Apple cider vinegar proponents claim that drinking 1 to 3 teaspoons of vinegar daily prior to meals benefits health and helps you lose weight. According to DrWeil.com, consuming apple cider vinegar, like any type of vinegar, can slow down the process of gastric emptying and dull carbohydrates' effect on your blood sugar levels, but maintaining or losing weight requires a healthy diet and regular physical activity.
Cholesterol Levels
Consuming apple cider vinegar could affect your cholesterol levels, especially if you have diabetes, according to research published in the December 2008 issue of the "Pakistan Journal of Biological Sciences." F. Shishehbor and colleagues fed diabetic and healthy laboratory rats daily doses of apple cider vinegar for a month. Although the rats' blood sugar levels remained unchanged, the diabetic rats had significantly lower hemoglobin A1c levels -- lower levels indicate better blood sugar control -- after 4 weeks. After consuming apple cider vinegar, diabetic rats also had reduced triglycerides, a form of fat in the blood; high levels of triglycerides increase the risk of heart disease. Healthy rats fed vinegar exhibited significantly reduced levels of low-density lipoprotein, the "bad" form of cholesterol, and increased levels of high-density lipoprotein, the "good" type of cholesterol.
Other Effects
Supporters claim that consuming apple cider vinegar relieves the stiffness of arthritis, reduces acne and improves high blood pressure, but there is no significant research indicating that apple cider vinegar produces these effects, DrWeil.com states.
Weight Loss
No evidence exists that apple cider vinegar helps dieters lose weight, according to DrWeil.com. Only one research study, published in the July 2009 issue of the "Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry," suggests that consuming vinegar could reduce the accumulation of body fat, Weil states. Katherine Zeratsky, R.D., a nutritionist from MayoClinic.com, agrees that science does not support the use of apple cider vinegar for weight loss. In fact, consuming the acid in vinegar before meals may irritate your throat or interfere with other medicines you take, such as diabetes drugs or diuretics.
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