Cassia Cinnamon as a Source of Coumarin in Cinnamon-Flavored Food and Food Supplements in the United States

Abstract

Coumarin as an additive or as a constituent of tonka beans or tonka extracts is banned from food in the United States due to its potentially adverse side effects. However, coumarin in food from other natural ingredients is not regulated. "True Cinnamon" refers to the dried inner bark of Cinnamomum verum. Other cinnamon species, C. cassia, C. loureiroi, and C. burmannii, commonly known as cassia, are also sold in the U.S. as cinnamon. In the present study, coumarin and other marker compounds were analyzed in authenticated cinnamon bark samples as well as locally bought cinnamon samples, cinnamon-flavored foods, and cinnamon-based food supplements using a validated UPLC-UV/MS method. The experimental results indicated that C. verum bark contained only traces of coumarin, whereas barks from all three cassia species, especially C. loureiroi and C. burmannii, contained substantial amounts of coumarin. These species could be potential sources of coumarin in cinnamon-flavored food in the U.S. Coumarin was detected in all locally bought cinnamon, cinnamon-flavored foods, and cinnamon food supplements. Their chemical profiles indicated that the cinnamon samples and the cinnamon in food supplements and flavored foods were probably Indonesian cassia, C. burmannii.

Theoretical and experimental studies on the separation of cinnamyl acetate and cinnamaldehyde by adsorption onto a β-cyclodextrin polyurethane polymer

“…[1][2][3] China is currently the largest exporter of cinnamon oil, and the abundant resources of cinnamon trees are mainly distributed in Southern China, especially the Guangxi Province, which accounts for over half of China's cinnamon oil exports. 4 Natural cinnamon oil contains a variety of chemical components, mainly including cinnamaldehyde (CA, 70-88%), o-methoxycinnamaldehyde (4-12%), cinnamyl acetate (CAc, 0.5-10%), and benzaldehyde (0.5-1%), and so forth.…”

Effects of extraction methods on the phenolic compounds contents and antioxidant capacities of cinnamon extracts

“…Among sources of polyphenols, cinnamon may be of special interest since cinnamon and aqueous cinnamon extracts have been reported to be insulin sensitizers in vitro and in vivo (14). In general, cinnamon contains high levels of phenolic substances, including phenolic acids, coumarins, and proanthocyanidins (15). Several studies have suggested that cinnamon consumption has beneficial effects on human health, including antidiabetic effects, a hypoglycemic activity, and pancreas-protective effects (16), prevention of urinary tract infections (17), and neuroprotection, reduction of cardiovascular disease risk, and cancer prevention (13,18,19).…”

Preparative HPLC fractionation of Cinnamomum cassia Water Extract and their in-vitro Antimalarial Activities

“…Cinnamomum cassia consists of a broad range of compounds such as cinnamaldehyde, cinnamic acid, cinnamyl alcohol, cinnamyl acetate, eugenol and to a large extent of coumarin (Wang et al 2013). Some of these compounds, particularly the volatile ones, can be separated and determined using GC-MS. High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) however is better technique to separate the more polar compounds present in Cinnamomum cassia which dissolves in water.…”