Is Cinnamon Good for Diabetes?

Cinnamon has been valued for its culinary uses but also for its medicinal properties throughout the ages. Cinnamon is rich in anti-oxidants and has anti-inflammatory effects which are beneficial for health. In particular many research studies have shown that cinnamon helps lower blood sugar in people with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and/or insulin resistance (1).

How Does Cinnamon Lower Blood Sugar?

Cinnamon is derived from the inner bark of cinnamon trees. While it is widely used in the food industry it has been used both preventively and therapeutically for various conditions, including metabolic syndrome, insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes, hyperlipidemia, heart health and arthritis. The mechanism by which cinnamon lowers glucose (sugar) is the result of its action at different levels of the insulin-signaling pathway. Here are the details:

Cinnamon activates the insulin receptor and improves insulin sensitivity.

Think of insulin as a key, and our cells have a special lock called the insulin receptor. The receptor is like a team of four players, two are on the outer side, and two are inside. When insulin (the key) fits into the outer part, it activates the inside players, making them tag each other with a signal (autophosphorylation), telling the cell it’s time to work. Glucose needs insulin in order to enter the cell, without insulin levels of glucose rise in the blood leading to elevated blood sugars. Therefore, this process is vital for glucose uptake. Cinnamtannin B1, found in Ceylon cinnamon’s bark, activates the receptor team (triggers the phosphorylation of the insulin receptor β-subunit) on fat cells and other insulin receptors (2). These actions make the insulin receptor more active, which improves how sensitive the body is to insulin (increasing insulin sensitivity makes it work better).

Cinnamon reduces carbohydrate metabolism.

The active compounds in cinnamon, such as cinnamaldehyde and water-soluble polyphenol polymers, have shown anti-diabetic effects in animal and clinical studies. Cinnamon compounds have been shown to inhibit carbohydrate metabolism (via regulation of alpha-glucosidase and alpha-amylase among other gut enzymes). Therefore, by slowing down the breakdown of carbohydrates into glucose, cinnamon regulates blood sugar levels after meals (lowers post meal sugar spikes) (3).

In a model of diabetic rats cinnamaldehyde was fed to diabetic rats and caused a significant reduction of plasma glucose and increased insulin levels. The authors concluded that cinnamaldehyde increases insulin secretion from the cells in the pancreas that secrete insulin (increased insulin production from the pancreatic β cells) resulting in a reduction of glucose levels (4).

Cinnamon promotes glucose uptake by cells.

Here is how:

1. Cinnamon increases GLUT4 expression and translocation.
   • GLUT4 is like a special taxi that carries sugar to our muscles and fat. Insulin, a helper hormone, guides this taxi from inside the cell to the outer membrane (outer shell). But in diabetes, where insulin does not work well, there are not enough of these taxis (GLUT4) and the taxis canʻt make it to the cell membrane (not enough GLUT4 and not enough GLUT4 translocation). Cinnamon changes this by both increasing the amount of GLUT4 and it increases its movement to the outer cell membrane (5, 6).
2. Cinnamon increases GLUT1 activity.
   • GLUT-1 is like a door on our cells that lets glucose inside. Scientists are not sure exactly how this door opens. In some in vitro experiments (L 929 fibroblast cells), they found that cinnamaldehyde makes this door work better when they add more of it. It’s like cinnamaldehyde helps open the door to let in more sugar when needed.

Antioxidant Activity

Safety

It’s important to note that while cinnamon can be a healthy addition to your diet, consuming excessive amounts may not be advisable. Stick to moderate amounts like what you would use in your cooking or as a seasoning and always discuss supplement use with your medical provider. The studies to date demonstrate that doses of 500 mg-6 g per day are safe for human consumption (under 1 tbsp). Most of the studies published have utilized commercially available powdered forms of cinnamon. It is worth nothing that different clinical trials used different preparations of cinnamon. In human subjects, Cinnamomum cassia is the only species of cinnamon that has been used and true cinnamon or Cinnamomum zeylanicum has not been studied (though the studies using animals and in vitro models are in accordance with the results obtained in people with Cinnamomum cassia).

Conclusions

Studies have shown that both cinnamon powder and cinnamon extract can help improve how cells process glucose. This happens through various mechanisms, like making the insulin receptor work better, increasing the production of GLUT-4 receptors which help move glucose into cells, slowing down the breakdown of carbohydrates in the pancreas and intestines, and reducing oxidative stress. While the data is not exactly robust (more well designed studies with more people are needed), there is plentiful evidence to suggest that cinnamon has the potential to be used alongside with conventional and evidence-based complementary approaches in diabetes management.

Useful Links About Excess Sugars

• WebMD: Does Cinnamon Help Diabetes?
• Healthline: How Cinnamon Lowers Blood Sugar
• American Diabetes Association: Cinnamon Improves Glucose and Lipids