You said in the Diabetes podcast that you had not researched and did not know of any studies about Berberine. Here is a link to 4 studies I found on the website Examine.com. An unbiased site about supplements.
https://examine.com/supplements/berberine/#hem-blood-glucose
We are aware of Berberine and neither of us said “we hadn’t researched” or “did not know of any studies on berberine”, just that it’s clinical efficacy is relatively controversial and not as well studied as other agents, such as metformin. There are likely hundreds of studies on berberine, though the weight of the evidence isn’t particularly compelling for its use over other agents (such as metformin) or additional lifestyle changes to our knowledge.
Thus, neither of us would recommend berberine for diabetes prevention or management based on the current data and other available agents.
Also, Examine is a great resource for supplements we agree, though one should be cautious of their clinical interpretations.
I was debating asking this one given the useless detail nature… but I saw several things saying the pathways for metformin and berberine to reduce blood glucose also reduce muscle protein synthesis and increase muscle breakdown. Obviously the importance of health if you are taking metformin is greater than optimal gainz, but if there are multiple drug or lifestyle options is this a consideration?