In Reply to: Re: Diabetes and Cinnamon posted by MaryAnn on October 04, 2000 at 00:57:55:
: : I have heard that for type 2 Diabetes, oral cinnamon with meals may be useful in controlling blood glucose levels. Does anyone have any first hand experience of this and if so, could you share it? Many tnaks.
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Yes...I have been using cinnamon successfully for at least 6 years. I ingest 1 to 3.5 teaspoons at each meal or snack. I have had or known about no other side effects, but it is alkaline and tends to burn the lips or mouth somewhat if taken directly. Therefore I fill empty capsules with it. And I try not to let a capsule get stuck on the way down--ouch!
At my health food store I buy cinnamon in bulk at under $10 a pound. The kind I get has 3.5% to 4% oil content. To fill each capsule I use pliers-type tweezers to "dredge" the larger part of the capsule and its lid (separately) through a bowlful of cinnamon. I "tap-tap" the capsules and lids to get the powder to pack inside it.
I make about 50 capsules for a day (size "OO"--for me this means ingesting 4 to 14 caps per meal--more needed with with higher carbohydrate intake, maybe less if the fat content is higher, because fat slows down sugar uptake). It's tedious, but given my good general health, worth it.
You'll need to swallow the caps with the food or within an hour afterwards to have an effect. The effect can be very dramatic...so watch those readings while you are gaining expertise.
Don't worry about getting cinnamon on your hands--it's actually an antibacterial and is used to heal cuts! Just avoid getting it onto any valuable fabrics as it's stubborn in the laundry (I put an old towel on my lap).
I take no insulin or prescriptions, but my MDs are always quite impressed with the blood work they do on me and have recommended, year after year, to just continue with my regimens. I am not a healtyh professional, but if anyone wants a more lengthy set of personal notes on herbs, vitamins and supplements I have found to be successful, email me at vmichael@gurlmail.com.