Ceylon Cinnamon

Cinnamon is a spice that tastes great and is very healthy for us.

Did you know that one of the first things regularly traded between Europe and the Near East was Cinnamon ?
Cinnamon is actually a small evergreen tree. The bark from these trees are processed and ground or turned into cinnamon sticks. Active ingrdents that are healthy include cinnamyl alcohol ,cinnamaldehyde, and cinnamyl acetate that come from the essntial oils found in the bark.

Not only that cinnamon is a good cource of trace mineral manganese ,fiber, calcium and iron . As written in other articles on this website Cinnamon is known to reduce insulin levels and help reduce cravings for sugar. It also prevents unwanted clotting and that is why cinnamon is known as an “anti-inflammatory” food.

1. Arthritis relief
2. Relieve mucles and joint pain
3. Stop bacteria growth
4. Stop fungi growth
5. Stop yeast Candida
6. Slows cravings
7. Relives congestion
8. Boosts congnitive funciton and memory in brain
9. Removes bile salts from the body and thus improves colon health
10. Prevents Urinary tract infections
10. Helps to fight tooth decay and gum disease

There are lots of ways to add cinnamon to your food. In tea or desserts as well as in mexican or italian dishes.

A spoonfull of Cinnamon keeps the Diabetes away
By: Herr Zimt
A small sprinkle of cinnamon be a tasty soloution to diabetes, cholesterol and other health problems? Lets start with the apple pie. For years Scientists and Nutritionists struggled to figure out why apple pie did not have the same effect on blood sugar as they thought it should have. They figured out that cinnamon must play a role ,as found in a study done in Pakistan.

According to the study people with Type-2 diabetes that took cinnamon daily after meals were able to reduce their blood sugar levels by up to 30 percent. Other risk factors including cardiocasular disease were also improved from 20 to 30 percent.

It only takes about half a teaspoon (around 1g) taken daily to reduce blood sugar, LDL (aka “bad cholesterol”), triglycerides, and total cholesterol. The study also concluded that the effects of cinnamon could last up to 20 days after the people stopped taking it. Later studies found that cinnamon can greatly help in managing blood presure and reduction of inflammation in the body.

How does it work? Cinnamon helps the way the body handles sugar. When you eat sugar inslin is released to manage it. People who suffer from diabetes can not do this effectively and therefore the body keeps producing more inslin to deal with the sugar. Cinnamon boosts the bodys ability to deal with sugar by making it more sensitive to the insulin that it already has produced.

Cinnamon is not hard to take. You can make tea (see the recipe on our start page) or add cinnamon to food. Even though you can benfit from Cinnamon it is important that you do not take it in too large of an ammount. It can be toxic if taken in very high doses. The ammount that is toxic is still unkown and open to discussion. If you suffer from any of the mentioned health conditions then you need to watch your lipid and blood presure levels. Also cinnamon could make the effects of diabetes medication more intense.

The risks of sugar apply not only to people with diabetes but also to all of us. Many people suffer from undetected problems with blood sugar control. Sugar-related problems are at the core of many health conditions. For instance, the risk of heart disease goes up with too much sugar in the diet. Irregular menstrual cycles, chronic fatigue, and age-related mental decline are more likely to occur when the body does not properly manage sugar.

Sugar is a risk for all of us, not only people with diabetes. Many have problems controling their blood sugar levels. Sugar is at the core of many health conditions. Heart disease, irrgular menstrual cycles, chronic fatiuge, senoir mental decline are all more likely to happen if your body can not manage sugar properly.

Cinnamomomum Verum is “real cinnamon” aka Ceylon Cinnamon ,Sri Lanka cinnamon. It grows as a small evergreen tree that belongs to the Lauraceae family which is native to Sri Lanka. The inner bark is what is used to make cinnamon. The old botanical synonym is “Cinnamomum zeylanicum” which comes from Sri Lanks´s old name “Ceylon”. The Cinnamomum Verum trees are normaly around 10-15 metres in hight, thats around 30-50 feet tall. The leaves are kind of oval in shape and are around 5-20 cm long ( 2.5-7 inches). There are flowers which have a green colour and a very distinct smell. There is also a small berry that has one seed inside. Cinnamomum aromaticum also known as Cassia Cinnamon or “Chinese Cinnamon” is also an evergreen tree. It is native to India, Vietnam, Uganda, and Bangladesh. It is used in the same way as ceylon cinnamon ,primarly as a spice. The buds are often used as a spice in India and were also used by the ancient Romans. The tree normaly grows around 10-15metres tall (30-45 feet) and has grey bark. The leaves are long and have a red colour when they are young. So there are a few differences between the speices of cinnamon. All cinnamon is “good” tastes good and can be used as a spice. Ceylon cinnamon however has the greatest health benifets for many illnesses such has diebeites ,being overweight, headaches, stomachaches, and even heartburn.

Not only in Ceyon is real Cinnamon grown but also in Africa. Here is a spice tour in Zanzibar Tanzina aka “spice island” .
Although he is talking quite quickly but he gives us quickly a few great recipies. Cinnamon mixed with cardomon ginger peperment for a nice spice tea. Spice Rice cinnaomon, muskat, cardamon, cummin, oniion fryed in cocount oil(for directions see video). BBQ fish bark(maybe subsutute cinnamon sticks) put it in the fish green peper green corander (celantro). Not only that in this 4min video he also explains some basic medical usages for cinnamon.

by: Herr Zimt

To be honest cinnamon doesnt “cure” heartburn. It can however mask the pain for temporary relief. Cinnamon lowers the acidty of teh stomach and reduces the risk of ulcers in the lower esphagus. It (sounds nice) stops inflamation during the moment of backflow of digestive juice from the stomach. Drink a cinnamon tea, put it on a piece of toast or really eat it with anything you like. To find a “cure” for heartburn you have to look at the causes of it. Treat the problem at the roots so to say. Cinnamon can help you along the way.