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The Truth About Apple Cider Vinegar
Health | December 28, 2019
Is apple cider vinegar still popular? Maybe not as much as it once was- but I still see people posting about it on social media! It seems like it’s not going away anytime soon. Though much of the hype has toned down (especially when it comes to the miracle “weight loss” claims), there are some benefits worth talking about. So, if you ever wanted to know more about it and what the science says, stick around as we uncover the pros (and cons) of apple cider vinegar. Are you ready? Then let’s get started!
Apple Cider Vinegar- Health or Hype?
Firstly, do you even know what apple cider vinegar (ACV) is? If not, here’s a quick 101. You take apples and yeast and put them together. The yeast starts converting the natural sugar from the apples and turns it into alcohol. Next, bacteria are added and begin fermenting the alcohol into acetic acid. Acetic acid is considered a “weak” acid and is about 5-6% of ACV and is what gives it that sour, sharp taste. Nutrient-wise, ACV is mostly water with trace amounts of antioxidants, vitamins, minerals, and other acids. [1]
The main reason that people reach for ACV instead of balsamic or red wine vinegar is due to the “mother.” The “mother” is strands of beneficial yeast and bacteria from the fermentation stage. You could even call it a probiotic!
But does ACV truly live up to the claims? In some areas, possibly. Others? Not so much.
Weight Loss
Allegedly, a shot of ACV a day is said to melt the fat away. If only! This trainer isn’t afraid of being replaced. Why? Because no food, supplement, or workout plan can outdo a bad diet. Eating like a bottomless pit all day isn’t going to be fixed by ACV. If that were the case, there’d be no gyms around the country! And as far as I know, they’re still open. But what does the research say? Believe it or not, a study was done on ACV and weight loss. In it, participants drank one tablespoon of ACV with lunch and dinner for three months. At the end of the study, they’d lost up to 8.8 pounds. At first glance, this sounds great! ACV alone gave them those results, right? Not so fast! It turns out, in addition to taking ACV, the participants ate a low-calorie diet and exercised. So, how can we know for sure that the ACV caused weight loss? Was it the exercise, the low calories? [2]
Another study was published using similar methods. Taking only two tablespoons of ACV a day for three months led to weight loss (2.6-3.7 pounds) and reduced belly fat. Here’s the other problem. We don’t know what else these people had done. Did they workout, fix their diets, or lower their stress? Even then, 2.6 to 3.7 pounds in 3 months isn’t anything to write home about. You’re losing about 0.8 to 1.2 pounds a month. There are better ways to lose weight other than ACV. [3]
Verdict: Hype!
Cancer
Scratch this one off the list immediately! ACV is not a cure or treatment for cancer. Do not trust anyone making this claim! It’s downright dangerous advice. The studies out there showing vinegar’s effects against cancer cells and tumors are all based on animals or test tube cells, not humans. Just like with weight loss, if ACV really were able to beat cancer, we’d have known it by now, and there’d be no chemotherapy or research foundations. [4] [5]
Verdict: Hype!
Blood Sugar
All of us benefit from maintaining balanced blood sugar (as well as insulin) levels. Doing so prevents diabetes and metabolic syndrome, which in the long term, are life-threatening if left unchecked. The good news here is that ACV has successfully been shown to balance blood sugar. In one study, volunteers who took ACV before meals had improved insulin sensitivity and lowered blood sugar levels. What’s cool about here is that the volunteers were made up of both diabetic and healthy people. One study even went so far as to show that ACV can reduce blood sugar by up to 34% after eating 50 grams of white bread! There are many other reports that I could reference, but the bottom line is that ACV may help to lower blood sugar by a pretty good amount. Will it cure diabetes? Never. But it can improve it! [6] [7]
Verdict: Health!
Disinfectant
Look out bacteria, ACV is on patrol! Don’t worry, ACV is only ammo against harmful bacteria like E. Coli. For hundreds of years, vinegar has been used as a natural preservative to keep food from spoiling. It’s also been traditionally used to treat lice, warts, ear infections, wounds (as Hippocrates did) and nail fungus. But please, work with your doctor- I’m just sharing the history. Today, it’s commonly used as an ingredient in homemade cleaning supplies. You can also use it as a produce wash to remove bacteria and pesticides! [8] [9]
Verdict: Health!
ACV: Beware
There are some things you need to know about ACV. The first is that it potentially causes chemical burns. A couple of reports have gone out about it doing so after people used it for skin conditions. It’s best to let your doctor help with that before you make things worse!
The second is that it ruins teeth by eroding the enamel and increasing the likelihood of developing cavities. Don’t swish and swallow ACV whole; drink it with a straw. Or, add a splash or two to your food. Because it can also irritate the throat and esophagus. Make sure it’s well-diluted to prevent this from happening! Finally, if your blood sugar levels are already on the lower end of the spectrum, then you might want to hold off on ACV. It can lower them even more and lead to hypoglycemia. [10]
So, is ACV a miracle food? Not by a long shot! Does it have some benefits? Yes. But they’re not as sensational as people would like you to believe. In my opinion, it’s better to use it as an ingredient to flavor food, not as a magical “cure-all.” But tell me- how do you use ACV? Did you fall for the hype, or were you a rebel and avoided the bandwagon? Let me in the comments below!
Sources:
[1] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1785201/
[2] https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1756464618300483
[3] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19661687
[4] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15149153
[5] https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/1541-4337.12228
[6] http://care.diabetesjournals.org/content/27/1/281.full
[7] https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/6-proven-health-benefits-of-apple-cider-vinegar#section3
[8] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5788933/
[9] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27665528
[10] https://www.verywellhealth.com/apple-cider-vinegar-88768#possible-side-effects
Private Member |
switzerland/, france
Rinsing hair, and salad dressing.
Private Member |
ellijay, ga, united states
I started making my own a few years ago, and after tasting home-made, I simply can’t stand the store bought! Home-made is nice and fruity but still with that tang to it! My area is the apple spot in our state, and we know where to find some wild trees (that aren’t sprayed!), so we use those and make a year supply each year. 😉 It’s PERFECT use as a base for homemade salad dressings and sauces.
I don’t know if there’s anything to it or not, but I’ve used a shot of ACV mixed in water with raw honey and lemon juice when I’ve felt the beginning of a sore throat coming on, and it seems to keep it from turning into a full-blown sore throat. (Buuuut maybe it would have gone away anyway. Who knows) I haven’t had to do that in years, though (hopefully not jinxing myself! 😝 ), so it’s not like I use it that way often. Cooking is definitely my favorite use!
Private Member |
i make my own whenever we get hold of loads of organic or wild (and unsprayed) apples, it tastes lovely and i like to have a tsp of it in the morning it burns my throat and i feel like all bacterias or viruses go away screaming, we also use it on ourselves and our pets when there is a need of treating a minor wounds, in our dog it helps mixed with olive oil whenever he gets any signs of ear mites or mites at all – it goes away after 5 days treatment – not with kitty though, she had to go to vet :(, how weird is that…
Also we (mostly my husband) use it as an antisweat spray- works the wonder, and no, vinegar doesn’t smell, it disperses immediately and you just smell nothing on your sweaty parts 🙂
Private Member |
Yes, I use it in the bath with baking soda but never as a hair rinse, which I should try. I’m super inspired to make our own after hearing Z-Gym member’s testimonies since we were just given dozens of apples. I may consider using on my puppy during her bath then brushing her with a bit of coconut oil! She loves baths and all the attention she gets since it’s a two man job. She loves the pampering and we feed her extra special things (not that she doesn’t eat fed great already) ❤️🐕
Private Member |
czech republic
I use apple cider vinegar as a conditioner. Add a spoon to a cup of water (250-300 ml) and a few drops of essential oil (rosemary, lavender, sage) and splash it at the end of washing the hair. Effortless combing and shiny hair guaranteed 🙂
Private Member |
A rosemary, vinegar rinse – oh for sure
Private Member |
tx
For me ACV is a miracle tonic for things like cuts, rashes, warts, even cold sores. I also do shots if I feel I am getting sick and it prevents sore throat and full-blown head-cold illnesses (not flu). Also yes to using it for hair as conditioner, and once when I had some kind of scalp infection, I think from sharing my brush with someone in my sports team (never ever do that!). I think it works well as an anti-viral/bacterial/fungal remedy for health and for cleaning.
Private Member |
I drank ACV for about a year almost every day 1tbs with water and honey and sometimes 2 times daily. I noticed I would easily melt off the little extra fat but in the long run, I notice now, it has basically erased the fat lining between my skin and the meat on my hands making them look aged. ACV is a good idea to drink at night (warm) to work on the chub around the mid section but I think it can mess stuff up inside over time. My intestines have become more irritable ( I can feel the digestion more, the food moving through) and although I am not 100% that ACV was the cause of it, I have a feeling it very well could be. I have been limiting my ACV intake the past couple months (only when I eat a bunch of meat during a meal; it really helps the digestion process) and I’ve noticed that my intestines feel tougher for a lack of better words :p
ACV could also be seen as an equivalent to battery acid for a battery… It gives us a charge. But too much, as mentioned, is probably opposite of beneficial.
ALWAYS DILUTE when drinking! There are some uninformed/misinformed people who take SHOTS of that stuff…. YIKESSS! D:
Private Member |
ACV and elderberries are an EXCELLENT way to get rid of early signs of COLD SORES.
I made an extract/ tincture of the 2 ingredients and gave it to a friend who swears by it! Every time she feels a cold sore coming on, she dabs a little on the spot with a Q-tip and it goes away.