Cinnamon-Honey Combo a Possible Cure-All?

By Kim Sherman, Shelter Island Reporter, 1/28/2010

In the past I have written about the healing properties of honey and all of its great uses. If you have come into the store, you may also have heard me talk about cinnamon. Cinnamon helps to regulate blood sugar in diabetics by slowing the emptying of the stomach, causing a slower rate of blood sugar absorption. This results in less of a blood sugar spike. New studies also suggest that cinnamon might actually have an insulin boosting property that helps the body use its sugars more easily.


Well, with that in mind, what might happen if we combine the two together? No, you can’t use it for the lava in your kid’s science project, but you can use it for a lot of other good things, such as:

• Curing arthritis pain. Make a paste of one part honey with two parts lukewarm water, mix with a small teaspoon of cinnamon. Rub into aching area for 15 minutes, pain should resolve.


• Hair loss/baldness. Make a paste of hot olive oil, 1 tablespoon of honey and 1 teaspoon cinnamon. Apply 15 minutes before showering. (No, we haven’t tried it yet.)


• Reducing cholesterol. Mix 2 tablespoons of honey, 1 tablespoon of cinnamon in 16 ounces of tea. This mixture has been found to reduce cholesterol in the blood by 10 percent in two hours. (Do this before your life insurance physical.)


• Heart disease. Apply honey and cinnamon powder on bread instead of butter or jelly. Eat it on a regular basis for breakfast.


• Acne. Mix equal parts of honey and cinnamon into a paste. Rub it onto skin. Leave it on as long as possible. There will be a mild burning sensation. Wash with lukewarm water. Do this daily for two weeks. The results are pretty dramatic. I have seen this work. A maintenance mask every couple of days will help you to stay radiant.


• Here’s the biggie — weight loss. Steep 1 teaspoon of cinnamon in 1 cup of boiling water, let cool for 30 minutes. Mix in 2 teaspoons of honey. Drink half on an empty stomach before bed and the other half as soon as you get out of bed. If taken regularly it reduces weight and does not allow fat to accumulate on the body. This sounds quite yummy doesn’t it? Well it’s not. I thought, “Great, let me dig out my bikini in time for summer.” I mixed up my first batch, waited my 30 minutes, only to find a cup of slime. The cinnamon turns into a blob when it is steeped. I went back online and found that it is okay to run the blob through a coffee filter. So I dug out my old coffee filters and started filtering. Thirty minutes later, my blob had stressed the filter so much that I now had a blob and wet paper in my cup...