Cinnamon, PCOS and Fertility

Most of us associate the smell of cinnamon with autumn, but a study presented this week at the American Society for Reproductive Medicine, showed that in some women cinnamon may actually help promote fertility. In a small trial at Columbia University in New York, women with Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) were given cinnamon for 6 months and followed for the regularity of their menstrual cycles and for pregnancy. It turns out the women taking cinnamon had more regular cycles and were more likely to get pregnant than those who took placebo. A word of caution: the study was very small  (16 patients total) and the pleasant smell of cinnamon is hard to miss, so there may still be a placebo effect.