Effect of Cinnamon Supplementation on Glucose Control in Adults with Obesity and Prediabetes: Clinical Study
The study investigated the effects of daily cinnamon supplementation on glucose concentrations in adults with obesity and prediabetes. After a two-week period of low polyphenol/fiber diet, 18 participants participated in a controlled, randomized, double-blind, crossover study lasting 10 weeks (average age 51.1 years; average fasting glucose 102.9 mg/dl).
Participants were randomly assigned to take either cinnamon (4 g/day) or a placebo for 4 weeks, followed by a 2-week washout period, then switching to the other intervention for another 4 weeks. Changes in glucose were measured through continuous glucose monitoring.
Oral glucose tolerance tests were performed immediately after cinnamon or placebo ingestion at 4 time points to assess their acute effects both at the beginning and end of each intervention phase. Daily logs of digestive symptoms were recorded.
There were 694 days of follow-up with 66,624 glucose observations. Compared to placebo, 24-hour glucose concentrations were significantly lower when cinnamon was administered [mixed models; effect size (ES) = 0.96; 95% confidence interval (CI): -2.9, -1.5; P < 0.001].
Similarly, the mean net area under the curve (netAUC) for glucose was significantly lower than placebo when cinnamon was administered (over 24 hours; ES = -0.66; 95% CI: 2501.7, 5412.1, P = 0.01).
Cinnamon supplementation resulted in lower glucose peaks compared to placebo (Δpeak 9.56 ± 9.1 mg/dl versus 11.73 ± 8.0 mg/dl; ES = -0.57; 95% CI: 0.8, 3.7, P = 0.027).
Glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide concentrations increased during oral glucose tolerance tests + cinnamon (mixed models; ES = 0.51; 95% CI: 1.56, 100.1, P = 0.04), while triglyceride concentrations decreased (mixed models; ES = 0.55; 95% CI: -16.0, -1.6, P = 0.02).
Adherence to treatment was excellent in both groups (cinnamon: 97.6 ± 3.4% compared to placebo: 97.9 ± 3.7%; ES = -0.15; 95% CI: -1.8, 0.2, P = 0.5). No differences in digestive symptoms (abdominal pain, rumbling, bloating, excess gas, and stools/day) were found between cinnamon and placebo groups.
In conclusion, cinnamon supplementation may contribute to better glucose control when added to the diet in individuals with obesity-related prediabetes.
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Source: Zelicha H, Yang J, Henning SM, Huang J, Lee RP, Thames G, Livingston EH, Heber D, Li Z. Effect of cinnamon spice on continuously monitored glycemic response in adults with prediabetes: a 4-week randomized controlled crossover trial. Am J Clin Nutr. 2024 Mar;119(3):649-657. doi: 10.1016/j.ajcnut.2024.01.008. Epub 2024 Jan 26. PMID: 38290699.
