Diabetes and Chromium Supplements

Are you a diabetic patient? If yes, then the daily doses of medicines are not all that you need. You should also include certain food supplements in your diet that help control diabetes. Easily available, these supplements have proved to be a blessing in disguise for patients suffering from diabetes. One such supplement is Chromium.

Chromium is a very important mineral that controls the carbohydrate metabolism. It is an active constituent of glucose tolerance factor (GTF) and is said to have beneficial effects on the blood sugar levels. Chromium assists in the synthesis of fatty acids and glucose metabolism by stimulating the necessary enzymes involved in the processes.

Chromium helps in regulating the blood sugar levels by having collaboration with Insulin and monitoring the uptake of glucose into cells. If there is an absence of Chromium then Insulin’s action stops and the blood sugar levels begin to rise. Chromium is necessary for enhanced Insulin action and makes the body insulin sensitive. In this manner Insulin improves blood sugar levels and helps in weight loss.

There are no side effects seen from the intake of Chromium rich dietary supplements as the trivalent form of chromium is very safe. Deficiency in Chromium results in resistance of insulin. Studies have shown that supplementation of chromium reduces hyperinsulinemia, a disease which is caused due to elevated levels of insulin in the blood. Increased hyperinsulinemia is usually found in women suffering from gestational diabetes.

Chromium supplementation is recommended to people who are at risk or that have Type II diabetes. It is presumed quite often that chromium supplementation has nothing to do with Type I diabetic patients since their issue is insulin insufficiency. Though this is right to a certain extent but sometimes the Type I diabetes is combined with the Type II and the chromium supplementation helps the diabetic patient overall. Some diabetes studies have also found that supplementation of chromium has a beneficial effect on plasma lipids.

Among the missing micronutrients in diet, chromium is said to have the greatest impact on the response of insulin. An essential element for humans one may find that healthy adults may also be chromium deficient. In various studies it has been observed that the health of more than 50 percent of the subjects improved with the intake of chromium. No doubt, chromium supplementation is a great boon for the diabetics all over the world.