One of the ways is to inject alloxan into rats. See
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alloxan last paragraph.

Alloxan is also an added ingredient in white flour despite it's known
diabetes connection. See http://www.newstarget.com/008191.html

Alloxan may not be the only way to produce diabetic rats though.



Marv Graham wrote:

> An internet article I received contained this:
>
> A study published in the May 10, 2006 issue of the European Journal of
> Pharmacology (http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/00142999)
> <http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/00142999%29> found
> that diabetic rats given the antioxidants vitamin E or melatonin
> experienced less impairment of memory and learning compared to untreated
> diabetic rats. The finding provides support for the theory that oxidative
> stress is a culprit in cognitive impairment that occurs with diabetes.
>
> My question is: what do the researchers do to "produce" diabetic rats?
>