Use Of Cinnamon Research Articles

Cinnamon contact stomatitis

Cinnamon contact stomatitis (CCS) is a rare reaction to the use of products containing artificial cinnamon flavor ingredients. Such products are gums, toothpastes and mouthwashes. A 20-year-old female patient presented with white elevated mucosal patches in the right lateral board of her tongue. Based on anamnesis, the intitial diagnosis of allergy to cinnamon gum was established. Clinical differential diagnosis included hairy leukoplakia, leukoplakia and lichenoid reaction. The patient was advised to completely avoid the use of cinnamon flavoured chewing gums. On re-examination later she had a normal tongue appearance. Clinicians who treat patients with oral conditions should be aware of CCS in order to be able to correctly diagnose and manage this condition.

Cinnamon and Health

Cinnamon has been used as a spice and as traditional herbal medicine for centuries. The available in vitro and animal in vivo evidence suggests that cinnamon has anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, antioxidant, antitumor, cardiovascular, cholesterol-lowering, and immunomodulatory effects. In vitro studies have demonstrated that cinnamon may act as an insulin mimetic, to potentiate insulin activity or to stimulate cellular glucose metabolism. Furthermore, animal studies have demonstrated strong hypoglycemic properties. However, there are only very few well-controlled clinical studies, a fact that limits the conclusions that can be made about the potential health benefits of cinnamon for free-living humans. The use of cinnamon as an adjunct to the treatment of type 2 diabetes mellitus is the most promising area, but further research is needed before definitive recommendations can be made.

KAJIAN SIFAT FISIKA TANAH PADA BERBAGAI PENGGUNAAN LAHAN DI DAERAH GUNUNG TANDIKEK, KABUPATEN PADANG PARIAMAN

The research was conducted in Tandikek mountain region, Padang Pariaman District, then at soil laboratory, Faculty of Agriculture, Andalas University as well as at physical and soil mineralogy laboratory, Faculty of Agriculture, Jambi University from October 2002 to February 2003. The research was designed in the form of field survey. Determination of the location was based on the land uses. There were 5 land use types, those were mixture farm, paddy soil, secondary forest, cinnamon, and coconut. The results showed that physical nature of soil under mixture farm, paddy soil, secondary forest, cinnamon, and coconut varied at texture (dusty plates), organic contents (high-very high), slowly drainage pore (PDL) and pore of water available (PAT) which were not significantly different among the five land uses. Permeability of total pore space (TRP) and fast drainage pore (PDC) were high at land use of cinnamon and not significantly different at land uses of paddy soil, secondary forest, and coconut. Key word : soil physical characteristics, land uses.

Proboscis Conditioning Experiments with Honeybees,Apis Mellifera Caucasica,with Butyric Acid and DEET Mixture as Conditioned and Unconditioned Stimuli

Three experiments are described investigating whether olfactory repellents DEET and butyric acid can support the classical conditioning of proboscis extension in the honeybee, Apis mellifera caucasica (Hymenoptera: Apidae). In the first experiment DEET and butyric acid readily led to standard acquisition and extinction effects, which are comparable to the use of cinnamon as a conditioned stimulus. These results demonstrate that the odor of DEET or butyric acid is not intrinsically repellent to honey bees. In a second experiment, with DEET and butyric acid mixed with sucrose as an unconditioned stimulus, proboscis conditioning was not established. After several trials, few animals responded to the unconditioned stimulus. These results demonstrate that these chemicals are gustatory repellents when in direct contact. In the last experiment a conditioned suppression paradigm was used. Exposing animals to butyric acid or DEET when the proboscis was extended by direct sucrose stimulation or by learning revealed that retraction of the proboscis was similar to another novel odor, lavender, and in all cases greatest when the animal was not permitted to feed. These results again demonstrate that DEET or butyric acid are not olfactory repellents, and in addition, conditioned suppression is influenced by feeding state of the bee.

Cinnamon as a Supplemental Treatment for Impaired Glucose Tolerance and Type 2 Diabetes

Most recent estimates claim the prevalence of obesity in the United States to be 32.2% in adult men and 35.5% in adult women [1]. Fifty-seven million American adults 20 years of age or older have impaired glucose tolerance, suggesting that at least 57 million American adults have prediabetes [2]. Additionally, 23.6 million people, or 7.8%, of the population are believed to have diabetes [2]. These staggering numbers clearly suggest that multiple dietary strategies need to be implemented to help treat these diseases. One such strategy would be the use of cinnamon, rich in polyphenols, and thought to serve as an insulin sensitizer and an antioxidant. This is of interest because oxidative stress has been linked as a contributing factor in obesityrelated diseases such as type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular diseases [3]. Several in vitro, as well as in vivo, studies have shown cinnamon to have a positive effect on insulin pathways [4–8]. In humans, the effect of cinnamon on glucose control and lipid parameters in type 2 diabetic patients has yielded conflicting results [9–12]. The present study further investigates the use of cinnamon as a supplemental treatment in the area of obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease.

The potential of cinnamon to reduce blood glucose levels in patients with type 2 diabetes and insulin resistance

Cinnamon has a long history as an antidiabetic spice, but trials involving cinnamon supplementation have produced contrasting results. The aim of this review was to examine the results of randomized controlled clinical trials of cinnamon and evaluate the therapeutic potential amongst patients with diabetes and insulin-resistant patients, particularly the ability to reduce blood glucose levels and inhibit protein glycation. A systematic electronic literature search using the medical subject headings 'cinnamon' and 'blood glucose' was carried out to include randomized, placebo-controlled in vivo clinical trials using Cinnamomum verum or Cinnamomum cassia conducted between January 2003 and July 2008. Five type 2 diabetic and three non-diabetic studies (total N = 311) were eligible. Two of the diabetic studies illustrated significant fasting blood glucose (FBG) reductions of 18-29% and 10.3% (p < 0.05), supported by one non-diabetic trial reporting an 8.4% FBG reduction (p < 0.01) vs. placebo, and another illustrating significant reductions in glucose response using oral glucose tolerance tests (p < 0.05). Three diabetic studies reported no significant results. Whilst definitive conclusions cannot be drawn regarding the use of cinnamon as an antidiabetic therapy, it does possess antihyperglycaemic properties and potential to reduce postprandial blood glucose levels. Further research is required to confirm a possible correlation between baseline FBG and blood glucose reduction and to assess the potential to reduce pathogenic diabetic complications with cinnamon supplementation.

Effect of Cinnamon on Glucose Control and Lipid Parameters

To perform a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials of cinnamon to better characterize its impact on glucose and plasma lipids. A systematic literature search through July 2007 was conducted to identify randomized placebo-controlled trials of cinnamon that reported data on A1C, fasting blood glucose (FBG), or lipid parameters. The mean change in each study end point from baseline was treated as a continuous variable, and the weighted mean difference was calculated as the difference between the mean value in the treatment and control groups. A random-effects model was used. Five prospective randomized controlled trials (n = 282) were identified. Upon meta-analysis, the use of cinnamon did not significantly alter A1C, FBG, or lipid parameters. Subgroup and sensitivity analyses did not significantly change the results. Cinnamon does not appear to improve A1C, FBG, or lipid parameters in patients with type 1 or type 2 diabetes.