Health & Fitness Tips: Spice Up Your Life With Nutritious Cinnamon

Even if The Spice Girls aren’t your cup of tea, here’s a nutritious way to add some spice to your life: Good, old-fashioned, great-tasting cinnamon! Yes, you can get great health benefits just by sprinkling on the same spice that made mom’s kitchen smell so homey and delish.

Awesome Cinnamon Stats

One Teaspoon cinnamon provides

- 28 mg of calcium
- Over 1g fiber
- Almost 1mg iron
- A good amount of Vitamins C, K as well as manganese

Cinnamon Also Offers:

- Anti-inflammatory properties
- Favorable effects on brain and memory function
- Soothes stomach upset and helps prevent ulcers
- Reduces bacteria that causes urinary tract infections and fungus that can cause nasty yeast infections

Cinnamon For Diabetes

Studies show cinnamon may prevent and help treat Type 2 diabetes and insulin resistance. As little as ½ tsp of cinnamon per day can improve insulin sensitivity and blood glucose control. Cinnamon’s active ingredient, proanthocyanidin works to activate insulin receptors allowing cells to use energy from sugar- biochemically the same reaction as insulin!

Because cinnamon can intensify the effect of insulin medication, talk to your doctor before using cinnamon if you are already being treated for Type 2 diabetes.

Cinnamon For Weight Loss and to Decrease Risk of Heart Disease

Heart Disease: Studies document improvement in blood sugar, triglycerides and LDL cholesterol with consumption of only ½ tspn of cinnamon a day.

Weight Control Cinnamon can fight obesity by helping prevent the blood sugar highs (and subsequent lows), which often lead to binges on sugary food. What’s more, by preventing the insulin resistance that often accompanies obesity, cinnamon can help prevent “Metabolic Syndrome” also known as pre-diabetes.

Use Caution With Supplements

Unless you are allergic, it’s unlikely that you’ll have an adverse reaction to cinnamon if you are simply adding a few dashes to your cooking. But be aware that cinnamon supplements can cause negative reactions such as skin rash or mouth or stomach irritation.
Also, high doses of cinnamon can have a blood-thinning effect, especially when combined with other medications.

Winning Cinnamon Combos

Cinnamon is extremely versatile and the taste appeals to adults and kids alike. Here are some of my favorite ways to get my daily ½ tspn:

- Add to oatmeal along with stevia and some plump raisins ( imagine a bowlful of oatmeal cookie taste!), a dash in a strawberry smoothie or protein shake, sprinkle on apple slices and dip in a tablespoon of almond butter, top yogurt or cottage cheese, in muffin batter, on toast along with a dash of stevia (just like mom’s cinnamon toast), add to warm milk or coffee. Of course, there are also many wonderful ethnic meat and tofu dishes that incorporate cinnamon. Yum!

A Sexy Side Note

I must digress from nutritional observations for just a moment.

Victoria/Posh is cute and all, but what REALLY keeps her man, Becks coming back for more?

I’ve got a sneaking suspicion that Vic takes advantage of some of the latest cinnamon research findings…

According to Dr. Alan Hirsch, founder and neurological director of the Smell and Taste Treatment and Research Center in Chicago , men are aroused by the scent of cinnamon, especially when it’s combined in the aroma of baked goods. No kidding- goodies like cinnamon rolls and pumpkin pie are a big turn on for guys. And to think of the cash I’ve been wasting on Chanel No 5!

Hope you take advantage of ALL cinnamon has to offer!

Technorati Tags: Spice Girls, Posh Spice, Victoria Beckham, Cinnamon