MSI Funded Paper: Potential Health Benefits of Cinnamon

Singletary, K

Cinnamon is a spice that has been used for thousands of years both for its enhancement of taste and for its potential medicinal benefits. It has a history of use for medicinal purposes as far back as China in the third millennium BC, ancient Egypt, and medieval Europe. It is derived from the brown bark of the cinnamon tree and comes in 2 principal varieties, Chinese and Ceylon.

The purported health benefits from cinnamon have been linked to a variety of constituents. The scientific literature provides emerging evidence that cinnamon may have health benefits, particularly in improving problematic blood glucose regulation that is a consequence of type 2 diabetes and obesity.

A brief summary of potential health benefits, and suggestions for future research are presented in this study.