The team from the UWS Centre for Complementary Medicine Research, at the Campbelltown campus, reviewed a number of clinical trials that suggested people who took Chinese herbs were able to delay the onset of ``full blown'' diabetes.

The study, led by UWS PhD candidate Suzanne Grant, was carried out in April 2008 and March this year in conjunction with the Beijing University of Chinese Medicine.

Ms Grant said her study of 16 clinical trials suggested positive results but more research was needed to ``confidently say that these treatments work''.

``We know that people use herbs to treat diabetes and pre-diabetes in China but we don't have a lot of hard evidence to know if it's effective or not,'' she told the Advertiser. ``We'd like to get more funding to put into more high quality, vigorous research.''

Ms Grant said the Chinese herbs used in the trials included ginseng, coptis and astragalus they were taken in either tea, powder of capsule form. ``We found you're more than twice as likely to have your blood glucose level return to normal (if you use herbs),'' she said. ``I use them in my clinic. They delay the onset of diabetes for five to 10 years before having to go onto other medication.''