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The Effect of Cinnamon on Diabetes

Some nutrition researchers claim that cinnamon can help diabetics lower their glucose and cholesterol levels. Those findings have generated a lot of interest among people looking for a natural way to control their diabetes, especially because heart disease is the leading cause of death for diabetics. Other studies, however, have produced less-promising results, finding instead that cinnamon has little or no effect on diabetes.

  1. Function

    • Research suggests that cinnamon mimics insulin's ability to lower blood glucose levels by converting glucose to glycogen, which the body stores. In a study done on rats, cinnamon increased the supply of a compound called IRS-1, which controls how much glucose the muscles take in. Another study suggested that cinnamon increases the function of GLUT-4, a transporter protein that removes glucose from the bloodstream and sends it to tissues.

    History

    • In 2003, nutrition researcher Alam Khan and colleagues at NWFP University in Peshawar, Pakistan, published a study in the journal Diabetes Care suggesting that cinnamon could benefit diabetics. The researchers concluded that people with type 2 diabetes who ate a small amount of cinnamon daily lowered both their blood glucose and overall cholesterol levels.

    Other Studies

    • Other researchers tried to duplicate Kahn's findings. In 2006, German scientists conducted a similar study and found no difference in blood glucose, triglycerides or LDL or HDL cholesterol levels. The subjects who ate cinnamon did show slightly lower fasting glucose levels than those who took a placebo. Another 2006 study on post-menopausal women with type 2 diabetes did not find any significant benefits from cinnamon.

    Overall Study

    • In 2008, William L. Baker and colleagues at the University of Connecticut and Hartford Hospital analyzed all the published data on cinnamon's effect on diabetes. In an article in Diabetes Care, they concluded that cinnamon does not improve blood glucose, fasting glucose or cholesterol levels in people with diabetes, whether type 1 or type 2.

    Considerations

    • The American Diabetes Association says cinnamon has no benefit for people with diabetes. Instead, it recommends treating the disease with proper medication, diet and exercise. Other concerns about cinnamon include side effects such as diarrhea. Cinnamon can also inhibit blood's ability to clot because it contains a natural blood thinner called coumarin. Finally, in high doses, cinnamon can be poisonous.

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