Cinnamon and Type 2 Diabetics

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Cinnamon and Type 2 Diabetics
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Article review 1
“The Effect of Cinnamon on Type 2 Diabetes”
For long, cinnamon has been a common spice in cooking and baking. Researchers have found that cinnamon is not only delicious, it is also healthy. According to the diabetes association in the United States, approximately twenty one million people in the U.S. have diabetes, with around 90% having type 2 diabetes. The main fuel source in the body cells is sugar, in glucose form. Insulin is a hormone that allows glucose to enter the body cells. For individuals with type 2 diabetes, either the cells are resistant to insulin or the body does not produce enough insulin. This results in glucose building up in the blood and it does not enter the cells thus causing the cells to lack energy (Khan et al.). If this cycle persists, it may damage the heart, nerves, kidneys and eyes. A number of studies have shown that cinnamon can help improve blood glucose control for individuals with type 2 diabetes.
The search for diabetes treatments that are effective, especially for type 2 diabetes, is still a challenge for researchers despite their background. It is common knowledge that most of the medications used to treat this disease have significant side effects or have limited effectiveness. This challenge, together with an interest in complimentary and herbal medicine has led researchers to look for effective natural therapies, which have considerable effects on the blood sugar level.
Cinnamon, the mildly spicy and bitter cooking herb is a popular herbal treatment for individuals with type 2 diabetes since it is relatively inexpensive and is readily available. Since the original publication, various researchers have studied this herb and challenged the original findings. Additionally, other researchers suggest the type of cinnamon or how the extract is made is a significant factor in the effect that the herb might have on blood sugar. Furthermore, many studies focus on laboratory measures that are crucial in diabetes, but never fully account for risk; other studies suggest that cinnamon might have other benefits such as having antioxidant effects.
Cinnamon works for individuals with type 2 diabetes since it contains high levels of what is known as polyphenols. Polyphenols is the chemical arrangement of a whole class of compounds, which have high antioxidant activity, and this class of compounds is typically effective in reducing oxidative processes, which change lipids and fats into potent inflammatory compounds. However, it is not only cinnamon that has high levels of polyphenol; other foods or herbs that have high levels of this compound include darkly colored berries, green tea, dark chocolate, some nuts such as peanuts and red grapes. Some recent research suggests that, for better efficacy and safety, the compounds in cinnamon that are water soluble are the most effective, however, conclusive clinical research has not compared this extract to the whole herb.
Khan and his group of researchers were the first people to publish a significant clinical study analyzing cinnamon. In their trial, sixty participants from Pakistan took cinnamon cassia orally for forty days in three different doses of one, three or six grams in a day (Khan et al.). After a period of forty days, the researchers noted the significant reduction in cholesterol, fasting blood sugar and triglycerides, although the group getting the six grams daily had a larger percent reduction of blood glucose than those receiving one and three grams daily. One limitation in this research is that the results of the research might not be applicable for everyone with type 2 diabetes since the research was done in Pakistan and in that country, the intake of polyphenol is quite limited. Therefore, introducing dietary polyphenols to these individuals in such significant amounts might have different effects as compared to how it would affect individuals with more diverse intake of polyphenol compounds (Khan et al.). The other side of such a criticism is that individuals in Pakistan are somewhat medication naïve and consume fewer supplements, therefore, creating a fine “blank slate” for research, which avoids potential confounders.
The next research conducted by Mang and his group of researchers in 2006, analyzed a water-soluble extract of cinnamon, equivalent to three grams of the extract, and the research was conducted in seventy-nine participants suffering from type 2 diabetes and the trial lasted for four months. Although, by the end of the trial, the researchers noted a reduction in fasting glucose, the reductions were modest than those found by Khan and his group of researchers (Khan et al.).
Integrated Summary
The main idea of the article is that cinnamon affects glucose and cholesterol levels, which in turn affect the risk of type2 diabetes. The most important aspect of this article is that the tests occurred in both men and women randomly picked and given different levels of cinnamon intake. After consumption of the cinnamon capsules in 40 days, a washout period of 20 days followed. As earlier hypothesized cinnamon regulates the insulin, cascade system through control of glucose intake and regulate blood lipids. The procedures revealed that patients who took cinnamon had reduced glucose and cholesterol levels while there were minimal changes in the placebo group. Consequently, cinnamon is an effective ingredient that regulates both lipids and glucose, and ought to be included in diets to minimize the effects of risk factors in type diabetes. The main strength of the study is that it used three different doses of cinnamon, 1 g, 3g and 6 g which made the results conclusive. Nonetheless, the study did not look into the impact of dietary habits on cinnamon intake among the Pakistan patients. The main search terms included cinnamon and type 2 diabetes.
Reference
Khan, A., Khan, K., Mahpara, S., Anderson, R. and Khan, A. “Cinnamon Improves Glucose and
Lipids of People With Type 2 Diabetes.” Diabetes Care, 26.12 (2003): 3215-3218.(  HYPERLINK "http://care.diabetesjournals.org/content/26/12/3215.full.pdf" http://care.diabetesjournals.org/content/26/12/3215.full.pdf)
Article review 2
“Cinnamon usefulness on Type 2 Diabetes”
By the end of 2006, evaluating the effectiveness of this extract would have led researchers to assess it as not effective because of rather small and variable fasting glucose reductions across studies. However, in 2007, Altschuler and his group of researchers published the first clinical trial of cinnamon for participants ailing from type 1 diabetes. During this trial, seventy two adolescents were randomized to receive placebo or one gram of cinnamon daily for a period of three months (Altschuler et al.). After the end of this period, no changes in insulin sensitivity, hemoglobin A1c or daily use of insulin (units per day). In fact, the use of insulin actually increased in the group that was using cinnamon. It is vital to differentiate this research from the other researchers discussed above. Type 1 and type 2 diabetes are two very different conditions with different pathogenesis and causative factors. It might be possible that polyphenols in cinnamon have an effect on insulin only when it is in the presence of considerable insulin resistance.
In the hopes of dealing with the limitations of the other trials, specifically the population used in the studies, in 2007 Blevins and his group of researchers published the findings of their clinical trial that was performed in the U.S (Altschuler et al). In their research, sixty individuals ailing from type 2 diabetes and extremely stable medications were unsystematically assigned to take placebo or one gram of cinnamon per day for three months. At the end of this period, there were no considerable changes in hemoglobin A1c, fasting glucose, insulin sensitivity, insulin or lipid values. It was worthy to note that a significant percentage of those participating in the trial were still taking medications for sensitizing insulin that may have outdone any modest reaction that they might have had from the cinnamon extract (Altschuler et al.).
Researchers have been analyzing a couple of strong natural agents, which can help in stabilizing the blood sugar of a diabetic and cinnamon is among the viable contenders in the battle against diabetes (Altschuler et al.). One of its most impressive benefits in the health of a diabetic is its ability get better the control of glucose in blood. For example, just a small amount of cinnamon (half a teaspoon) a day has been shown to considerably reduce triglycerides, blood sugar levels and cholesterol levels in individuals ailing from type 2 diabetes. However, the more one utilizes natural therapies such as exercise and nutrition, the better that individual’s health will be. However, even though this supplement might be helpful, diabetics are advised not to mistake it for a cure since it is not a substitute for proper lifestyle choices and diet.
Cinnamon can be beneficial for diabetics in that it can increase an individual’s glucose metabolism and significantly improve blood sugar regulation. It has also been found that this supplement has insulin-like effects because of a bioactive compound thus qualifying it as contender as an insulin substitute. Additionally, this supplement slows down the emptying of the stomach to minimize the sharp rises in the levels of blood sugar after meals thus improving the sensitivity or effectiveness of insulin. Furthermore, this supplement actually enhances the antioxidant defenses. A research published in 2009 shows that polyphenols found in cinnamon can be of special interest to individuals who are overweight and have impaired fasting glucose because they may act as both antioxidants and insulin sensitizers (Altschuler et al.). The bioflavonoid present in Cinnamon known as proanthocyanidin might alter the activity of insulin signalling found in the fat cells of the body. Besides being helpful to diabetics, cinnamon has other health benefits that are excellent for any individual. The benefits include supporting the digestive function, relieving stiffness and pain of joints and muscles, relieving congestion and reducing the symptoms and inflammation of ...