Apple cider vinegar has long been used at home as a sort of cure-all. It helps clean and sterilize messes, it can be used in dressings and sauces, it is great for digestion, and apparently, it can help control diabetes as well.
If you haven’t heard about the myriad of benefits associated with apple cider vinegar, allow me to clue you in!
Apple Cider Vinegar & Diabetes
One study had participants take two tablespoons of apple cider vinegar (ACV) before going to bed. Individuals with type 2 diabetes had lower blood sugar levels the next morning. Another study had participants with diabetes drink a mixture of apple cider vinegar and water. They found that post-meal glucose levels were significantly lower in those who drank the mixture.
Another group of researchers wanted to look at the effects of the active ingredient in apple cider vinegar, acetic acid. They discovered that acetic acid slowed the digestion of carbohydrates, therefore slowing the rate at which the body receives sugar from a meal. In effect, the vinegar helped to prevent spikes in blood sugar.
Apple Cider Vinegar as Medicine
Collectively, each of these studies demonstrates the medicinal effects of the vinegar. By slowing the absorption rate of carbohydrates, ACV mimics the popular diabetes drug Precose.
By increasing insulin sensitivity so that glucose is properly digested, apple cider vinegar works much like another favorite antihyperglycemic drug Metfomin.
By reducing fasting glucose levels by morning, the vinegar acts in a fairly similar manner to the drug Starlix.
The biggest difference between ACV and prescription drugs, though, is the price tag. Apple cider vinegar breaks down to just a couple cents per serving versus an irresponsibly expensive pharmaceutical drug.
How Apple Cider Vinegar Beats Health Care Options (Financially)
Given the volatility of our health care system, the diabetes community is worried about drug costs in the future. Obamacare provided costly, but vital, medicine to many. Now that it has been repealed, and a replacement has yet to be enacted, people living with diabetes are nervously awaiting the news about antihyperglycemic medication as a covered item under new health care policies.
Research has supported ACV as an effective and natural treatment for diabetes; hence, it is worth exploring a bit more. Of course, don’t make any drastic 
changes with your medication without first speaking with your doctor, though it wouldn’t be too big of a first step to considering working ACV into your daily routine now to help regulate your blood sugar in the meantime.
When buying apple cider vinegar, be sure to look for an organic and unpasteurized version. Raw vinegar is actually full of living organisms, which are beneficial to the gut. A pasteurized version will not have as powerful of an effect.
[expand title=”References“]
American Diabetes Association. URL Link #1. URL Link #2. Accessed March 1, 2017.
Journal of Nutrition. URL Link. Accessed March 1, 2017.
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