You're probably most familiar with cinnamon as a spice baked in rolls and pies and added to hot cereals and warm beverages such as apple cider. Cinnamon has traditional medical uses as well, including treatment of upset stomach, inflammation and arthritis. Cinnamon is promoted in some alternative health circles as effective for lowering high cholesterol. Consult a qualified health-care provider before combining medicinal amounts of the spice with cholesterol medicine.
Considerations
The effects of cinnamon on the way the body processes sugar and fat theoretically could reduce cholesterol levels, but evidence of this is scant, according to Mayo Clinic cardiologist Thomas Behrenbeck. Clinical studies with type 2 diabetic patients have had conflicting results in regard to the effect of cinnamon on blood sugar, although an analysis of research indicates that cinnamon and cinnamon extract may improve fasting blood sugar levels in these individuals, reports the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. Sloan-Kettering cites a study in which type 2 diabetic patients taking 1 g cinnamon extract three times per day for four months experienced a significantly greater decrease in fasting plasma glucose than a placebo group did, but no significant differences occurred in cholesterol or triglyceride levels.
Successful Result
In contrast, a study published in the December 2003 issue of Diabetes Care found benefits on cholesterol levels with an intake of only 1 g of cinnamon per day in people with type 2 diabetes. Reductions occurred not only in blood sugar but in low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, known as bad cholesterol, and in total cholesterol and triglyceride levels.
Interactions
Cinnamon is not generally indicated as interacting with medications, including cholesterol medicine, but ask your doctor about taking cinnamon capsules if you do take medicine to lower cholesterol. Because large amounts of the spice may lower blood sugar, be cautious if you take medication to regulate blood sugar. In addition, cinnamon contains coumarin, which has blood-thinning effects. This could increase the effects of any medicine you take with similar effects. Some of these medications include warfarin, heparin, aspirin and ibuprofen.
Other Recommendations
Although taking cinnamon capsules and cholesterol medicine together shouldn't cause any problems, it's unclear whether cinnamon adds any benefits for lowering cholesterol. Nevertheless, using cinnamon as a spice can be a healthy way of adding flavor to foods, particularly if you use it instead of sugar or salt, remarks Dr. Behrenbeck. He recommends other methods of reducing cholesterol, including losing weight if you are overweight, quitting smoking if you do smoke, exercising daily, and eating whole grains, fruits and vegetables, which are considered heart-healthy foods.
