Cinnamon has been part of our diets for thousands of years, and people generally enjoy it," said Jun Wu, a research assistant professor at UM's Life Sciences Institute. "So if it can help protect against obesity, too, it may offer an approach to metabolic health that is easier for patients to adhere to."
Cinnamaldehyde gives cinnamon its flavor.
The research builds off cinnamaldehyde studies in mice, where the oil protected against obesity.
The new study, published in the next month's issue of the journal Metabolism, tested whether a similar effect would happen in humans.
Using fat cells from volunteers, researchers treated the cells — called apidocytes — with cinnamaldehyde. The results found an "increased expression" of genes and enzymes that boost metabolism while increasing proteins beneficial to thermogenesis.
Wu suggests cinnamaldehyde could be used to fight obesity by way of activating thermogenesis. But she held off on endorsing cinnamon as a weight-loss treatment until further study is done.
More research is needed to discover cinnamaldehyde's benefits and side effects.