Vinegar and Blood Sugar

It has been known in my previous blogs how much I dislike vinegar(the smell mostly) but it has also been known all of the great things vinegar can do for your body.  There is an ever rising number of people and children in this country who have Type 2 Diabetes, I know at least ten people personally, probably more, both young and old.  I have been doing quite a bit of research on the benefits of vinegar and found numerous facts about vinegar and Diabetes that would be helpful to know about how to self manage the disease.

My husband has been a fan of taking apple cider vinegar before meals, I used to think he was out of his mind, however there is some fact behind what he does.  I have found that by taking 2-4 tbsps. of vinegar(any kind works) in 1 glass of water, you can add honey or stevia to sweeten this, can greatly slow the rise of your blood sugar levels.  You may wonder why, I did.  Many studies have found that vinegar, the acetic acid, inhibits enzymes that allow for absorption of carbohydrate molecules and you will release them when you use the restroom.  This mixture is also great to take before bed to help control blood sugar levels in the morning.

This sounds great so why does my doctor not tell me to do this?  I guess I have to jump on the bandwagon now that says they do not want to, where is the profit in vinegar?  You likely would not see a rep going to the doctors office trying to sell vinegar.  All in all I am not against doctors they are wonderful and can greatly help us, but we need to be aware of what we do and take any extra thing we can do in a natural way to help ourselves, have it be taking a little vinegar each day!

Are you afraid you can't stomach drinking the vinegar?  I am right there with you, I just can not deal with it!  I try to incorporate vinegar into my foods whenever possible, when making soups or sauces mix in a few tbsp, no one will ever know.  I have a great recipe for a dressing made with vinegar and olive oil, you do not notice the vinegar and its a nice alternative to the processed, corn syrup dressings at the grocery.  Here is that recipe, give this a try, it can't hurt.

Homemade Vinegrette
2 tbsp finely chopped onion or shallots(optional)
1 tbsp mustard(regular or dijon)
2 tbsp of vinegar(I like apple cider or raspberry--but any will work)
6 tbsp of olive oil

Mix the first three ingredients together.  Blend in the Olive Oil slowly, stir with a whisk to blend in.  This mixture should get a nice fluff look to it.  When it is done it will be blended and the ingredients will be mixed throughout, if it doesn't mix properly the dressing will separate, no worries just give it a stir or a shake.  It will last for 3-4 weeks in the fridge.