Cinnamon and Blood Sugar

Cinnamon is widely known in the herbal community as an easy addition to most lifestyles trying to lower blood sugar. Cassia cinnamon or chinese cinnamon is what most people have sitting in their spice cabinet. So the question is how does cinnamon lower blood sugar? A study was published in 2019 studying the details of this exact question.

The chemicals responsible for the blood glucose regulations are known as cinnamaldehyde and Procyanidin type-A. The chemical structures can be seen below. Different species of cinnamon have different levels of cinnamaldehyde. Chinese cinnamon has the most and Ceylon cinnamon the least. This is important later with dosing.

cinnamaldehyde

Procyanidin type-A

The main action that cinnamon is commonly known for its insulin regulation on insulin resistance and on preprandial (fasting) blood glucose. Cinnamon has also been shown to mimic insulin in the body. The way cinnamon mimics insulin is quite interesting. It can activate kinase (an insulin receptor), autophosphorylation of insulin receptors, raise the uptake of glucose (the sugar molecule in the blood) in the body. It can also activate glycogen synthesis activity. Even simply making a water infusion of the bark can enhance signaling pathways of insulin. So just in layman’s terms it does a really good job at making sure blood sugar is regulated and raises insulin sensitivity. In fact the study published in 2019 discussed cinnamon also has high levels of polyphenolic compounds. These are also found in green tea. They are known to minimize oxidative stress and aids in the correction of glucose levels in a fasting state.

Polyphenolic compounds (Catechin compounds)

Cinnamon is an easy addition to any lifestyle to help in the regulation of blood sugars. This however comes with a caveat. Those who are type one diabetic should not consume clinical amounts of cinnamon, nor should it replace medical insulin. The clinical dosage described in the study is 500 mg/dl for 12 weeks. According to herbalist the daily dosage for an adult is 2-4g per day.

Sources and more information:

4th Edition Herbs and Natural Supplements: an evidence-based guide by Leslie Braun and Marc Cohen

Kizilaslan, Nildem, and Nihal Zekiye Erdem. “The Effect of Different Amounts of Cinnamon Consumption on Blood Glucose in Healthy Adult Individuals.” International journal of food science vol. 2019 4138534. 4 Mar. 2019, doi:10.1155/2019/4138534

Lu, Ting et al. “Cinnamon extract improves fasting blood glucose and glycosylated hemoglobin level in Chinese patients with type 2 diabetes.” Nutrition research (New York, N.Y.) vol. 32,6 (2012): 408-12. doi:10.1016/j.nutres.2012.05.003

This is for educational purposes only. Not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. This statement isn't evaluated by the FDA.