Cinnamon is the bomb, because it is the answer to a sugar bomb. If you eat a bowl of ice cream for dessert (or anything with lots of simple sugars), add some Maple Munchies on top. That will:
- Slow the absorption and satisfy you more, because of the nut protein
- Direct the sugar out of the blood vessels and into your muscles, because of the cinnamon
- Taste like maple! Because of the maple!
Warming hot drinks, Christmas treats, your grandmother’s favourite dessert. Not only does cinnamon make our mouths water and conjure fond memories, it also lessens the negative impact of ‘naughty’ foods.
Naughty foods are often full of simple carbs, which can make your blood sugar spike. That’s bad news, it’s like having a traffic jam in your arteries. Sugars loitering in your vessels are like cars spewing out noxious fumes. One of the best things you can do for healthier eating is to prevent your blood sugar from spiking too high.
DID YOU KNOW:
One way to ameliorate blood sugar spikes after a meal is to do some light physical activity. A small walk, or even washing the dishes! A result first found in this research here: Very light Physical Activity after a Meal Blunts the Rise in Blood Glucose and Insulin
Fortunately, cinnamon is like a traffic controller in directing the blood sugar out of the blood vessels and into your tissues. It waves around it’s magical compound MHCP (MethylHydroxylChalconePolymer) which can potentiate the effects of insulin up to 20 times!
(as seen in the here: Insulin-like biological activity of culinary and medicinal plant aqueous extracts in vitro)
In addition to that, cinnamon can slow the rate of simple carbs entering your system by inhibiting enzymes that break down long-chain carbs (such as α-glucosidase,sucrase and α-amylase). By slowing down this deconstruction of long-chains to short-chains, your body has a longer period to shuttle the cars out of the traffic jam.
Where’s the humour in Coumarin?
Most cinnamon on the market is from the Cassia variety. This has high levels of coumarin which is known to be carcinogenic (cancer-causing) and can be toxic to your liver. We’ve chosen to use Ceylon cinnamon, which can have from 5 to 100 times less coumarin in it (as seen in: Isolation of semivolatile flavor compounds from the cinnamons of commerce)
According to the numbers from that research, it would require about 50g of Ceylon cinnamon per day to reach the lowest threshold of concern for coumarin intake.
Some people have tried it, with disastrous results. See here.
Maple Munchies are Kombucha-activated pecans and walnuts covered with nut butter and a caramelly cinnamon crust. They’re delectably crunchy, leaving you teetering between wanting more and feeling deeply, deeply satisfied. This is why they are one of our best sellers.
You’ll be pleased to learn that we include cinnamon in almost every blend we make. It’s an obvious choice, for it makes the food healthier and tastier :)
