzin, or rosiglitazone treatment, curtails markers of β-cell dedifferentiation in <em>db/db</em> mice. Diabetes. 2017;66(8):2092-2101.

Chao EC, Henry RR. SGLT2 inhibition--a novel strategy for diabetes treatment. Nat Rev Drug Discov. 2010;9(7):551-9.

CONDITIONS OF USE AND IMPORTANT INFORMATION: This information is meant to supplement, not replace advice from your doctor or healthcare provider and is not meant to cover all possible uses, precautions, interactions or adverse effects. This information may not fit your specific health circumstances. Never delay or disregard seeking professional medical advice from your doctor or other qualified health care provider because of something you have read on WebMD. You should always speak with your doctor or health care professional before you start, stop, or change any prescribed part of your health care plan or treatment and to determine what course of therapy is right for you.

This copyrighted material is licensed from Therapeutic Research Center, LLC. Information from this source is evidence-based and objective, and without commercial influence. For professional medical information on natural medicines, see Natural Medicines Comprehensive Database Professional Version.
Licensed from Therapeutic Research Center, LLC
Copyright © 1995-2025 by Therapeutic Research Center, LLC. All Rights Reserved.