Does Apple Cider Vinegar Actually Have Health Benefits?

Photo by John Finkelstein

By: Mark Sisson

A while back, a friend was telling my wife Carrie and I about these apple cider vinegar gummies she started taking to deal with some persistent health issues. She wanted to know what I thought. You probably know that apple cider vinegar is rumored to have myriad health benefits. I’ve written before about how it’s likely to help people with diabetes control their blood sugar and improve insulin sensitivity. But it’s been a while since I poked around the scientific literature on this topic, so I decided to explore that today.

Apple cider vinegar has a long history as a traditional remedy for everything from dandruff to cancer. (Spoiler: there’s no evidence it helps with cancer.) Proponents claim that its healing properties come from the high acid content—mostly acetic acid, but also lactic, malic, and citric acids—as well the polyphenols, probiotics, and small amount of nutrients it contains. Depending on your particular issue, you might dab it on your skin, soak in an apple cider vinegar bath, or drink it.

Apple cider gummies have also become quite popular in recent years, as my friend can attest, in part because drinking apple cider vinegar can get old. It doesn’t taste great, and it burns on the way down. I’m not going to cover the question of whether gummies are more or less effective than other delivery methods today, but let me know in the comments if that’s something that interests you.

For today, I’m going to revisit the evidence for some of the top purported health benefits and see if there is any reason to run out to the market for a bottle of apple cider vinegar. Let’s go.

Health Benefits of Apple Cider Vinegar

Apple cider vinegar for diabetes and insulin resistance. . .

Read the rest of the article here:

View Article