Cinnamon has been used for thousands of years in traditional Chinese medicine and ayurveda for a myriad of illnesses, including coughs and colds. In the disease of diabetes, sugar -- or glucose -- metabolized from food doesn't move properly from the bloodstream into the cells; this causes it to build up in the blood. Some herbalists and natural healers advise cinnamon to lower blood sugar; scientific research has yielded mixed results. In some studies cinnamon was significantly more effective than a placebo; in others, it was ineffective. Consult your doctor before using cinnamon.
Features
Cinnamon -- botanically known as Cinnamomum verum, cinnamomum cassia and cinnamomum zeylanicum -- is a tropical plant with rough, elongated leaves and fragrant bark, which is stripped and dried to obtain the spice. Native to Sri Lanka, southeastern India, Indonesia and the West Indies, cinnamon has been employed for culinary, aromatic and herbal use since 2000 B.C. It has been used in traditional and folk medicine as an antiseptic, as well as to treat bacterial, fungal and viral infections, diarrhea, and dysmenorrhea.
Constituents and Effects
Cinnamon contains terpenes, eugenol, trans-cinnamic acid, limonene, tannins, mucilage and trace amounts of coumarin. Between 65 and 80 percent of the essential oil is composed of a compound called cinnamaldehyde. Drugs.com -- which provides peer-reviewed medical information to consumers -- credits cinnamon with antioxidant and potent antifungal effects, as well as anti-inflammatory properties in test tube studies. Blue Shield Complementary and Alternative Health reports that cinnamon may enhance the action of insulin, but notes that this hasn't been clinically proven.
Research
Research on cinnamon's blood sugar-lowering abilities has yielded conflicting results. In a placebo-controlled study published in 2003 in "Diabetes Care," people with type 2 diabetes were given either placebo or varying doses of cinnamon daily for 40 days. The cinnamon group experienced significant reduction in blood sugar levels, as well as reductions in triglycerides and harmful LDL cholesterol. Five years later, in a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials published in 2008 in "Diabetes Care," the authors analyzed the results of five different trials that measured the effect of cinnamon on fasting blood sugar levels of diabetics, and concluded that cinnamon caused no improvement. Three years later, in a meta-analysis that included three newer trials, the authors concluded that cinnamon does improve fasting blood glucose in people with type 2 diabetes or prediabetes. Blue Shield Complementary and Alternative Health theorizes that variables such as differing weight, type of cinnamon used, and use of oral medications in the population studied may account for the conflicting results of studies and reviews.
Usage and Considerations
Ground cinnamon was used in clinical studies at dosages of 1 to 1.5 g a day. Cinnamon is considered generally safe when used as a food, but side effects such as bronchial constriction and skin irritation have been reported, as well as allergies to cinnamon. Cinnamon can interact with prescription medications, and may cause blood sugar to drop excessively when taken with blood sugar-lowering drugs such as insulin. Consult your doctor before using cinnamon.
References
- Drugs.com: Complete Cinnamon Information
- Blue Shield Complementary and Alternative Health: Cinnamon
- Diabetes Health; Cinnamon; Laura Shane-McWhorter, PharmD, BCPS; November 2004
- "Diabetes Care"; Cinnamon Improves Glucose And Lipids Of People With Type 2 Diabetes; A. Khan et al.; December 2003
- "Diabetes Care"; Effect of Cinnamon On Glucose Control And Lipid Parameters; W. L. Baker et al.; January 2008
- "Journal of Medicinal Foods"; Cinnamon Intake Lowers Fasting Blood Glucose: Meta-Analysis; P.A. Davis and W. Yokoyama; April 2011
