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| |  Chromium Picolinate Supplements Help Control Diabetes NEW YORK, NY -- November 4, 1997 -- The use of chromium picolinate supplements significantly drops the level of glycated homoglobin in type II diabetics reports a study in this month’s journal Diabetes, an official publication of the American Diabetes Association. This clinical trial was conducted by Dr. Richard Anderson and his coworkers at the Beltsville Human Nutrition Research Center, United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), in Beltsville, Md. and by Dr. Nanzheng Cheng and her colleagues from the Beijing Medical University in Beijing, China. In this double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial, 180 adult patients with the most common form of diabetes (type II or adult-onset) were randomized into one of three equal groups who received either 200 micrograms of chromium as chromium picolinate, 1,000 micrograms (one milligram) of chromium as chromium picolinate or placebo. All supplements were taken daily for four months, during which time the patients were instructed not to change their customary diets, exercise regimens or medications. A statistically significant drop in glycated hemoglobin levels occurred at both the low and high levels of chromium. Glycated hemoglobin (hemoglobin molecules with sugar molecules chemically joined together) is a very sensitive indicator of diabetes control, with lower levels indicating better management of the disease. There were no changes in the glycated hemoglobin levels among patients in the placebo group. These data show that supplemental chromium helped to control blood sugar to a clinically important degree. In addition, both fasting blood sugar and serum insulin levels dropped significantly in the high-level group and fasting insulin levels dropped significantly in the low-level group, as well. Furthermore, in the group receiving 1,000 micrograms of chromium, serum cholesterol dropped significantly. While beneficial effects on blood sugar have been described for supplementary chromium for more than three decades, the study's authors note chromium's positive effects on serum cholesterol are also consistent with previous results shown by their group and others in clinical trials. "By supplementing the diets of these patients with chromium picolinate we were able to help them lower blood glucose levels, indicating that their diabetes was under better control," Dr. Anderson said. "The most compelling result of this trial is the magnitude of the glucose-lowering effect seen with chromium picolinate,” said Jay Skyler, MD, former president of the American Diabetes Association and currently a professor of medicine at the University of Miami Medical School. “This is comparable to -- or better than -- that seen with most medications approved for the treatment of type II diabetes in the U.S. "Chromium picolinate supplementation is easy, effective and safe and ought to be a consideration for most patients with adult-onset diabetes." Similar results were reported in moderately obese pre-diabetic individuals with increased insulin resistance at the American Diabetes Association meeting in June, 1997 by William Cefalu, MD, Associate Professor of Medicine, University of Vermont College of Medicine. Dr. Cefalu found a statistically significant drop in insulin resistance and additional evidence for improved glucose control in the individuals who received 1,000 mcg chromium as chromium picolinate for eight months. He concluded that chromium supplementation should be considered for individuals with impaired glucose control.
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