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| Life Extension
Update Exclusive Low chromium levels associated
with diabetes and heart disease in men
A report published in the American Diabetes Association journal
Diabetes Care, described an inverse relationship between
body levels of chromium and diabetes in men. The inverse association
was even stronger when men with both diabetes and cardiovascular
disease were examined.
Chromium is a trace mineral that can improve insulin sensitivity.
Although only 50 to 200 micrograms per day is considered adequate,
the majority of individuals consuming western diets fail to obtain
this amount.
The study involved participants in the Health Professionals Follow-up
Study, which enrolled 51,529 men in 1986 to investigate the role
of diet in disease. For the current analysis, Harvard researchers
compared 688 participants with diabetes and 198 subjects who had
diabetes and cardiovascular disease to 361 healthy participants.
Toenail clippings were analyzed for chromium levels in 1987, and
questionnaires completed at the beginning of the study and every
two years thereafter provided information on the men’s diets
and medical histories.
When men whose chromium levels were in the highest one-fourth of
all participants were compared with those whose levels were in the
lowest one-fourth, their risk of diabetes was found to be 26 percent
lower. Having a high level of chromium more than halved the risk
of having diabetes accompanied by cardiovascular disease experienced
by those whose chromium levels were in the lowest one-fourth.
A second analysis compared 202 diabetic men who developed cardiovascular
disease over the course of the study with 361 healthy age and smoking
status matched controls, and also found an inverse association between
chromium levels and disease risk.
The authors state that these results suggest that men with diabetes
and cardiovascular disease have lower levels of chromium than healthy
men. They recommend long-term clinical trials to determine whether
supplementation with chromium will help prevent cardiovascular disease
in people with diabetes.
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| Protocol
Diabetes
Anecdotal but confirmed reports of brewer's yeast (a source of chromium)
normalizing blood glucose levels hints of chromium's remarkable
contribution to diabetic care. Researchers validated the anecdotal
stories when the results of a study involving 78 Type II diabetics
were published (Bahijiri et al. 2000). One-half of the enrollees
received an inorganic chromium (200 mcg a day); the other half received
brewer's yeast (supplying 23.3 mcg of chromium per day). Both groups
realized a significant decrease in glucose in urine and fasting
blood glucose levels as well as after a 2-hour, 75-gram glucose
load. In fact, some trial participants were able to decrease antidiabetic
drugs, and others no longer required insulin. Interestingly, a higher
percentage responded positively to brewer's yeast, presumably because
of better absorption; that is, the body retained more of the trace
mineral.
The literature teems with similar reports regarding chromium's
ability to modulate errant blood glucose levels. In fact, chromium
is so important it is considered essential nearly every time you
eat. Unfortunately, about 90% of adults are chromium deficient,
according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. (The highest tissue
levels of chromium are found in newborns, with the tissue levels
dwindling over a lifetime.) The conundrum surrounding chromium is
that as chromium becomes deficient, more insulin is required, and
as insulin production becomes excessive, a chromium deficiency occurs.
In addition, chromium levels are seriously depleted when eating
a diet high in refined sugar and white flour products.
It was known by the 1950s that chromium was required by animals
to control blood sugar, but it was not until the 1970s that chromium's
essential role in humans was clearly proven. The following chance
finding established chromium's validity in reducing diabetic symptoms:
patients receiving Total Parenteral Nutrition (TPN), a specially
prepared feeding solution delivered through the patient's veins,
developed high blood sugar in the absence of diabetes. Insulin therapy
was begun but without satisfying results. It was determined that
the TPN was deficient in amounts of chromium adequate to stave off
diabetes-like symptoms. When 50 mcg of chromium were added to their
IV feedings, the patients no longer required insulin and their blood
glucose levels returned to normal (Mennen 1996).
Several mechanisms render chromium valuable in blood glucose management:
- Chromium is essential in glucose metabolism. Note: It is estimated
only about 3% of ingested chromium is absorbed into body tissues.
The mineral is stored primarily in the spleen, skin, kidneys,
and testes (Whiting 1989).
- Chromium assists in overcoming insulin resistance (McCarty 2000).
- Chromium appears to be involved in the insulin-induced movement
of glucose into cells, probably by encouraging the binding of
insulin to the receptor site or participating in reactions that
occur immediately after the binding process, called postreceptor
events.
http://www.lef.org/protocols/prtcl-042.shtml
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Chromium
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Chromium is an essential trace mineral that is necessary for carbohydrate
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Chromium polynicotinate is a niacin-bound, absorbable form that
may be used as part of your diet to help maintain a healthy blood
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http://www.lef.org/newshop/items/item00457.html |
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| Life
Extension Magazine November 2004 Preview Vote
“Yes” to Fund Stem Cell Research in California
Stem cell research could lead to the reversal of aging and cures
for diabetes, Parkinson's disease, multiple sclerosis, spinal cord
injuries, Alzheimer's disease, AIDS and other diseases and conditions.
The problem is that—for political reasons—stem cell
research has been limited severely in the U.S. by federal restrictions.
The government's reactionary position on stem cell research has
also made it difficult for private companies to raise money for
research on this revolutionary breakthrough.
http://www.lef.org/magazine/mag2004/nov2004_itn_01.htm |
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Dayna Dye
Editor, Life Extension Update
ddye@lifeextension.com
LifeExtension.com
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