Four Indonesian students have won gold medals at the 10^th International Exhibition of Inventions (IEI) and third World Invention and Innovation Forum (WIIF) in Fochan, China.

Under the guidance of Setho Hadiyusmana, a lecturer at Unair, the students – Novia Tri Handika, Indriani Dwi Wulandari, Nurul Hidayati and Neisya Pratiwindya Sudarsiwi of Airlangga University's (Unair) Nursing Department – developed a therapeutic tea made for those suffering from type 2 diabetes, which won them the top prize.

At the event, which drew 300 participants from around the world, the students also won a special award from Thailand.

Read also: Indonesian student wins gold at international arts festival 

Novia said the idea came after hearing about complaints from the community about the high cost of diabetes treatment.

"The team and I were inspired to make alternative treatments that are relatively cheap but still safe," Novia said as quoted by kompas.com.

It took them around five months to develop the product and make successful prototypes. They named the innovation Albedo Romin Tea.

"We utilize watermelon epidermis, which contains citruline compounds that can reduce blood sugar levels," Novia said.

Citruline is a chemical compound that helps in the production of insulin in the liver, which helps reduce blood sugar levels.

The addition of rosella petals that contain flavonoids can work to fight free radicals and help improve the performance of pancreatic beta cells, which are producers of insulin.

"The tea consists of three ingredients, 50 percent of which comes from watermelon skin, 30 percent from rosella and 20 percent from jasmine, so it's a tea bag," Indri said. (liz/kes)