Apple cider vinegar, otherwise known as cider vinegar or ACV, is a type of vinegar made from cider or apple must and has a pale to medium amber color. Unpasteurized or organic ACV contains mother of vinegar, which has a cobweb-like appearance and can make the vinegar look slightly congealed.
ACV is used in salad dressings, marinades, vinaigrettes, food preservatives, and chutneys, among other things. It is made by crushing apples and squeezing out the liquid. Bacteria and yeast are added to the liquid to start the alcoholic fermentation process, and the sugars are turned into alcohol. In a second fermentation process, the alcohol is converted into vinegar by acetic acid-forming bacteria (acetobacter). Acetic acid and malic acid give vinegar its sour taste.[1]
Health effects
Vinegar (and other acidic liquids) have long been proposed as agents to enable weight loss;[2][3] a proposed mechanism is that it prolongs the sensation of satiety after eating.[4]
Apple cider vinegar contains chromium which can alter insulin levels and it is therefore recommended that people who have diabetes should talk to their doctors before using ACV.[5] ACV is highly acidic; in one recorded instance, a woman experienced esophageal burns after an ACV pill got caught in her throat.[6][7]
Apple cider vinegar tablets are not well regulated, may vary dramatically in terms of vinegar content from brand to brand, and lack evidence of efficacy.[6]
See also
- Food additive
- Acetic acid
- Mother of vinegar
- United States v. Ninety-Five Barrels Alleged Apple Cider Vinegar
References
- ^ "Apple Cider Vinegar", WebMD, Sept. 2009
- ^ Ruth Chambers; Gill Wakley (2002), "History of over the counter medicines", Obesity and Overweight Matters in Primary Care, Radcliffe Publishing, p. 101
- ^ Charles Knight (1867), "Obesity", The English Cyclopaedia, 4 "Arts and Sciences", Bradbury, Evans, pp. 12–13
- ^ J. Östman; M. Britton, eds. (2004), "4.7.3 Alternative Medicine Methods Used to Treat Obesity", Treating and Preventing Obesity: An Evidence Based Review, Wiley-VCH, pp. 202–204
- ^ "Healthy Eating & Diet." WebMD. N.p., 2005. Web. 11 October 2010. <http://www.webmd.com/diet/apple-cider-vinegar?page=2>.
- ^ a b Hill, L.; et al. (2005). "Esophageal Injury by Apple Cider Vinegar Tablets and Subsequent Evaluation of Products". Journal of the American Dietetic Association 105 (7): 1141–1144. doi:10.1016/j.jada.2005.04.003. PMID 15983536. Retrieved 7 July 2014.
- ^ "WebMD: Apple Cider Vinegar". WebMD. Retrieved 13 March 2011.
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