Healthy and Green Living

You loved cinnamon as a kid, and you were right. Naturally sweet and delightfully aromatic, cinnamon is a wonderful power food just waiting for you in the spice rack. Mulled apple cider simmering on your stove with a stick of cinnamon is the ultimate aromatherapy for your home. And as we will show, cinnamon is tough enough to go it alone, without added sugar, calories or fat.

Yes, this amazing spice can add delicious flavor and amazing health benefits when sprinkled on your favorite dishes, or on new creations. Turn an ordinary dish or drink into the ultimate healthy comfort food. Soon you will be falling in love with cinnamon all over again.

Health Benefits
Powdered cinnamon, about a half teaspoon a day, may help prevent diabetes or reduce blood sugar in adults who have diabetes. One study found that cinnamon helped reduce levels of cholesterol and triglycerides in people with type 2 diabetes. With these potential benefits, its no wonder cinnamon is a hot topic in health news.

Do something good for yourself and enjoy cinnamon sprinkled on healthy dishes any time of day.

Breakfast
Have a little cinnamon with your oatmeal, granola or cereal in the morning.

Snacktime
Try this apples and cinnamon snack—it tastes like apple pie without the crust! Place some apple slices into a small bowl, and shower them with cinnamon. Add a few walnuts, and you’ve got a delicious treat with pectin fiber and healthy omega-3 fats.

Dinner and Dessert
For the adventurous cook, a dash of cinnamon works beautifully with vegetarian spiced dishes such as curries or masalas. For dessert, how about a baked apple with cinnamon? The amazing aroma of cinnamon baking in the oven fills the whole house with an incredible aroma. Simply remove the core from the apples, shower with cinnamon and a little fruit juice concentrate and place in the oven. For a dessert without added sugar or fat, this is a delicious solution!

Coffee or Tea Time
You might sprinkle cinnamon on that latte or cappuccino when you are out, so why not do the same when you have coffee with milk at home? You can even use cinnamon to create your own homemade chai tea, which has gotten so trendy. To help you get started with chai, we are happy to share with you a favorite recipe from our book The Fat Resistance Diet.

Our recipe for Slim Chai Tea combines green tea with cinnamon and two other aromatic spices: Cardamom and cloves. In experimental studies, cinnamon and cardamom were found to enhance detoxification by the liver. Cloves have potent anti-inflammatory effects. Together they make this a natural health-enhancing drink with no calories. Enjoy!

SLIM CHAI TEA
2 green tea bags
10 whole cloves
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon cardamom
3 cups water

Place tea bags and cloves into hot water and let steep for 3 minutes. Remove the tea bags and cloves. Add cinnamon and cardamom and mix well.

Makes 3 servings.

To receive a free one-day meal plan with recipes and special offer, Fatresistancediet.com.

Director of The Foundation For Integrated Medicine, Leo Galland M.D. is an award-winning lecturer and author of more than 30 scientific articles and three popular books, The Fat Resistance Diet, Power Healing, and Superimmunity for Kids. Jonathan Galland is a health writer who is frequently interviewed as a weight loss and health expert on the radio. Their book, The Fat Resistance Diet has been featured on the cover of Fitness, Glamour, and in The Washington Post and The Wall Street Journal, and has been translated into Italian as La Dieta Galland and into Japanese as Dr. Galland’s Metabolic Diet.

This article is provided for general educational purposes only and is not intended to constitute medical advice or counseling, the practice of medicine or the provision of health care diagnosis or treatment, the creation of a physician-patient relationship, or an endorsement, recommendation, or sponsorship of any third party product or service. If you have or suspect that you have a medical problem, contact your doctor promptly.