Diabetes Education and Research Center
Tips for Managing your Diabetes
Diabetes and Chromium
Diabetes is not a chromium-deficiency disease. However, some studies indicate that chromium replacement has beneficial effects on blood glucose levels ...for people who are chromium deficient. Chromium intake above the government's Estimated Safe and Adequate Intake for chromium did not appear to offer similar benefits. (The Estimated Safe and Adequate Intake for chromium is 50 to 200 mcg/day.) Many Americans have a dietary intake of approximately 25 to 35 mcg/day and may increase that intake by ingestion of chromium-rich foods: whole grains, nuts, cheeses, mushrooms, asparagus, prunes, brewers' yeast, wine, and beer. Practically everything we eat, even water, supplies some chromium. There's little evidence that chromium deficiency is widespread in this country (USA).
There are some popular and pricey chromium-containing supplements on the market right now: chromium picolinate and chromium polynicotinate. Both take the kind of chromium found in food and bind it to certain molecules that, according to the manufacturers, make it more easily absorbed. These supplements have not been found to be better than the chromium in food and most other supplements.
There is no definitive evidence that additional chromium, whether dietary or in supplemental form, will help you lose weight, build muscle, or lower cholesterol, as some advertisements claim.
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