Chromium Supplements and Diabetes
Elaine Acree
Is a chromium supplement (chromium picolinate) helpful or
harmful for a Type I diabetic? I have a relative who was
recently diagnosed and is taking chromium supplements.
Trace amounts of chromium and niacin form Glucose Tolerance Factor.
A chromium deficiency has symptoms very similar to diabetes -
elevated blood sugar, and elevated triglycerides and cholesterol.
Does anyone know how common chromium deficiency is?
How long would you have to take chromium supplements before you
overcame a deficiency?
I've read in some vitamin & mineral books that taking chromium
supplements can be helpful in managing some forms of diabetes.
However, there is no information on how much to take, how long
you should take it, or any dangers involved in doing this.
If anybody has information on this, I would appreciate hearing
from you.
Thanks,
Elaine (ac...@oti-hsv.com)
Charles Coughran
In article <25vpp4$f...@otisun06.oti-hsv.com> ac...@oti-hsv.com (Elaine Acree) writes:
>
>Is a chromium supplement (chromium picolinate) helpful or
>harmful for a Type I diabetic? I have a relative who was
>recently diagnosed and is taking chromium supplements.
>Trace amounts of chromium and niacin form Glucose Tolerance Factor.
The information I have seen indicates that chromium deficiency can be
a factor in Type II diabetes. See the attached abstracts I pulled from
medline.
>
>However, there is no information on how much to take, how long
>you should take it, or any dangers involved in doing this.
>
See the first abstract. It does not seem to be clear what the most
biologically active form of chromium is. Take words like "widespread"
with a grain of salt. They are looking through their end of the telescope.
Sorry about the word wraps, no time to edit.
20. Anderson RA.
Essentiality of chromium in humans.
Science of the Total Environment, 1989 Oct 1, 86(1-2):75-81.
(UI: 90100547)
Abstract: Chromium is an essential nutrient required for normal sugar and fat
metabolism. Insufficient dietary chromium is associated with
maturity-onset
diabetes and/or cardiovascular diseases. Dietary chromium intake in the
U.S. and other developed countries is roughly half of the minimum
suggested
intake of 50 micrograms. Well controlled studies involving human subjects
have demonstrated beneficial effects of supplemental chromium on fasting
glucose, glucose tolerance, blood lipids, insulin binding, and
hypoglycemic
blood glucose values and symptoms. Since chromium is a nutrient and
not a
therapeutic agent, it will only benefit those people whose signs and
symptoms are due to marginal or overt chromium deficiency. Stresses
including high sugar diets, strenuous exercise, physical trauma, infection
and certain diseases exacerbate the signs and symptoms associated with
marginal intakes of dietary chromium. While excessive levels of chromium
are usually limited to industrial settings, marginal dietary chromium
intake is widespread in the general population and may lead to serious
health problems.
4. Anderson RA.
Recent advances in the clinical and biochemical effects of chromium
deficiency.
Progress in Clinical and Biological Research, 1993, 380:221-34.
(UI: 93205729)
Pub type: Journal Article; Review; Review, Tutorial.
Abstract: Signs and symptoms of Cr deficiency in the general population appear
widespread due not only to suboptimal intake of dietary Cr but also the
elevated consumption of simple sugars that increase Cr losses. A large
percentage of the subjects with marginally impaired glucose tolerance or
elevated circulating insulin respond to supplemental Cr. The mechanism of
action of Cr in the potentiation of insulin activity as well as the exact
structure of biologically active chromium is unclear but significant
progress is being made. In summary, recent advances in chromium nutrition
research strengthen the association of insufficient dietary chromium and
risk factors maturity-onset diabetes and cardiovascular diseases and
further document the role of chromium in the maintenance of optimal
health.
--
Practice Random Kindness And Senseless Acts of Beauty.
ccou...@ucsd.edu (Internet) ...!ucsd!ccoughran (UUCP) CCOUGHRA@UCSD (BITNET)
Robert Blasi
She's been taking supplements for a month or two now...200 mcg daily or something
like that. I don't know if it's helped...her control has always seemed pretty
stable.
If you're interested...we first bought chromium picolinate at a very high price in
a very small bottle in a pharmacy. Oddly enough, they sell it in a big bottle at a
better price in GNC ("General Nutrition Centers").
VTY, Rob Blasi
---
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|Robert S. Blasi, II | bl...@esc.vf.ge.com |
|Electrical Engineering Student | bla...@dunx1.ocs.drexel.edu |
|Drexel University, Phila., PA | bla...@duvm.ocs.drexel.edu |
+-------------------------------+----------------------------------------------+
"IBM, Intel, Microsoft: One down, two to go."
Edward Reid
> I've read in some vitamin & mineral books that taking chromium
About as useful as most things you read in vitamin & mineral books. That is,
it probably won't hurt, but be careful.
Just for grins, here's an excerpt from the ADA's position statement "Nutritional
Recommendations and Principles for Individuals With Diabetes Mellitus":
Vitamins and minerals
Vitamins and minerals should meet the recommended requirements for
health. There is no evidence unique to the patient with diabetes to
warrant supplementation of vitamin and mineral intake unless the
patient is on a very low-calorie diet or other special circumstances
exist. Calcium supplements may be necessary under special
circumstances.
--
Edward Reid e...@titipu.resun.com (soliciting programming
PO Box 378 Edwar...@acm.org contracts, especially
Greensboro FL {ncr-sd,nosc,sdsu,foxtail}!blkhole!ed Unisys A-Series)
masc...@vms.huji.ac.il
This is probably an old paper. Recently it was established that vitamin E,
taken in large doses, lowers your A1C by a significant amount. As a result,
more and more diabetologists recommend adding vitamin E to their patients' diet.
My diabetologist presribed 400 unit pill of vitamin E, three times daily.
My last A1C was 5.6 on a range of 4-8. Prior to taliking vitamin E it was 7.6.
Rachel
Keith Schneider
>This is probably an old paper. Recently it was established that vitamin E,
>taken in large doses, lowers your A1C by a significant amount. As a result,
>more and more diabetologists recommend adding vitamin E to their patients' diet.
>My diabetologist presribed 400 unit pill of vitamin E, three times daily.
>My last A1C was 5.6 on a range of 4-8. Prior to taliking vitamin E it was 7.6.
Does this mean that vitamin E helps control diabetes, or does it just mean
that vitamin E causes the A1C test to be lower but does not really affect
your average blood sugars?
keith
MICHAEL MASCHLER
Vitamin E does NOT control your BG level. It lowers the amount of glycosilated
hemoglobin, as measured by A1C. A lot of diabetic complications are
believed to be correlated/due to presence of glycosilated hemoglobin, therefore,
it stands to reason that vitamin E would help reduce many diabetic
complications. However, it should be stressed that so far it was not
established experimentally that the above reasoning is, in fact, true.
As such an experiment may take years to perform, and since there is no
adverse side effects from consuming vitamin E, I am not going to wait
until experiments will verify the belief and I already take the above
dose daily.
Rachel
Edward Reid
> e...@titipu.resun.com (Edward Reid) quotes the ADA:
> >Just for grins, here's an excerpt from the ADA's position statement
> >"Nutritional
> >Recommendations and Principles for Individuals With Diabetes Mellitus":
>
> > warrant supplementation of vitamin and mineral intake unless the
> > patient is on a very low-calorie diet or other special circumstances
>
> This is probably an old paper. Recently it was established that vitamin E,
> taken in large doses, lowers your A1C by a significant amount. As a result,
> more and more diabetologists recommend adding vitamin E to their patients' diet.
The ADA reviews and revises its position statements annually. This statement
was last published in May 1993.
The reason for the apparent discrepancy is the distinction between nutritional
supplementation and therapuetic use. The original question described using
chromium supplements on the assumption that a dietary insufficiency existed.
That assumption is nonsense.
The 1200 units per day that you are taking, like the 2000 units (=1200 mg per
day) that I am taking, is not a dietary supplement. It is a drug. Its use and
action and dosage as a drug are unrelated to its use and metabolism and
required amount in the diet. These dosages are 40-70 times the nutritional
requirement.
Similarly, the research recently described here on vanadium compounds is
investigating their use as drugs, not because vanadium is needed in the diet.
The ADA statement addresses nutritional supplements, not drugs.