Can drinking cinnamon water really help you lose weight?

Do not give up on diet and exercise yet.

Cinnamon water is being touted as the latest weight loss drink. Food bloggers love cinnamon sprinkled in their cappuccino every day. And for a good reason, cinnamon prevents the spikes in blood sugar levels which in turn make you feel full and eat less overall. But can cinnamon water help you lose weight? Let us take a look at a few studies.

Cinnamon (Cinnamomum sp) has been suggested to help patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) achieve better glycemic control according to a study published in the Journal of Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics [1]. Another study published in the journal Diabetes Obesity Metabolism claimed that while definitive conclusions cannot be drawn regarding the use of cinnamon as an antidiabetic therapy, it does possess antihyperglycemic properties and potential to reduce postprandial blood glucose levels [2]. However, there is no research which claims that cinnamon improves fullness. So consuming more cinnamon cannot do the trick of curbing your cravings. Also, try these mint and coriander smoothie for weight loss.

Cinnamon water can cut down calories

That being said, swapping cinnamon for a high-calorie beverage like your afternoon soda or your morning glass of sweetened coffee can save you some 150 to 200 calories. That adds up to some 5000 calories a month and 60 thousand calories a year so you roughly do away with 5 to 6 kg of body fat. So swapping high-calorie beverages for cinnamon water can aid weight loss. To prepare cinnamon water, just add a cinnamon stick into a jar of water and refrigerate it overnight. These 15 weight loss drinks can take you from flab to fit.

References:

[1] Costello RB, Dwyer JT, Saldanha L, Bailey RL, Merkel J, Wambogo E. Do Cinnamon

Supplements Have a Role in Glycemic Control in Type 2 Diabetes? A Narrative Review. J Acad Nutr Diet. 2016 Nov;116(11):1794-1802. doi: 10.1016/j.jand.2016.07.015. Epub 2016 Sep 8. Review. PubMed PMID: 27618575; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC5085873.

[2] Kirkham S, Akilen R, Sharma S, Tsiami A. The potential of cinnamon to reduce blood glucose levels in patients with type 2 diabetes and insulin resistance. Diabetes Obes Metab. 2009 Dec;11(12):1100-13. doi: 0.1111/j.1463-1326.2009.01094.x. Review. PubMed PMID: 19930003.

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