Objective To compare the effect of staple food made from edible and medical plants and traditional plants on 2-hour postprandial blood glucose (2h-PBG, after breakfast) in the patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Methods A total of 150 patients with T2DM admitted in the Department of Endocrinology of our hospital from September 2012 to February 2013 were included in this study. They were 80 males and 70 females, at an age of (60.5±13.2) years, and randomly allocated into 3 groups (n=50), that is, corn group, buckwheat group and edible medicine group. All subjects were given standard meals for T2DM on the first day, and then from the second day, the steamed vegetable buns in their breakfast were replaced by same weighted steam breads made of corn flour, buckwheat flour and dozens of edible and medical plants respectively for the corresponding groups. There were no other differences in the lunch and supper, or clinical treatments. The fasting blood glucose (FBG) and 2h-PBG before and after intervention were measured, and the sensory value was evaluated by the participants at the end of the study. SPSS statistics 18.0 was used to analyze the data. Paired t test, group t test, one-way analysis of variance or Chi-square test were employed for the comparison between groups, and Student-Newman-Keuls test for intergroup comparison. Results There was no significant difference in FBG in the 3 groups before and after eating steamed breads (P=0.217; P=0.986). Compared with before intervention, the 2h-PBG level was decreased after intervention in buckwheat group,though without obvious difference [(9.00±2.43) vs(9.71±3.09)mmol/L,P＞0.05], but the decrease was more obvious difference in the edible medicine group [(7.82±2.52) vs(9.96±2.33)mmol/L,P＜0.05]. The level was notably lower in the edible medicine group than the the other 2 groups(P=0.011). Compared with corn and buckwheat group, there was statistic difference in edible medicine group about colour and lustre,smell,flavour,toughness and taste, but the total value was no difference among the 3 staple foods(P＞0.05). Conclusion The staple food made from edible and medical plants is superior to traditional corn and buckwheat breads in controlling blood glucose.