Known for its sour taste and sharp aroma, vinegar is a versatile ingredient in the kitchen that not only flavors and preserves foods, but also potentially provides health benefits.
Vinegar is considered one of the healthiest condiments because it enhances flavor without adding too many calories, and it’s the main ingredient in vinaigrette, one of the healthiest salad dressings.
Vinegar is also an important component of the Mediterranean diet, says Carol Johnston, PhD, a registered dietitian who studies the medical uses of vinegar.
“The interesting thing about vinegar is that it’s present in every culture around the world,” Johnston, a nutrition professor at Arizona State University, told TODAY.com.
“It’s sold everywhere and it’s cheap, so it’s like a great healthy supplement for your diet.”
While apple cider vinegar gets all the attention, there are plenty of other options, including balsamic vinegar, white wine vinegar, red wine vinegar, rice vinegar, and malt vinegar.
What is vinegar made from?
Vinegar is the product of a double fermentation: The process begins with an alcohol, such as wine or cider. All vinegar is fermented from a carbohydrate source, typically a fruit, such as grapes or apples, or another carbohydrate, such as rice, says Johnston.
When the alcoholic beverage is exposed to bacteria in the air, it will ferment again over time, forming acetic acid, which gives vinegar its tangy taste.
Vinegar has been used as a seasoning and food preservative since ancient times, says Elisabetta Politi, a registered dietitian at the Duke Lifestyle & Weight Management Center in Durham, North Carolina.
“The acetic acid in vinegar makes foods more acidic, making it harder for bacteria to survive and thus preventing spoilage,” Politi told TODAY.com.
All vinegars used in cooking in the United States contain about 5 percent acetic acid, which is what makes them unique, Johnston said.
Is vinegar good for your health?
There are many health claims made about vinegar. Here’s what experts say:
Vinegar helps control blood sugar levels
Johnston calls it the best-established health claim based on published data. the study, the study and Meta-analysis.
She found that consuming vinegar before a carbohydrate-rich meal lowered blood sugar levels in people with insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes. Her own research.
This may happen because the acetic acid in vinegar inhibits the enzymes that digest starch, resulting in less glucose being released into the bloodstream, says Johnston, who recommends drinking one to two tablespoons of vinegar diluted with eight to 12 ounces of water with lunch and dinner.
“This doesn’t mean stopping diabetes medication,” she warns. “No, it’s an adjunct therapy.”
Politi, a certified diabetes educator, added that the American Diabetes Association does not recommend using vinegar for blood sugar control.
Vinegar may help lower cholesterol and blood pressure
New evidence “seems to show significant benefits” for vinegar in lowering blood pressure cholesterol and blood pressuresays Johnston.
“There are some reports that show significant, though less dramatic, reductions,” she added.
Vinegar has anti-inflammatory properties
Vinegar is often made from fruit, Polyphenols — Powerful antioxidant compounds found in plants. The darker the vinegar, the more polyphenols it contains, Johnston says.
Antioxidants may prevent cell damage and reduce the risk of inflammatory diseases such as cancer.
“However, (fresh) grapes contain more polyphenols than red wine vinegar, so if you want to get more of these polyphenols, just eat the fruit or drink the juice,” Johnston points out.
Vinegar improves gut health
When you consume vinegar, you’re ingesting postbiotics, healthy chemicals produced by good bacteria in your gut, Johnston says.
“It just promotes gut health,” she added.
Does vinegar help with weight loss?
There’s mixed evidence on whether vinegar can help with weight loss, both experts say.
“Some hypotheses suggest that vinegar slows gastric emptying, while others suggest that it affects fat metabolism, but neither of these have been proven,” Politi says.
“Vinegar, when combined with exercise and a healthy diet, may have some effect on weight loss.”
Apple cider vinegar has been the one most studied for its possible weight loss benefits, but it hasn’t consistently led to significant and sustained weight loss across different groups of people, she added.
While vinegar may suppress your appetite, any weight loss or loss of body fat that results from vinegar consumption is very slow, Johnston says.
Which vinegar is healthiest?
The acetic acid in vinegar provides most of its health benefits, and all types of vinegar used in cooking contain roughly the same amount of acetic acid, Johnston says.
So from that perspective, all vinegar is healthy when used in small amounts as a seasoning, Politi points out.
If you’re looking for the vinegar with the highest polyphenol content available at the supermarket, balsamic vinegar is your best bet, followed by red wine vinegar, Johnston adds.
“The fermentation process[of balsamic]is more concentrated, and it’s more concentrated of the grape product itself,” she says, “so it’s a more concentrated fermentation process, so you get more polyphenols.”
Pomegranate vinegar and blackberry vinegar are harder to find but are rich in polyphenols. Find out in 2023 survey.
The micronutrients in vinegar reflect the “parent product,” so apple cider vinegar will have more of the apple in it, while wine vinegar will have the bioactive compounds found in grapes, Johnston says.
“Each has certain benefits in terms of their chemical profile,” she explains, “but the science doesn’t really know much more about which one is healthiest than acetic acid.”
How much vinegar is safe?
If you drink it, just dilute one or two tablespoons of vinegar with 8 to 12 ounces of water, say nutritionists, or dilute it with food, such as in a dressing or sprinkled on a salad.
“Vinegar on its own can damage tooth enamel, so keep it in your mouth and rinse your mouth with water after drinking it,” advises Politi.
Drinking diluted vinegar through a straw can help minimize exposure to the teeth, Johnston adds, but such patients should avoid vinegar because it irritates lesions in the mouth and esophagus.
