Abstract: Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a highly prevalent chronic disease characterized pathologically by impaired glucose homeostasis, which poses a serious threat to human health. Its major pathogenic mechanisms involve insulin deficiency, insulin resistance, and abnormally enhanced hepatic gluconeogenesis. Although traditional synthetic hypoglycemic drugs have definite efficacy, their long-term use may cause side effects such as gastrointestinal discomfort and burden on the liver and kidneys. Therefore, safe and effective natural hypoglycemic alternatives have attracted considerable attention. Sweet tea integrates the functions of “tea, sugar, and medicine” and contains a variety of bioactive components, including rubusoside, flavonoids, and polyphenols. It has long been used in folk medicine to prevent metabolic diseases such as diabetes. Modern studies have further confirmed that sweet tea possesses hypoglycemic, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and other biological activities. Therefore, this review systematically summarizes the process of glucose metabolism and the core pathogenic mechanisms of diabetes and elaborates on the hypoglycemic effects and molecular mechanisms of bioactive components in sweet tea, aiming to provide a theoretical basis for the development of sweet tea-based functional foods or drugs with hypoglycemic properties.

Key words: sweet tea; natural active ingredients; diabetes mellitus; glucose metabolism; insulin resistance