A method for treating a fungal infection is disclosed. The method includes administering to a patient a pharmaceutical composition containing a compound of formula (IA): ##STR1## where each R is independently H, OH, Br, Cl, I, amino, thiol, nitro, C.sub.1-4 alkoxy, C.sub.1-4 alkenyloxy, C.sub.2-6 alkoxyalkyleneoxy, C.sub.1-4 alkylthio, C.sub.3-18 alkyl, or C.sub.3-18 alkenyl; or two adjacent R's, taken together, are a C.sub.2-18 bivalent moiety containing at least one oxgen atom, substituted or disubstituted with A or B or both, A being H, OH, Br, Cl, I, amino, or thiol, and B being H, C.sub.1-10 alkyl, C.sub.2-18 alkenyl, or C.sub.6-18 aryl; provided at least two Rs are not H; X is C.sub.4-10 alkyl, C.sub.4-20 alkenyl, or a C.sub.4-20 single, C.sub.6-20 bridged, or C.sub.6-20 fused ring moiety containing cycloalkyl, cycloalkenyl, aryl, heterocycle, or heteroaryl, where X is substituted with H, OH, Cl, Br, I, amino, cyano, nitro, alkyl, alkoxy, alkenyl, or alkenyloxy; provided that if X is a heteroaryl or heterocyclic moiety where two Rs are each OH and meta to each other, then the remaining R is H and ortho to each of the two hydroxyls, and Y and Z are each O and a ring atom of X is linked directly to the sp.sup.2 carbon atom adjacent to X, then substituted with H, OH, Cl, Br, I, amino, cyano, alkyl, alkoxy, alkenyl, or alkenyloxy; and each of Y and Z is independently selected from O, S, and NH; or a pharmaceutically acceptable salt or ester thereof.

Novel piperidine compounds are provided, and those compounds are useful in the treatment and/or prevention of diabetes, and especially non-insulin dependent diabetes (NIDDM or type 2 diabetes) including overnight or meal treatment and treatment or prevention of longterm complications, such as retinopathy, neuropathy, nephropathy, and micro- and macroangiopathy; treatment of hyperglycemia, hypercholesterolemia, hypertension, hyperinsulinemia, hyperlipidemia, atherosclerosis or myocardial ischemia.