Cinnamon and Blood Sugar Levels

Cinnamon Lowers High Blood Sugar

Cinnamon bark  has been used for thousands of years for culinary and medicinal purposes in Sri Lanka, India, and the Middle East.

Recently, research has shown that Cinnamon bark can be helpful to lower blood sugar levels.  It  has been found to be effective in treating people who have type 2 diabetes.  People with this condition do not need to take injections of insulin, but are often taking oral antidiabetic medications and/or are following special diets:  this means that the test group in the research had a less severe type of diabetes than do those  people who need to take daily  insulin injections.

In the research cited by Dr Shaun Holt and Iona MacDonald, in the book entitled ‘ Natural Remedies That Really Work’, cinnamon bark was not given to people who had full blown diabetes.

Important note on Cinnamon Side Effects:   Pregnant women should avoid using cinnamon in large amounts such as is indicated in the study discussed here.  The active ingredient cinnamaldehyde, given  in large doses to pregnant animals,  has been found to cause damage to their offspring.  If you have blood sugar problems, or are on any medication, then you should not try the cinnamon experiment to lower your blood sugar levels without consulting your doctor or health professional.

In the study done on Cinnamon and Blood Sugar Levels, people with diabetes type 2 were tested:   part of the group was given a placebo, and the rest of the group were given  aqueous cinnamon extract in a dose which equalled about 3g of cinnamon powder daily. This dosage was continued for a period of four months.

The results were quite startling, with the best results seen in those diabetics who had the highest blood glucose levels.  At the end of the study, these people, who had taken the cinnamon daily and who had the highest blood sugar levels,  had the most dramatic reduction in blood glucose levels, whilst the test group who had taken the placebo had no change: It was concluded that  Cinnamon lowers blood sugar levels.

More on the  possible side effects of Cinnamon:  However, these authors warn about the side effects of cinnamon:  Cinnamon bark contains a compound called coumarin which can cause damage to the liver.  Whilst taking cinnamon as a condiment to food does not seem to cause any noticeable side effects, taking large amounts of cinnamon for long periods may be detrimental to the functioning of your liver.

There are two types of cinnamon available:  the best one to look out for is the Ceylon cinnamon, as this is the one which has the least amount of coumarin in it.  Cassia cinnamon is the type which contains large amounts of coumarin, and which is therefore best avoided in the use of home remedies of any kind.