Apple Cider Vinegar, often shortened as ACV, is off-late considered one of the healthiest things a person can add to their daily diet. It provides an array of health benefits, from managing diabetes to aiding in weight loss.
ACV is apple juice treated with yeast that turns the natural sugars in the apple juice into alcohol due to fermentation. The presence of bacteria in the apple juice changes alcohol to acetic acid.
Apple cider vinegar is available in two varieties- filtered ACV and unfiltered ACV. Filtered ACV is clear and pasteurized and has the ‘mother’ separated from it, while the unfiltered ACV has the mother intact, appears cloudy, and is organic.
The acetic acid present in the apple cider vinegar gives it a strong, sour flavor and smell.
Is Apple Cider Vinegar Good for People with Diabetes?
There have been several pieces of research on the impact of apple cider vinegar on people with diabetes. The results they have achieved are more or less mixed.
Researchers found that apple cider vinegar has a more positive impact on people with Type 2 diabetes than people with Type 1 diabetes.
So, yes, apple cider vinegar can prove to help control Type 2 diabetes.
6 Benefits of Apple Cider Vinegar
In general, apple cider vinegar benefits are numerous. It is a well-known home remedy for several ailments and is also used as salad dressing and baking and cooking. The following are some of the benefits of apple cider vinegar in diabetes management-
Reduce blood sugar: The acetic acid present in apple cider vinegar block the starch digesting enzymes. Even after eating food items with a lot of starch like bread and pasta, there is no spike in blood sugar levels. You can always add ACV to salads and sauces and include them in your daily diet.
Maintain body alkalinity: Patients with diabetes mellitus must maintain alkaline levels in their bodies. Apple cider vinegar increases the level of alkalines in the body due to the presence of acetic and citric acids.
Fasting blood sugar: ACV also helps in reducing the level of fasting blood sugar. So, it is beneficial for people having a high level of fasting blood sugar.
Source of acetic acid: The vinegar is a rich source of acetic acid. Because of such a high presence of acetic acid, ACV slows down the conversion process of carbohydrates into sugar, ensuring a little or no spike in blood sugar levels.
Reduce cholesterol: Maintaining cholesterol level is crucial for people who have Type 2 diabetes. Bad cholesterol makes them vulnerable to a variety of cardiovascular diseases. ACV is known to reduce the level of bad cholesterol in the body.
Assist in weight loss: If used for a short period, the vinegar is also known to assist in weight loss. Therefore, benefitting diabetes patients who have obesity issues and need to manage their weight.
Some FAQs about Diabetes and Apple Cider Vinegar
Due to a limited number of researches conducted on the impact of ACV on diabetes and mixed reactions, there should be many questions regarding diabetes and apple cider vinegar.
Listed below are a few of them
Does apple cider vinegar cause an insulin spike?
Apple cider vinegar is beneficial in maintaining blood sugar levels in people with diabetes, but it is also known to alter insulin levels. As we are well aware, people with Type 1 diabetes, in particular, need to maintain a stable insulin level in their bodies.
ACV can have a negative or positive impact on the insulin level in their body. So, you should always consult your doctor or nutritionist while including ACV in your diet if you are diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes.
Can Type 2 diabetics drink apple cider vinegar?
As we have discussed earlier, drinking apple cider vinegar has many positive benefits for people with Type 2 diabetes. Some of these health benefits are aiding weight loss, lowering blood glucose levels, and reducing bad cholesterol in the body.
So, yes, people with Type 2 diabetes can drink apple cider vinegar.
Can you take apple cider vinegar with diabetes medication?
I would strongly advise against taking ACV while on diabetes medication.
Diabetes medicines lower blood sugar levels in the body. ACV is also known to decrease blood sugar. If a person continues taking apple cider vinegar along with their diabetes medicine, there is a fair chance of their blood sugar levels falling too low.
Including apple cider vinegar in a diabetes diet while taking diabetes medicines depends upon the doctor’s discretion. It is also necessary to monitor your apple cider vinegar diabetes dosage regularly.
Does apple cider vinegar thin your blood?
Apple cider vinegar is to be avoided along with diabetes medicines because it can affect the insulin in the body. It also lowers the potassium level in the body.
However, drinking apple cider vinegar has no thinning impact on the blood in the body.
Does apple cider vinegar help with gestational diabetes?
Yes, apple cider vinegar helps with gestational diabetes. It helps in reducing blood sugar as well as the fasting blood sugar levels in the body. It also helps in combating weight gain during pregnancy to a certain extent.
Is it okay to take apple cider vinegar with metformin?
If you are a type 2 diabetes patient, who is recently diagnosed with the disease, taking apple cider vinegar can be quite helpful to you.
ACV combined with metformin can help improve the level of blood sugar in the body and help in losing weight, thereby reducing obesity.
Summary
ACV is not an instant medicine to cure diabetes, although it can help to a greater extent in controlling type 2 diabetes, diabetes mellitus, and gestational diabetes.
A person with or without diabetes must always drink ACV diluted with water as it is safer to drink it that way rather than drinking undiluted ACV.
The apple cider vinegar diabetes dosage should not exceed more than 30 ml in a single day.