Can cinnamon help maintain glucose in those with prediabetes?

There have been several studies over the past decade to determine the efficacy of using cinnamon supplements to regulate blood sugars. Most of the studies found either no significant change or slight changes.

For example, a 2013 study of 70 different participants found that those who took 1 gram of cinnamon daily showed no significant changes over 30 or 60 days.

However, a recent study found that cinnamon supplements may be beneficial over time for improving glucose homeostasis in prediabetes.

This study, conducted by Giulio R. Romeo, MD, from the Joslin Diabetes Center in Boston, and Dr. Romeo’s colleagues spanned over 12 weeks across 45 participants who met the criteria for prediabetes. These participants, who were not taking a placebo, took 500mg of cinnamon supplements a day to see the impact on glucose control.

The Results

From a similar baseline, FPG rose after 12 weeks with placebo but remained stable with cinnamon, leading to a mean between-group difference of 5 mg/dL (P<0.05). When compared to the respective baseline, cinnamon, but not placebo, resulted in a significant decrease of the AUC PG (P<0.001) and of the 2-hr PG of the OGTT (P<0.05). There were no serious adverse events in either study group.

Their study found that fasting plasma glucose (FPG) rose for those who took the placebo. For those who took cinnamon supplements, their area over the curve (AUC) plasma glucose (PG) decreased along with their 2 hour PG by oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT).

The results suggest that over time, a cinnamon supplement of 500mg a day may help blood glucose levels for those with prediabetes.

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