Effectiveness of cinnamon as an adjuvant treatment in diabetes mellitus: An evidence-based case report

Background: Diabetes mellitus is a disease whose prevalence rises each year, making it a global health threat. In Indonesia, an estimate of 9,1 million people has diabetes mellitus. There are many herbal treatments that are said to help diabetic patients, such as cinnamon. Cinnamon is thought to be able to improve glucose uptake and insulin signalling in in-vitro and animal studies, but results of trials on humans are still highly variable. This study aims to determine the effectiveness of cinnamon as an adjuvant diabetes mellitus treatment in reducing fasting blood glucose levels. Methods: Literature search is done through PubMed® and EBSCO® database, from which one Cochrane review is found relevant. Results: From a meta-analysis in a systematic review of randomized controlled trials, it is found that the reduction of fasting blood glucose caused by the usage of cinnamon as an adjuvant treatment to oral hypoglycemic agents is not significant (mean difference −0.08 [95% CI −0,34, 0,18] p = 0.55). Discussion: The result of the meta-analysis appraised is consistent with all the RCT analyzed. The six RCTs are somewhat biased with highly variable methods of interventions. This subject has potential to be studied further in high quality RCTs, due to the lacking body of evidence and methodological limitations of currently available studies. Conclusion: The available evidence is not sufficient to conclude on the effectiveness of cinnamon as a diabetes mellitus adjuvant treatment in reducing fasting blood glucose.