Apple cider vinegar (ACV) is one of my most-used ingredients when cooking. Cooking with ACV is where much of my flavor magic comes from. I use ACV as a seasoning; much like salt, it enhances flavors, allowing us to reduce our salt intake. Apple cider vinegar also has countless claimed health benefits, ranging from the mundane to the miraculous.
Here’s the science-backed health data that I’ve found so far. If I’ve made any mistakes please let me know.
Published on:
Last Updated:
Properties:
improve blood glucose, lower blood pressure, lower LDL, reduce obesity
Cautions:
enamel (teeth) & throat damage when drank undiluted,
Average Price USD: ~
$0.73 / cup (8oz)
$0.09 / oz
$0.55 / 100 grams
Availability:
7-11, Amazon, Costco, Krogers, Loblaws, Walmart, Whole Foods
Table of Contents
✨ Key Healing Takeaways ✨
Diabetes & Heart Disease
In as little as 2 months daily apple cider vinegar can improve blood glucose indices, anthropometric indices, lipid profile and systolic blood pressure in adult patients with T2D and can reduce cardiovascular disease risk factors in diabetic patients.
Apple cider vinegar increases insulin-stimulated glucose uptake and can also reduce the spikes in blood sugar, insulin, and fat after eating a meal.
Obesity
Intake of vinegar daily showed significant reductions in both the visceral and subcutaneous fat, as well as a significant decrease in body weight, BMI, visceral fat area, waist circumference, and serum triglyceride levels.
🔪Kitchen Tips & Hacks for Apple Cider Vinegar
I love this quote I found, randomly: “I often put apple cider vinegar in my hot water. It tastes disgusting.” – Elizabeth Hurley. I suggest you use it cold in salad dressing or cook it with food instead of just drinking it.
Use ACV in place of salt to season food
Season Your Food
ACV (Apple Cider Vinegar) is an amazing cooking ingredient and a lot of plant-based cooking that falls flat could’ve been saved with just a touch of ACV.
To me, ACV is the WFPBnO equivalent of salt, and cooking without it should only be done with a compelling reason.
To season food correctly with ACV it should be added in small amounts when testing. Start with ½ to 1 tsp at the most and add it to the dish while it’s cooking and wait at least 20 seconds or up to 2 minutes before tasting (so that the flavor is properly incorporated and cooked) and before adding more ACV if it’s still not flavorful/salty enough.
📚NCDs
Diabetes
Apple Cider Vinegar vs. Diabetes Management [2023, Nov]
A Randomized Controlled Clinical Trial of: 3 adults aged 30 to 60 years over 8-weeks.
Title: “The Improvement Effect of Apple Cider Vinegar as a Functional Food on Anthropometric Indices, Blood Glucose and Lipid Profile in Diabetic Patients”
- “Daily consumption of ACV may have beneficial effects in controlling blood glucose indices and lipid profile in patients with type 2 diabetes, with significant reductions in fasting blood glucose and hemoglobin A1C levels.”
- “Consuming 30 ml of ACV for eight weeks can improve blood glucose indices, anthropometric indices, lipid profile and systolic blood pressure in adult patients with T2D. It seems that consuming ACV as a functional food along with medications can reduce cardiovascular disease risk factors in diabetic patients.”
Vinegar and Type 2 Diabetes [2015, May]
A Randomized Controlled Clinical Trial of: Eleven subjects with Type 2 Diabetes (DM2).
Title: “Vinegar Consumption Increases Insulin-Stimulated Glucose Uptake by the Forearm Muscle in Humans with Type 2 Diabetes”
- “vinegar reduces postprandial hyperglycaemia, hyperinsulinaemia, and hypertriglyceridaemia without affecting lipolysis.”
- “Vinegar’s effect on carbohydrate metabolism may be partly accounted for by an increase in glucose uptake, demonstrating an improvement in insulin action in skeletal muscle.”
- “Vinegar Consumption Increases Insulin-Stimulated Glucose Uptake by the Forearm Muscle in Humans with Type 2 Diabetes.”
Heart Disease
Apple Cider Vinegar vs. Blood Pressure & Lipids [2023, Nov]
A Randomized Controlled Clinical Trial of: 3 adults aged 30 to 60 years over 8-weeks.
Title: “The Improvement Effect of Apple Cider Vinegar as a Functional Food on Anthropometric Indices, Blood Glucose and Lipid Profile in Diabetic Patients”
- “Daily consumption of ACV may have beneficial effects in controlling blood glucose indices and lipid profile in patients with type 2 diabetes, with significant reductions in fasting blood glucose and hemoglobin A1C levels.“
- “Consuming 30 ml of ACV for eight weeks can improve blood glucose indices, anthropometric indices, lipid profile and systolic blood pressure in adult patients with T2D. It seems that consuming ACV as a functional food along with medications can reduce cardiovascular disease risk factors in diabetic patients.“
Obesity
Vinegar and Obesity [2009, August]
A Randomized Controlled Clinical Trial of: 175 subjects aged 25-60 over 12 weeks.
Title: “Vinegar intake reduces body weight, body fat mass, and serum triglyceride levels in obese Japanese subjects”
- “Body weight, BMI, visceral fat area, waist circumference, and serum triglyceride levels were significantly lower in both vinegar intake groups than in the placebo group. In conclusion, daily intake of vinegar might be useful in the prevention of metabolic syndrome by reducing obesity.”
- “Although visceral fat is reported to decrease more readily than subcutaneous fat through exercise and dietary restriction, reductions in both the [visceral] and [subcutaneous fat] were observed in the present study.“
- “However, energy intake, meal content, and physical activity did not differ among the three groups throughout the test period. Therefore, vinegar intake was considered to decrease the BMI of obese subjects via a reduction in body fat mass, regardless of the type of adipose tissue.“
“In addition, each 1-kg increase in body weight is reported to increase the risk of coronary heart disease (CHD) mortality by between 1 and 1.5%. Therefore, intake of 15 ml of vinegar (750 mg AcOH) per [day] might well have clinical significance.“
Ingredients List
A Plant Based Lifestyle Diet
Basil
Beets
Broccoli
Brown Rice
Button Mushrooms / White Mushrooms
Cabbage
Chia Seeds
Dates / Date Fruit
Flax Seeds
Garlic
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Pumpkin Seeds
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