I had a patient come into the pharmacy and ask for vinegar capsules…which started a whole discussion about using vinegar to help control blood glucose. I thought this would be a great addition to our natural/home remedies series.
Just a quick rundown about diabetes type 2… the issue is that the body either does not produce enough insulin or the cells do not recognize (or ignores) insulin. Insulin is super important because it moves glucose (for energy) into the cells.
If the body has diabetes type 2 then the glucose can not move into the cells, instead it sticks around in the blood –which increases the blood glucose. Too much glucose in the blood can lead to eye problems, bad circulation, poor healing, numbness, high blood pressure, sadness and the list goes on…
There have been studies suggesting that vinegar may help control blood glucose levels.
How does vinger help? It is thought the acetic acid in vinegar slows the food moving through the stomach, reduces starch digestion and increases insulin sensitivity. This all means…
1. Slows food moving through stomach: With diabetes type 2, food sometimes moves too quickly through the stomach. This causes the blood glucose to rise quickly after eating -vinegar can slow the movement and therefore allow a slower release of glucose into the blood.
2. Reduces starch absorption -which is good because starch (carbs) are turned easily and quickly into glucose.
3. Increased insulin sensitivity -means it helps get that glucose into the cells where it belongs (and out of the blood).
How to take vinegar?
Most studies use 2.8 grams of acetic acid daily -this would be about 2 teaspoons of white or apple cider vinegar twice daily with meals.
What you should know:
- Too much vinegar can irritate the stomach -so be careful!
- Definitely monitor blood glucose if you add vinegar to your life.
- There are some possible drug interactions -like with digoxin and potassium.
- Apple cider vinegar can cause potassium to drop too low.
- If you use vinegar capsules -check the label because they vary a lot in acetic acid content.
That about wraps it up! Nice and simple -vinegar can help control blood glucose levels (cinnamon too -but that is for next time). Do you have any input? Please share 🙂
Thank for the info..!
All vinegar is not created equal…at least when it comes to helping control blood glucose. Most vinegars…red wine vinegar, balsamic vinegar, even white vinegar…are best used as condiments. The vinegar that seems to work for blood sugar control is apple cider vinegar.