The prevalence of obesity is associated with many health-related problems. Currently, more than 300 million people are consideredtobeobese.AccordingtotheWorldHealthOrganization(WHO),by2030,87and439millionpeoplewillbeaffected in India and the world, respectively. Today, herbal medicines are gaining interest in the treatment of obesity and diabetes, becauseoftheirminimalsideeffects.Gymnemicacid – anactivecomponentisolatedfromGymnemasylvestre – hasanti-obesity and antidiabetic properties, decreases body weight and also inhibits glucose absorption. Several components extracted from Gymnema prevent the accumulation of triglycerides in muscle and liver, and also decrease fatty acid accumulation in the circulation. In this paper, an attempt has been made to review the effects of various extracts from Gymnema sylvestre in the regulationofcarbohydrateandlipidmetabolisminbothanimalandclinicalstudies. c 2013SocietyofChemicalIndustry