Apple Cider Vinegar Is A Total Waste Of Time

The sour reality of apple cider vinegar and health

Pictured: Good on salad, probably not that much else Source: Pixabay

Health food fads are nothing new. Every week, it seems like there’s a new wonderful cure that’s going to save us all. It’s been bone broth, pink Himalayan salt, turmeric, lemon water, even buttered coffee, and many many more. But one thing has risen to shine, sourly, above the rest: apple cider vinegar. Go to any health food shop across the world, and you’ll be greeted with row upon row of dubious supplements, along with a bottle of slightly-cloudy vinegar that is apparently better than any medicine.

It turns out all you have to do to cure disease is ferment a few apples. It sounds absolutely idyllic.

Pictured: Halfway to healing, apparently Source: Pexels

And the claims made really do sound ideal. Apple cider vinegar may protect against cancer. It can lower blood sugar, help with cholesterol, aid weight loss, and even replace antibiotics due to it’s microbe-busting powers!

The trouble is, as with many of these healthy food fads, the evidence behind apple cider vinegar isn’t quite so rosy. While there may be some benefits to vinegar in general, the science definitely doesn’t show that apple cider vinegar specifically can do much except make a decent salad dressing.

There is currently no good evidence that apple cider vinegar has any health benefits for humans.

Them Apples

Apple cider vinegar is a pretty basic example of vinegar in general — you ferment apples (with some sugar if they aren’t sweet enough already) until the brew turns sour, at which point you’ve got vinegar and it’s ready to go. Unlike some other vinegars, however, apple cider vinegar is usually served unfiltered, which is why you see a lot of sediment in the final product when you get it.

In other words, apple cider vinegar is basically just the juice of rotten apples.