Tip 3 of 10 The Power of Cinnamon!

Does “being healthy” feel like a daunting task? Like everything “good” is off limits and a really good diet is pretty boring? I thought like this for a long time too… but I'm happy to say it's not the case ;-)

Eating healthy is fun! I'm being serious here… there are hundreds of different healthy foods that taste amazing and give you tons of energy… I cannot wait to share them with you! That's why I created “The Secret Foods” blog series which is dedicated to the most amazing foods on the planet (in no particular order), What they are, Why they are important, and How to enjoy them…  Here goes…

Top 10 AMAZING foods you need on your plate TODAY

#3 of 10 Cinnamon…

What it is….

You have probably enjoyed cinnamon your whole life, but never realized its historical importance or the health benefits of this tasty spice! 

Cinnamon is the brownish-reddish inner bark of the cinnamon tree. Cinnamon farmers first shave the outer bark off the trees, and then shave the inner bark, the cinnamon layer. When the cinnamon is dried it naturally curls up into “quills”

Cinnamon is one of the oldest spices known. It was mentioned in the Christian Bible and was used in ancient Egypt as a beverage flavoring and medicine. It was so highly treasured that it was considered more precious than gold. Cinnamon is mentioned in one of the earliest books on Chinese botanical medicine, dated around 2,700 B.C.!

Why it’s Important…

Cinnamon has many health benefits ranging from blood health to anti microbial to increased brain functions, but what its most noted for in western medicine is it’s ability to help control blood sugar and digestion.

Blood sugar control is important for EVERYONE from babies to old age. The sugar (glucose) in your blood is the food for the cells throughout your body… too little your cells starve… and you feel tired dizzy and a bit confused. On the opposite side too much circulating sugar in our blood causes poor functioning nervous tissue and weight gain. In sports this means muscle weakness and decreased performance potential. 

Cinnamon helps keep your blood sugar controlled in two major ways:

#1 Slows digestion - The food you eat is slowly absorbed into your body… slow absorption is much easier on your body as it can handle the load of nutrients more effectively.

#2 Stimulates insulin - Insulin is a hormone that ALL of your cells depend on to use the sugar (glucose) in your blood. The better your body responds to insulin the healthier your blood sugar balance.

How to Enjoy it!…

There are so many ways… Here are my top 10 recommendations:

TOP 10 Ways to Add Cinnamon to your day:

#1 Sprinkled in your morning coffee

#2 Add to any of your breakfast cereals, cold or hot… like oatmeal

#3 Sprinkled on your morning peanut butter toast

#4 2 tsp added to your smoothie

#5 Sprinkled in your yogurt

#6 Roasting apples with cinnamon (use as topping for your yogurt)

#7 Warm mixed berries with cinnamon use a topper for yogurt, oatmeal, & pancakes (instead of syrup)

#8 Frozen banana sprinkled with cinnamon for dessert

#9 Sprinkle on popcorn

#10 Cinnamon tea at night to help you relax and digest

Family and friends of Silver State… try something new today! EAT WELL… LOTS of VARIETY… & most importantly beautiful food first!

P.S…Winter is the perfect time of year to add more cinnamon to you life, it’s a great way to add sweetness without the extra sugar! Do you want to chat more!?  Awesome! contact me at nutritionanswered.com

Shavawn M. Forester PhD RDN (aka The Nutrient Dense RDN)

Nutrition Instructor at the University of Nevada Reno

Founder of Nutrition Answered, LLC

& the Eating Well Program

Website: NutritionAnswered.com

email: shavawn@nutritionanswered.com