Submitted by Armen Hareyan on Sep 3rd, 2007
Cinnamon
For most of us, cinnamon is associated with baked goods or hot apple cider. Few realize this spice, from a small evergreen tree native to Sri Lanka and Southern India, dates back to biblical times. Fewer still are aware that both common and cassia cinnamon have been observed to have pharmacological and clinical effects.
Based on pre-clinical and clinical data, common and cassia cinnamon are well known for their medicinal properties in the treatment of type 2 diabetes. In animal studies, both common and cassia cinnamon have been shown to reduce blood glucose following a glucose tolerance test, with cassia was found to be superior to common cinnamon.
It has also been proposed that the antioxidant properties of common and cassia cinnamon may influence diabetic complications. In humans, three randomized controlled trials have been conducted on cassia and its effects on fasting glucose, glycosylated hemoglobin (HA1c) and lipid profile markers.
Source:
American Association of Naturopathic Physicians 