A Systematic Review of the Effects of Saccharomyces boulardii on Diabetes Mellitus in Experimental Mice Models

Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a chronic disease characterised by chronic hyperglycaemia due to a defect in the production of or cell insensitivity to insulin. If left untreated, it might result in severe side effects such retinal, nephropathy, neuropathy, and cardiovascular disease. Extensive research has been made to develop more effective and less expensive alternatives to existing treatment regimes. This review aims to evaluate research done thus far to test the effect of Saccharomyces boulardii (S. boulardii or Sb) in treating DM and its complications. Searches were conducted using Scopus, Web of Science, PubMed and Google Scholar on 26 July 2025. Overall, 227 articles were identified, and 5 fulfilled the inclusion criteria. Results extracted were from two models of diabetes (type 1 and 2) and two strains of Sb. In type 1 diabetes models, a significant reduction in glycaemia was observed, while in type 2 diabetes models, a non-significant effect was noted, depending on the strain used. Furthermore, an improvement in cardiac function was observed through reduced heart rate variability, a decrease in blood pressure, an increase in C-peptide and hepatic glycogen stores, enhanced liver healing, a nephroprotective effect, as well as a reduction in oxidative stress, blood triglyceride levels, and the inflammatory response. Administration of Sb induced positive modulation of the intestinal microbiota, with a decrease in pathobionts in the stools. Overall, the few studies evaluated indicate that the use of Sb appears to be a promising approach to improve the management of diabetes and its associated metabolic and related complications. The protocol of this review is registered in PROSPERO under ID CRD420251012919.