Written by Greg Arnold, DC, CSCS. Cinnamon resulted in a 8.4% decrease in fasting blood sugar and 37% decrease in insulin resistance in patients with liver disease.
Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, also known as alcohol steatohepatitis, affects 2 to 5% of Americans, while another 20% are at risk. Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease resembles alcoholic liver disease (fat in the liver, along with inflammation and liver damage) but occurs in people who drink little or no alcohol. It is regarded as a “silent” liver disease in that most people feel well and are not aware that they have a liver problem. If left untreated, nonalcoholic fatty liver disease can lead to cirrhosis, permanently damaging the liver (1).
One of the risk factors for nonalcoholic fatty liver disease is obesity. And with the doubling of the rate of obesity in the US, ways to help treat nonalcoholic fatty liver will be of primary importance in the coming years (1). Now a new study (2) suggests that cinnamon may help minimize liver damage for those with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease.
The study was a double-blind, placebo-controlled trial that involved 50 patients between the ages of 35 and 52 and diagnosed with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. They received either 1,500 milligrams of cinnamon (one 750-mg tablet twice daily) or placebo for 12 weeks. All of the subjects were given advice on how to implement a balanced diet and physical activity into their daily lives.
At the end of 12 weeks, those in the cinnamon group saw several significant decreases in blood measurements, including:
- An 8.4% decrease in fasting blood sugar (92 to 84.3milligram/deciliter) compared to a 2.3% decrease in the treatment group (99.5 to 97.3 mg/dL, p = 0.011)
- A 20% decrease in total cholesterol (167 to 133.7 mg/dL) compared to a 4.5% decrease in the placebo group (187 to 178.6 mg/dL, p < 0.001)
- A 20% decrease in triglycerides (222.8 to 178.6 mg/dL) compared to a 1.2% decrease in the placebo group (214.9 to 212.5 mg/dL, p = 0.005)
- A 37.3% decrease in a marker of liver damage called ALT (71.4 to 44.8 mg/dL) compared to a 2.1% decrease in the placebo group (72.5 to 71.0 mg/dL, p = 0.010)
- A 36.8% decrease in another marker of liver damage called AST (69.7 to 44.1 mg/dL) compared to a 2.8% decrease in the placebo group (75.6 to 73.5 mg/dL, p= 0.023)
- A 58% decrease in the inflammatory protein hs-CRP (5.0 to 2.1 mg/dL) compared to a 4.2% decrease in the placebo group (4.8 to 4.6 mg/dL, p < 0.001)
- A 37% decrease in a measure of insulin resistance called HOMA (2.7 to 1.7) compared to no change in the placebo group (3.0 to 3.0, p < 0.001).
For the researchers, “The study suggests that taking 1500 mg cinnamon daily may be effective in improving [nonalcoholic fatty liver disease] characteristics and could be a good adjuvant therapeutic option for this disease.”
Source: Askari, Faezeh, Bahram Rashidkhani, and Azita Hekmatdoost. “Cinnamon may have therapeutic benefits on lipid profile, liver enzymes, insulin resistance, and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein in nonalcoholic fatty liver disease patients.” Nutrition research 34, no. 2 (2014): 143-148.
© 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Posted March 27, 2014.
Greg Arnold is a Chiropractic Physician practicing in Hauppauge, NY. You can contact Dr. Arnold directly by emailing him at PitchingDoc@msn.com or visiting his web site at www.PitchingDoc.com
References:
- “Nonalcoholic Steatohepatitis” posted on the NIH’s National Digestive Diseases
Information Clearinghouse (NDDIC) - Askari F. . Nutr Res 2014 Feb;34(2):143-8. doi: 10.1016/j.nutres.2013.11.005. Epub 2013 Dec 6.
