Cinnamon

The ability of cinnamon to lower blood sugar levels is widely documented. With the addition of cinnamon bark polyphenol extracts to a high-fat diet, rats' insulin resistance and adipose tissue inflammation were reduced. Human investigations, however, have produced contradictory findings. For instance, research found that supplementing with cinnamon dramatically decreased most inflammation-related biomarkers.

However, two clinical studies in individuals with type 2 diabetes revealed that taking cinnamon supplements decreased cholesterol levels, but inconsistently decreased indicators of inflammation. Studies indicate that cinnamon could be used as a supplement to traditional therapy to treat inflammation, although more study is required in this area.