'Tis The Season... for Cinnamon
12/1/2017
From the first sign of a chill in the air, through the fall harvest and winter, cinnamon spices up our dining table and desserts.
There is a lot to love about cinnamon. Not only is it tasty, warm, sweet and fragrant, it is also packed with amazing health benefits. Here are some of the positive effects of ingesting cinnamon:
- Cinnamon is full of anti-oxidants, which remove dangerous free-radicals from our blood and tissues. This makes cinnamon an anti-aging powerhouse.
- Cinnamon contains anti-inflammatory compounds, which reduce pain and swelling throughout our bodies.
- Cinnamon has been shown to reduce the dangerous types of cholesterol in our bodies, while retaining the more protective type of cholesterol.
- Cinnamon can help reduce and control high blood pressure.
- Cinnamon can help people with type 2 Diabetes reduce high blood sugar levels, and improve insulin sensitivity.
- Cinnamon helps create proteins that actually protect the brain, and mitigates the damage from Alzheimers and Parkinsons diseases.
- Cinnamon has been shown to fight cancerous tumors, especially in the colon. It also protects DNA from damage.
These are only some of the many health promoting effects of cinnamon, making it worthwhile to find ways to add it to one’s daily diet.
My favorite way to consume cinnamon is to add it to apple sauce, fresh fruits, or any of my favorite desserts such as pumpkin pie or cookies. But cinnamon is also delectable in savory dishes such as a pulled pork spice rub. The easiest way to increase cinnamon is to add it to a cup of herbal tea, perhaps with a teaspoon of honey.
What’s your favorite way to eat cinnamon? Let me know at
andrea@bopumc.net ! And have a sweet, warm, healthy Christmas everyone.
--Andrea Winchester
