Cinnamon cools the stomach

Cinnamon is more than a tasty addition to a sticky bun; it is a delicious ingredient in healthy cooking. For a long while the healing powers of cinnamon have been reported and we know for instance that it can help lower blood sugar levels. Now a new study shows that it can do something else: cool your stomach.

The new study involved pigs and we know that when pigs are fed at room temperature levels of carbon dioxide (CO2) rise in their stomachs. For this study researchers developed swallowable gas sensor pills that were fed to pigs to accurately assess what was happening in their stomachs.

The results showed that when the pigs were fed cinnamon with their food by these researchers it was found that the production of stomach acid and a protein digesting enzyme called pepsin decreased. This resulted in a cooling of the pig’s stomachs and also a reduction in production of CO2. In fact, the cinnamon led to a drop in temperature of 2 degrees Celsius in the pigs’ stomachs.

According to the researchers this leads to an overall cooling of the pig and also an improvement in their overall health. The researchers also think this may be why cinnamon is such a popular spice in warmer parts of the world for people. It might just be that cinnamon actually makes you feel cooler.

It looks like by reducing CO2 in your cinnamon might not necessarily slow global warming but it will slow personal warming.

Source: Scientific Reports