April 11, 2006 – Cinnamon and cloves may help prevent and treat diabetes. At least that’s what chemists in a research laboratory of the US Department of Agriculture claim.
These spices may indeed increase insulin sensitivity and improve carbohydrate metabolism in people with type 2 diabetes, according to their research results presented at a recent Experimental Biology Symposium in San Francisco, USA. United States. The trial was conducted in 36 patients with type 2 diabetes with clove extract.
Richard A. Anderson, the principal investigator, and his colleagues have already demonstrated, in 20031, that a cinnamon extract could lower blood sugar from 18% to 29%, triglyceride levels from 23% to 30%, “bad cholesterol” (LDL) from 7% to 27% and total cholesterol by 12% to 26% of subjects with type 2 diabetes. They had conducted their trial with 60 patients who received either 1 g, 3 g or 6 g of extract, or a placebo. Beneficial effects were seen in subjects taking cinnamon extract at any dose, while no effects were reported in those taking placebo.
“Our work indicates that it is the polyphenols in cinnamon that produce these effects and, according to preliminary results, the same is true for cloves,” explains Richard A. Anderson. According to him, these spices, which do not provide calories, can be useful for people with diabetes, but also for those with metabolic syndrome. This syndrome combines different symptoms such as high insulin and cholesterol levels, hypertension and excess weight which can predispose to type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disorders.
“These spices can definitely help prevent blood sugar and lipid profile disorders in healthy people,” he adds.
Since the early 1990s2, Richard A. Anderson and his colleagues seek to validate, according to the criteria of modern science, the hypothesis of Ayurvedic medicine – traditional medicine of India – that certain spices, including cinnamon, cloves and turmeric, would be beneficial for the metabolism of carbohydrates and for the cardiovascular system, damaged in diabetics.
Pierre Lefrançois – PasseportSanté.net
According to HealthDay News and Eurekalert.
1. Khan A, Safdar M, Ali Khan MM, et al. Cinnamon improves glucose and lipids of people with type 2 diabetes.Diabetes Care. 2003 Dec; 26 (12): 3215-8.
2. Khan A, Bryden NA, et al. Insulin potentiating factor and chromium content of selected foods and spices.Biol Trace Elem Res. 1990 Mar; 24 (3): 183-8.
