Cinnamon

If you are eating Cinnamon for your health then you need to pay attention to which kind you are eating. We used to flavor a few things with cinnamon occasionally so there wasn't much concern about which kind we were eating, but now we are using large doses of it because of the many health benefits. While there are a hundred different kinds of cinnamon, only 4 are used for commercial purposes: - Saigon, Ceylon, Cassia, and Korintje. The only real downside of cinnamon is the coumarin in it. Coumarin is a substance that can cause liver damage or complete failure. Only Ceylon Cinnamon has low levels of Coumarin, while all other varieties of Cinnamon have high levels of Coumarin. 

The problem in purchasing cinnamon is that most companies do not tell you which kind of cinnamon is in the jar. And most of it is the Cassia kind because it is much cheaper. You can tell the difference when it is still in the stick form. Ceylon Cinnamon sticks are soft, crumbly and rolled like cigar with layers of soft brittle Cinnamon bark. All other Cinnamon looks like the Cassia Cinnamon sticks and tends to be hard, hollow and have only one rolled or curled layer. Notice the color difference. Ceylon Cinnamon is lighter in color while other Cinnamon tends to be darker in color. When I can't find a brand that labels the type of cinnamon, I purchase the Ceylon sticks and grind them to make my own powder.

When cinnamon becomes a part of your healthy lifestyle, it is important to get the right kind.

Ceylon Cinnamon (Good)

Cassia Cinnamon (Bad)