Hey guys.
Dr. Axe here, Doctor of Functional Medicine and founder of DrAxe.com.
Today I want to talk to you about the incredible health benefits of cinnamon and cinnamon oil.
You know cinnamon has been used for over 4,000 years.
It's referenced throughout Egyptian history.
Also it's referenced in the Bible, and it's part of the holy anointing oil.
So when someone got sick in the Bible, what they would do is they would pour a holy anointing
oil on their head, which was a mix of cinnamon, cassia, calamus, myrrh, and olive oil, and
they said it had incredible therapeutic benefits.
There's also references throughout history of cinnamon killing off and protecting people
against plagues such as the Black Plague, the bubonic plague, and even the plagues referenced
in the Bible in ancient Israel.
So we know today that cinnamon has an amazing ability to preserve things and help heal the
body and guard the body against dangerous bacteria and pathogens and even aging.
One of the biggest reasons, if not the biggest reason, why cinnamon has those health benefits
is because it ranks so high on something called ORAC Score, which is really its antioxidant
rating.
It ranks the number seven antioxidant herb on the planet, scoring a 131,000 antioxidant
score.
So we know it is incredibly powerful in terms of its antioxidant benefits.
I want to go over some of the best ways to use cinnamon and some of the many benefits
of it.
One of the ways I recommend you use cinnamon is for helping heal your skin or different
skin conditions, especially if you have acne.
We know that cinnamon has anti-microbial benefits.
So what you can do is do a face mask and mixing cinnamon with raw honey.
By the way, cinnamon and raw honey have been used together throughout history for lots
of different cures, including helping to cure a cold, but it's also effective against acne.
So raw honey plus cinnamon, rub it on your skin, wash it off, can actually help you get
rid of acne.
Also cinnamon has been shown to be very beneficial for diabetes.
In fact, a recent medical study, published from the university, UC Davis, found that
supplementing with cinnamon was just as effective as taking a diabetes drug.
Think about that cutting edge information here.
We're talking about the benefits of cinnamon.
In fact, it had a 5% effective rating on blood sugar, which is the exact same as a diabetes
drug.
So again, you can supplement taking cinnamon capsules or adding it to your food.
It's the equivalent without the side effects of taking a diabetes medication.
The other amazing thing, the third thing, that I really recommend people use cinnamon
for is for improving their energy levels.
If you tend to have blood sugars that come up and down throughout the day, cinnamon helps
with balancing insulin levels, which is very effective at helping out your hormones which
in turn keeps your blood sugar stable and also helps something called glucose tolerance
factor, that's GTF, which is why it's powerful and beneficial for both diabetics and people
who struggle with blood glucose issues which also can help with weight loss.
Last but not least, we know that cinnamon is beneficial at helping heal and cure candida.
In fact, a study was done on over 50 herbs, and cinnamon was shown to be one of the top
4 herbs at helping your body reduce the chance of urinary tract infections as well as coming
down with candidiasis and yeast infections in the body.
The number one herb was oregano.
So again, mixing cinnamon and oregano together have powerful benefits at helping your body
eliminate candida.
The last thing I want to say about cinnamon is the cinnamon that you're consuming may
not actually be cinnamon.
It might be cassia.
There's a common debate of Ceylon versus cassia or Ceylon cinnamon versus cassia.
Most of what you taste or smell today is cassia.
It has a little bit more of a sharp tone to it and sharp taste.
Cinnamon is a little bit more smooth and sweet.
Ceylon cinnamon is the actual cinnamon that you want to be using, and Ceylon cinnamon
is better especially internally, and it doesn't have the side effects that cassia may have.
Cassia doesn't really have major side effects unless you're doing it in large amounts.
Ceylon really is the best cinnamon.
Ceylon is spelled C-E-Y-L-O-N.
Ceylon cinnamon.
When you're buying cinnamon, you do want to make sure that it is Ceylon cinnamon.
I have my Ceylon cinnamon here that I sprinkle on my food.
Some of the best ways to get cinnamon in your diet.
Number one, add it to a morning superfood smoothie.
I tend to take a teaspoon and put it in there every single morning for breakfast.
Also I'll put cinnamon when I'm making a homemade dessert.
You can do cinnamon in a lot of things.
Cinnamon chicken.
I'll do a dessert with a baked apple cinnamon parfait which is absolutely delicious.
But start adding more cinnamon into your diet, and look up cinnamon recipes.
Go to Pinterest.
Look up healthy cinnamon recipes.
Or go to the Dr. Axe website and just search "cinnamon recipes."
You'll find some great recipes on there.
But again, incorporate more cinnamon in your diet.
It's great for your skin.
It's great for your immune system.
It's great for blood sugar.
It's great for the microbial or the probiotic balance in your body.
Cinnamon has tremendous health benefits.
You need more of this.
Hey, if you want to learn more about the top healing herbs in the world, make sure to check
out my website, DrAxe.com.
You can search herbs like cinnamon and find long form articles on those.
Also make sure you subscribe to the YouTube channel and you can find out more about some
other healing herbs like some of my favorites, including turmeric and ginger.
Hey guys, this has been Dr. Axe talking about the many health benefits of real cinnamon.