A drug based on a chemical found in garlic can treat diabetes types I and II when taken as a tablet, according to a new study.

The drug was tested on mice with type 1 diabetes by scientists in Japan. They found that the combination of vanadium and allaxin, which is found in garlic, lowered blood glucose levels.

They had shown before that the combination worked when injected into mice.

Type 1 diabetes used to be commonly called juvenile onset and usually requires daily insulin injections. Type 2 more often occurs later as a result of lifestyle and eating habits.

The researchers said they want to test the drug in people in future work. Sometimes, medical discoveries in lab animals -- even those meant to mimic human biology -- do not translate to people.

The study appears in the new Royal Society of Chemistry journal Metallomics.