Besides Bitter Melon? Try brussel sprouts. And the book
www.deathtodiabetes.com for his veggy recommendations. I personally don't bother with the alternatives because bitter melon is too common in our markets and the "alternatives" are all foreign to me. Although cinnamon is also available here.
The tip is to eat everything of the bitter melon fruit. The whole fruit including the seeds to get the full benefits.
I learned about bitter melon from my customer
http://www.charantia.com since 2002.
They sell the tea form and are quite popular in the Philippines.
Bitter melon tastes great for a good % of people. It's my maternal grandma's favorite vegetable but actually it is a fruit. In food stalls you will encounter cooked bitter melon which and vegetable vendors always sell it so there is a sizable number of the population who actually eats this stuff.
For me, it is an acquired taste, the more you munch on it the more you like it.
But for healing purposes, say you are already diabetic, just juice it and throw away the fiber so you get all the nutrition.
Back to my customer, this stuff really works and is well known among holistic doctors here in Manila. So my customer had the idea of processing it in a way and making it into tea and it still is effective. If you get the "loose leaf" tea version, you can rehydrate it and see that they are slices of the real fruit including the seeds.
We did a lot of website marketing for their USA branch a few years back. We were quite successful that the US FDA took notice and RAIDED the US office and confiscated thousands of dollars of dried bitter melon stock. Man, you USA people live in a communist country who does not care about the health of your people. You cannot ban a FRUIT! In favor of drugs! Yet your FDA does so.
The USA branch has recovered under new management so you can buy the tea version if you don't like the taste of the real raw fruit or you cannot find it in your market
http://www.charanteausa.com/The manufacturer here in the Philippines says the most potent is the one closest to the raw fruit... and that is the loose leaf. Then the tea bags. Then the capsules. They have to cater to your market since the USA market is used to taking capsules instead of food.
The owner here says his problem is keeping people hooked on the tea. Because quite a good % realize a few months later that they don't need the tea any more and can live without it. AKA... CURED!
Shout cured to the heavens because Filipinos are a rice crazy bunch. Too much carbs!
For those interested in the boring studies, go to
http://www.charanteausa.com/bittermelonstudies/Here is a Chinese looking guy who also cured his diabetes by juicing bitter melon.
It's the same old Pharma is B.S. story. I most certainly hope and expect all raw paleo dieters are drug free.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZqQe26hNF1s