chromium & diabetes

[Jhanananda]

On the 29th my fasting blood sugar rose to the highest it has been in more than a month.  It was 175.  I have no explanation for its rise.  However, today's fasting blood sugar dropped to the lowest that it has been in about 4 years.  It was 108.  Perhaps there is just going to be some ups and downs in my fasting blood sugar that cannot be explained?

[Jhanananda]

Learning that eggs are like a super-food containing more chromium than just about any other food; and learning that chromium is essential for pancreatic function; then I am inclined to reject the research that suggests a link between egg consumption and a cause for diabetes. It is more likely that people who are becoming diabetic, either take up a low carb diet, which is likely to include eggs; or they intuitively seek eggs.

So, as an anthropologist I began to reflect upon egg consumption among humans, and figured that eggs may very well have been one of the earliest foraged foods that hominids, and possibly primates foraged.  So, I searched Google and found Monkey Stole My Egg! Bingo, possibly most primates steel eggs from nesting birds on a regular basis.  Thus, eggs are about as primal a food that we can eat.

This morning's fasting blood sugar count was 114.  My morning blood sugar levels have been consistently lower than they have been in years.

[Jhanananda]

On the 23rd of October I started adding 1 tblsp of nutritional yeast to my diet, which was mostly just eating a 3-egg quiche each day for the last 6 months.  By October 30th my blood sugar had dropped from 193 to 157, which is the high end of the normal range, and about 40 points lower than what it had been.

After a month of experimenting with my diet to find out how many eggs I need, and how many tblsp of nutritional yeast I need, I found that the 3-egg quiche each day, plus 3 tblsp of nutritional yeast, plus a low carb diet, plus eating only when hungry, my blood sugar has remained in the normal range for over 30 days, and today it was 96, my first 2 digit blood sugar level in over 4 years.  I can conclude that my new diet plan works, and it is time to celebrate.

[Michel]

Well, Jhananda, that is very good news. I am happy that you've found a diet that works to control your diabetes.

[Jhanananda]

Thank-you, Michel, for expressing your kind support. 

[Jhanananda]

Yesterday I tested my blood sugar several time over the day to see how my body handles food.  While my blood sugar fluctuated throughout the day, at no time did it rise above normal, or drop below normal.  So, I continue to be convinced that I have found a "cure" for my type 2 diabetes. 

However, looking over my data I see that there seems to be a 5-day cycle to my blood sugar, which may have confused my results.  So, I plan to retest some of my hypotheses with longer test cycles.

[Jhanananda]

I now have been supplementing my diet with nutritional yeast for 6 weeks. So, it is time for another update on my chromium & diabetes results.  I have been waiting for some stability to arrive in my daily fasting blood sugar so that I can begin investigating the variables. 

Instead of seeing the 5-day cycle that varied 70 points from 100-170, which is the range of "normal," with an average at about 145, for the last month; I have instead found for the last week there is a new cycle for me.  It has become a 40 point range in the middle of normal, ranging from 108 to 148, with the average at about 120.  I guess that I can expect continued improvement for a while longer as my pancreas repairs.

[Jhanananda]

I am trying to understand why eggs did not cure my diabetes, whereas Nutritional Yeast did, so I looked up Nutritional Yeast Nutritional Facts

Nutrition of Nutritional Yeast

Nutritional values for nutritional yeast vary from one manufacturer to another. On average, two tablespoons provides:
60 calories
5 g of carbohydrates (of which 4 g is fiber).
9 g of protein and is a complete protein, providing all nine amino acids the human body cannot produce.
chromium,
selenium
potassium. While fortified and unfortified nutritional yeast both provide iron, the fortified yeast provides 20 percent of the recommended daily value, while unfortified yeast provides only 5 percent.
Unfortified nutritional yeast provides from 35 to 100 percent of all of the B vitamins, except for B12.
Fortified nutritional yeast adds 150 percent of vitamin B12 and 720 percent of riboflavin.[6]

Because nutritional yeast is often used by vegans, who need to supplement their diets with vitamin B12, there has been confusion about the source of the B12 in nutritional yeast. Yeast cannot produce B12, which is only naturally produced by bacteria. Some brands of nutritional yeast, though not all, are fortified with vitamin B12. When fortified, the vitamin B12 is produced separately (commonly cyanocobalamin) and then added to the yeast.[7][8]

Although some species of bacteria that can produce B12 could potentially grow along with S. cerevisiae in the wild, commercially produced nutritional yeast is grown in controlled conditions that would normally not allow those bacteria to grow. Therefore, nutritional yeast should not be relied upon as a source of B12 unless it is fortified.

Vitamins in Nutritional Yeast
Amounts Per Selected Serving
%DV
Vitamin A 0.0 IU 0%
Vitamin C 0.0mg 0%
Vitamin D 0.0IU 0%
Vitamin E (Alpha Tocopherol) 0.0mg 0%
Vitamin K 0.0mcg 0%
Thiamin 9.6mg 640%
Riboflavin 9.7mg 570%
Niacin 56.0mg 280%
Vitamin B6 9.6mg 480%
Folate 240mcg 60%
Vitamin B12 7.8mcg 130%
Pantothenic Acid 1.0 mg 10%
Choline ~
Betaine ~

Minerals in Nutritional Yeast
Amounts Per Selected Serving
%DV
Calcium 0.0mg 0%
Iron0.7mg 4%
Magnesium 24.0mg 6%
Phosphorus 0.0mg 0%
Potassium 0.0mg 0%
Sodium 5.0mg 0%
Zinc 3.0mg 20%
Copper 0.1mg 6%
Manganese 0.1mg 6%
Selenium 0.0mcg 0%
Fluoride ~

nutritional value of egg
Amount Per 1 large (50 g)
Calories 78
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 5 g   7%
Saturated fat 1.6 g   8%
Polyunsaturated fat 0.7 g   
Monounsaturated fat 2 g   
Cholesterol 187 mg   62%
Sodium 62 mg   2%
Potassium 63 mg   1%
Total Carbohydrate 0.6 g   0%
Dietary fiber 0 g   0%
Sugar 0.6 g   
Protein 6 g   12%
Vitamin A   5%   Vitamin C   0%
Calcium   2%   Iron   3%
Vitamin D   11%   Vitamin B-6   5%
Vitamin B-12   10%   Magnesium   1%

CHROMIUM CONTENT OF SOME FOODS

FOOD      CHROMIUM CONTENT FOOD   (micrograms per 100 grams of food) Egg yolk 183 Brewer's yeast 112

Conclusion, there are no known nutrients available in Nutritional Yeast that are not more available in eggs, yet eggs were not enough for my recovery from type 2 diabetes without the aide of Nutritional Yeast, and vice versa.

[Jhanananda]

It has now been 2 months since I started adding nutritional yeast to my diet, and about 10 months, since I have been eating eggs every day.  As I learn more about what normal blood sugar is supposed to be, and I look more closely at my blood sugar record, I am now not willing to give nutritional yeast so much credit for my recovery from type 2 diabetes.  It could very well have been all due the eggs, and recovery simply takes time.

It is true that my blood sugar has been cycling within the range of normal for 2 months now.  It is also true that the cycle seems to be dampening out, and lengthening, with the dominant curve being lowered by 10 points about monthly.

As I mentioned under the thread Leg Cramps at night and diabetes both my leg cramps and my neuropathy have gone, and I believe it is due to adding eggs, and/or nutritional yeast, to my daily diet.

What Is The Normal Range For Blood Sugar Levels, And What Blood Sugar Level Constitutes A True Emergency?
August 14, 2008
Edward S. Horton, M.D., Section Head, Clinical Research at Joslin Diabetes Center; Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School

Question:What is the normal range for blood sugar levels, and what blood sugar level constitutes a true emergency?

Answer:Now, in a normal individual we measure blood sugar under different circumstances. What we call fasting blood sugar or blood glucose levels is usually done six to eight hours after the last meal. So it's most commonly done before breakfast in the morning; and the normal range there is 70 to 100 milligrams per deciliter.

Now when you eat a meal, blood sugar generally rises and in a normal individual it usually does not get above a 135 to 140 milligrams per deciliter. So there is a fairly narrow range of blood sugar throughout the entire day.

Now in our diabetic patients we see both low blood sugar levels that we call hypoglycemia, or elevated blood sugars, hyperglycemia. Now, if the blood sugar drops below about 60 or 65 milligrams per deciliter, people will generally get symptoms, which are some shakiness, feeling of hunger, maybe a little racing of the heart and they will usually be trenchant or if they eat something, it goes away right away. But if blood sugar drops below 50 and can get down as low as 40 or 30 or even 20, then there is a progressive loss of mental function and eventually unconsciousness and seizures. And of course that is very dangerous and a medical emergency.

On the other side, if blood sugar gets up above 180 to 200, then it exceeds the capacity of the kidneys to reabsorb the glucose and we begin to spill glucose into the urine. And if it gets way up high, up in the 400s or even 500s, it can be associated with some alteration in mental function. And in this situation, if it persists for a long time, we can actually see mental changes as well. So either too low or very exceedingly high can cause changes in mental function.

[Jhanananda]

My blood sugar levels have steadily lowered since the end of October, with the range consistently in the range of normal. The cycle of my blood sugar at first had a 5 day cycle, then an 8 day cycle.  However, this is the second 2 week cycle period in the last month and a half that I have had. The base line has steadily lowered as well. It is now 105-121.  It might be due to having added cinnamon to my diet a week ago; or it could be just having had nutritional yeast in my diet longer; or eggs in my diet longer.  Perhaps it just takes a year for recovery through chromium supplementation.  And/or my recovery from type 2 diabetes from treating it as an inflammatory disease by increasing my consumption of Anthocyanin.

I forgot to mention that my feet stopped being numb about 2 weeks ago, which means diabetic neuropathy has stopped, and been reversed.

[Jhanananda]

Almost exactly 2 years ago I searched the American Diabetes Association website for articles on the effect of chromium but found none there, which seemed to me completely irresponsible of the American Diabetes Association not to have literature on the effective use of chromium on diabetes when there was so much research since the 50s showing its effectiveness.  Recently a friend sent me a link to an excellent more recent research paper, which happens to now be published on the American Diabetes Association website.  It is: Role of Chromium in Human Health and in Diabetes.

However, I found the first sentence in that research paper completely erresponsible, since there was so much research on the subject, but it might be why the ADA chose to publish the paper.

Despite widespread use by patients with diabetes and anecdotal reports in the past regarding its efficacy, until recently, data in humans concerning chromium’s effects on insulin action in vivo or on cellular aspects of insulin action were scarce...

The author then goes on to to prove himself wrong in the next paragraph.

The interest in chromium as a nutritional enhancement to glucose metabolism can be traced back to the 1950s, when it was suggested that brewer’s yeast contained a glucose tolerance factor (GTF) that prevented diabetes in experimental animals (1). This factor was eventually suggested to be a biologically active form of trivalent chromium that could substantially lower plasma glucose levels in diabetic mice (2).

I found the rest of this research paper full of very useful information.

Chromium, one of the most common elements in the earth’s crust and seawater, exists in our environment in several oxidation states, principally as metallic (Cr0), trivalent (+3), and hexavalent (+6) chromium. The latter is largely synthesized by the oxidation of the more common and naturally occurring trivalent chromium and is highly toxic. Trivalent chromium, found in most foods and nutrient supplements, is an essential nutrient with very low toxicity. Interest regarding chromium administration in patients with diabetes was kindled by the observation in the 1970s that it truly was an essential nutrient required for normal carbohydrate metabolism. A patient receiving total parenteral nutrition (TPN) developed severe signs of diabetes, including weight loss and hyperglycemia that was refractory to increasing insulin dosing (3). Based on previous animal studies and preliminary human studies, the patient was given supplemental chromium. In the following 2 weeks, signs and symptoms of diabetes were ameliorated, with markedly improved glycemic status and greatly reduced insulin requirements (exogenous insulin requirements decreased from 45 units/day to none). Other studies (4,5) of the beneficial effects of chromium in patients receiving TPN have also been documented in the scientific literature. Chromium is now routinely added to TPN solutions (5).

Trivalent chromium is found in a wide range of foods, including egg yolks, whole-grain products, high-bran breakfast cereals, coffee, nuts, green beans, broccoli, meat, brewer’s yeast, and some brands of wine and beer (8,9). Chromium is also present in many multivitamin/mineral supplements, and there are also specific chromium picolinate (CrP) supplements that contain 200–600 μg chromium per tablet (10). The U.S. National Academy of Sciences has established the Recommended Daily Allowances for chromium as 50–200 μg/day for adult men and women (11), which is also the Estimated Safe and Adequate Daily Dietary Intake (ESADDI) for chromium for children aged 7 years to adulthood (7,12). However, it appears that Americans normally ingest ∼50–60% of the minimum suggested daily intake of 50 μg (7). Results from one study (10) indicated that daily chromium intakes for men and women in the U.S. were 33 and 25 μg, respectively. Therefore, normal dietary intake of chromium for adults may be suboptimal.

At dietary intakes >50 μg/day, chromium absorption is ∼0.4%, but the trivalent formulation also significantly influences bioavailability. At a dose of 1,000 μg/day, absorption of chromium from chromium chloride (CrCl3) is ∼0.4%, whereas that from CrP may be as high as 2.8% (7,13,14). Once absorbed, chromium is distributed widely in the body, with the highest levels being found in the kidney, liver, spleen, and bone (14).

BIOLOGIC ACTIONS OF CHROMIUM

How chromium serves as a cofactor for insulin action is not fully understood. From several in vivo and in vitro studies (15), it was initially thought that chromium potentiated the actions of insulin as part of an organic complex, GTF. More recent studies (15) have suggested that chromium may function as part of the oligopeptide low–molecular weight (MW) chromium (LMWCr)-binding substance (MW ∼1,500 Da), which is composed of glycine, cysteine, glutamic acid, and aspartic acid...

Chromium has also been demonstrated to inhibit phosphotyrosine phosphatase, the enzyme that cleaves phosphate from the insulin receptor, leading to decreases in insulin sensitivity. Activation of insulin receptor kinase and inhibition of insulin receptor phosphatase would lead to increased phosphorylation of the insulin receptor and increased insulin sensitivity (20). The balance between kinase and phosphatase activity may facilitate the role of insulin in rapidly moving glucose into cells. In addition, it has been suggested (7) that chromium enhances insulin binding, insulin receptor number, insulin internalization, and β-cell sensitivity.

There is no clinically defined state of chromium deficiency, but diabetes has been shown (32) to develop because of low chromium levels in experimental animals and in humans sustained by prolonged TPN. These results suggest that there may be a more general relationship between chromium levels and glucose and/or lipid metabolism. It has also been suggested (35–37) that low chromium concentrations and the associated impairments in insulin, glucose, and lipid metabolism may also result in increased cardiovascular risk. In a cross-sectional analysis (38), lower toenail chromium levels have also been associated with increased risk of type 2 diabetes. Adequate dietary chromium intake may be especially problematic in the elderly (39,40). Consumption of refined foods, including simple sugars, exacerbates the problem of insufficient dietary chromium because these foods are not only low in dietary chromium but also increase its loss from the body (41). Chromium losses are also increased during pregnancy and as a result of strenuous exercise, infection, physical trauma, and other forms of stress (40). Reduced chromium levels are reported in the elderly and in patients with diabetes (42,43)...

Regardless, recent studies have demonstrated the successful determination of chromium. One study reported that in >40,800 patients from ages 1 to >75 years, chromium levels in hair, sweat, and blood diminished significantly with age, with values decreasing from 25 to 40% depending on the tissue of interest (43). Additionally, it appears that diabetic subjects may have altered chromium metabolism compared with nondiabetic subjects, as both absorption and excretion may be higher (44,45). Hair and blood levels are reported (46) to be lower in diabetic subjects, with mean levels of plasma chromium of ∼33% lower in 93 type 2 diabetic subjects compared with control subjects. Another study reported that chromium levels were reduced >50% in both diabetic men and women compared with control subjects (42), which was supported by Elmekcioglu et al. (47), who reported significantly lower chromium levels in the plasma of type 2 diabetic individuals compared with nondiabetic healthy control subjects.

Dosage, formulation, duration of study.
Studies that specifically evaluated ≤200 μg of chromium chloride failed to elicit a clinical response in those with type 2 diabetes (Table 1). Uusitupa et al. (52) demonstrated a positive effect at 200 μg of the CrCl salt...

A more consistent clinical response is observed with daily supplementation of chromium >200 μg/day for a duration of ≥2 months (Table 1). In addition, other forms of chromium, especially CrP, appear to be more bioavailable and clinically more effective than chromium chloride in both human and animal studies. Evidence for a dose effect of CrP was provided by a study of Chinese type 2 diabetic subjects (45). Short-term (2 months) and long-term (4 months) efficacy were observed, as evidenced by reductions in fasting and 2-h glucose and insulin values and long-term reductions in HbA1c concentrations utilizing varying doses of CrP (200 or 1,000 μg). The effectiveness of the 1,000-μg dose in the Chinese study was reproduced in a study of individuals with the metabolic syndrome (64). In a study (57) of 30 women with gestational diabetes receiving placebo or 4 or 8 μg · kg−1 · day−1 of CrP, after 8 weeks the two groups taking chromium had significantly lower glucose and insulin levels. Finally, another (58) observed that corticosteroid-treated subjects have accelerated chromium losses and that steroid-induced diabetes was reversed with CrP supplementation at 600 μg/day.

Individuals with diabetes
Type 1 and 2 diabetes.

Chinese patients with type 2 diabetes receiving CrP experienced significant improvements in HbA1c, fasting plasma glucose (FPG), 2-h glucose (i.e., glucose levels 2 h after challenge), and fasting and 2-h insulin (45). Other investigators studied the effects of brewer’s yeast (23.3 μg chromium/day) and chromium chloride (200 μg chromium/day) on glucose tolerance, serum lipids, and antidiabetic drug dosage in a 16-week, randomized, double-blind, crossover trial that included 78 patients with type 2 diabetes (23,66). Both forms of chromium supplementation resulted in significant decreases in mean FPG, 2-h glucose, and fructosamine. Chromium treatment also slightly reduced required doses of antidiabetic drugs, and this decline achieved statistical significance for glibenclamide.

Another group assessed the effects of jiangtangkang (8 g t.i.d.), a chrysanthemum product high in chromium, on glucose and insulin metabolism in 188 patients with type 2 diabetes (67). After 2 months, jiangtangkang treatment reduced fasting and postprandial blood glucose and HbA1c without any corresponding change in plasma insulin. A 16-month, double-blind, randomized, crossover trial (32) of chromium chloride, brewer’s yeast that contained chromium as GTF, brewer’s yeast extract without GTF, and a placebo in 43 patients with diabetes also demonstrated positive effects of chromium on glucose and insulin metabolism.

One study (68) reported that 10 days of treatment with CrP (200 μg/day) significantly increased insulin sensitivity in patients with type 1 or 2 diabetes and also permitted reductions in dosages of insulin and/or oral antidiabetic drugs in these patients.

A large long-term study showed that 10 months of treatment with CrP (500 μg/day) in 833 patients with type 2 diabetes significantly improved both FPG and postprandial plasma glucose versus baseline (Fig. 3) and reduced the incidence of diabetes symptoms, including fatigue, thirst, and frequent urination (60).

braham et al. (69) treated patients with 250 μg/day CrCl3, Lee and Reasner (70) administered 200 μg/day CrP, and Uusitupa et al. (52) treated patients in their trial with 200 μg/day CrCl3. Thus, two of the three studies that failed to document significant positive effects of chromium on insulin or glucose metabolism used a poorly absorbed inorganic formulation, and the third administered a very low dose of CrP. These facts underscore the point that chromium formulation and dose must be carefully considered when evaluating results from studies that have assessed its metabolic effects in individuals with or without diabetes.

Summary.

Results from the trials noted above support the view that chromium supplementation, especially in the form of CrP, in patients with type 1, type 2, gestational, or steroid-induced diabetes can improve both glucose and insulin metabolism. The reason why chromium supplementation was ineffective in some studies is not clear, but it is worth noting that all of these trials used relatively low chromium doses (≤250 μg/day), used different forms of chromium, or had study populations composed of both diabetic and nondiabetic patients.

Individuals with the metabolic syndrome

Many patients with diabetes have additional metabolic abnormalities that, taken together, constitute what has been referred to as the metabolic syndrome. The National Cholesterol Education Program Adult Treatment Panel III has defined the metabolic syndrome as the presence of three or more of the following conditions: waist circumference >102 cm in men and >88 cm in women, serum triglyceride level ≥150 mg/dl; HDL cholesterol <40 mg/dl in men and <50 mg/dl in women, blood pressure ≥130/85 mmHg, or serum glucose ≥110 mg/dl (71). Insulin resistance is a core feature of the metabolic syndrome and is associated with increased cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk, even in the absence of glucose intolerance (72). Several studies have evaluated the effects of chromium supplementation in patients with components of the metabolic syndrome.

Cefalu et al. (64) assessed the effects of 8 months of treatment with CrP (1,000 μg/day) or placebo on glucose tolerance, insulin sensitivity, and body fat in 29 subjects with >125% of ideal body weight and a family history of diabetes. Study results showed that CrP supplementation significantly improved insulin sensitivity versus placebo (Fig. 4), but had no significant effects on glucose effectiveness, body weight, abdominal fat, or BMI. These investigators suggested that the positive effect of CrP on insulin sensitivity without a corresponding change in body weight or BMI may indicate a direct effect of chromium on muscle insulin action.

Chromium effects on body weight and composition

The prevalence of obesity in the U.S. is high, and more than one-half of all adults are currently overweight or obese. Obesity significantly increases the risk for development of type 2 diabetes, hypertension, and CVD (75). Several studies have evaluated the effects of chromium supplementation on body weight and composition in individuals with and without diabetes.

Chromium supplementation has variable effects on body weight and composition in patients with diabetes (26–30,45,56,73,76,77). One study of patients with diabetes indicated no significant effects on either body weight or BMI (45), while another in elderly subjects with impaired glucose tolerance demonstrated significant reductions in BMI (30). Of the eight double-blind, placebo-controlled trials in individuals without diabetes, chromium supplementation showed decreases in weight and fat in three larger studies (26–29,56,73,76,77).

Relationship between tissue chromium levels and disease state
Risk for coronary heart disease.

Two epidemiologic studies have evaluated the relationship between Cr3 levels in toenails (a measure that can best reflect long-term intake of trace elements) and risk of coronary heart disease in men. The Health Professionals’ Follow-up Study (HPFS) is a prospective study including 33,737 male health care professionals in the U.S. who were free of chronic disease and provided toenail samples in 1987. During 7 years of follow-up, there were 367 confirmed myocardial infarctions (MIs). Two control subjects were matched to each case subject. Study results showed that the risk for MI was significantly reduced in men in the highest quintile for toenail Cr3+. However, this relationship was only significant for subjects with BMI ≥25 kg/m2 (37).

In a second study conducted in the HPFS (38), mean toenail chromium (microgram per gram) was 0.71 in healthy control subjects (n = 361), 0.61 in diabetic subjects (n = 688), and 0.52 in diabetic men with prevalent CVD (n = 198, P = 0.003 for trend). In the cross-sectional analysis, after adjustment of potential confounders, the odds ratio (OR) between extreme quartiles was 0.74 (95% CI 0.49–1.11; P = 0.18 for trend) comparing diabetic with healthy control subjects. A similar comparison between diabetic men with prevalent CVD and healthy control subjects yielded an OR of 0.45 (95% CI 0.24–0.84; P = 0.003 for trend). A nested case-control analysis comparing diabetic men with incident CVD with healthy individuals yielded similar results. These findings suggest that adequate chromium may be important for both diabetes and CVD prevention.

The results of the HPFS are consistent with those from the European Community Multicenter Study on Antioxidants, Myocardial Infarction, and Breast Cancer (EURAMIC), an incident, population-based, case-control study conducted in eight European countries and Israel to determine whether low toenail chromium concentrations are significantly associated with increased risk for MI. The study included 684 case subjects (men with a first diagnosis of MI within 24 h of admission to the hospital) and 724 control subjects (men with similar demographic characteristics, but without MI). Average toenail chromium was 1.10 mg/kg in the case subjects vs. 1.30 mg/kg in the control subjects. Additional analysis indicated that the adjusted ORs for MI for chromium quintiles 1–5 were 1.00, 0.82, 0.68, 0.60, and 0.59, respectively (82). The results of EURAMIC thus indicate that toenail chromium concentration has a clearly inverse relationship with MI risk in men. This relationship remained significant after adjusting for age, BMI, HDL cholesterol, diabetes, history of hypertension, and smoking.

SAFETY OF CHROMIUM

Most of the concerns regarding the long-term safety of chromium supplementation arise from results of several cell culture studies using supraphysiological doses that suggested that chromium, particularly in the form of CrP, may increase DNA damage. However, there is currently no evidence that chromium increases DNA damage in vivo. There have also been isolated reports (83) of serious adverse events, including kidney failure, associated with CrP treatment, but the relationship of chromium to these events is not clear. Recent reviews of the safety of CrP by the Institute of Medicine (84) and by Berner et al. (85) have concluded that CrP is safe. Results from controlled clinical trials (86) have shown that treatment with chromium at doses up to 1,000 μg/day and for periods as long as 64 months does not result in any toxic effects.

CONCLUSIONS

A large body of literature in both experimental animals and humans indicates that chromium is an essential element involved in the action of insulin as demonstrated in the studies of chromium deficiency. Although chromium deficiency has not been defined beyond that in patients receiving TPN, epidemiologic studies suggest that tissue levels of chromium are reduced among diabetic individuals, especially in those with existing CVD, compared with healthy control subjects. Two case-control studies have also found that lower toenail chromium levels predict risk of MI in apparently healthy subjects. However, further epidemiologic studies are needed to confirm these associations in different populations, and clinical trials are needed to prove the causal relationship.

Growing evidence suggests that chromium supplementation, particularly at higher doses and in the form of CrP, may improve insulin sensitivity and glucose metabolism in patients with glucose intolerance and type 1, type 2, gestational, and steroid-induced diabetes and in some individuals without diabetes.

[Jhanananda]

Based upon the above findings that 200µg of Cr-p is the minimum daily requirement for Cr-3, and examining the list of chromium rich foods from the thread chromium & diabetes

CHROMIUM CONTENT OF SOME FOODS

FOOD      CHROMIUM CONTENT FOOD   (micrograms per 100 grams of food) Egg yolk 183 Brewer's yeast 112 Beef 57 Cheese 56 Liver 55 Wine 45 Bread, wholemeal, wheat 42 Black pepper 35 Rye bread 30 Chilli, fresh 30 Apple peel 27 Potatoes, old 27 Oysters 26 Potatoes, new 21 Margarine 18 Spaghetti 15 Cornflakes 14 Spirits 14 Butter 13 Spinach 10 Egg white 8 Oranges 5 Beer 3-30 Apples, peeled 1

We find that 1 egg a day just keeps the chromium levels at normal; whereas, if 1000µgm of chromium is needed per day to treat diabetes, then it would require 5 eggs a day, or 10000 gm (1 kilo) of nutritional yeast, or bushel baskets of chromium-rich vegetables, per day would be needed to treat diabetes. It so happens that meat and dairy have 10 times as much Cr-3 as vegetables and fruits known to be rich in Cr-3; and eggs are 4 times as rich in chromium as meat and dairy.  So, I can no longer recommend veganism; but I can recommend lacto-ovo vegetarianism.

[Jhanananda]

Realizing that the additions that I had added to CHROMIUM-6 in your drinking water in the last 24 hours really belonged in this thread, I then split off the last two posts to CHROMIUM-6 in your drinking water and merged them with chromium & diabetes.

I did read through some of this tread and found that I had noticed a strange rise in my blood sugar, which I was blaming on eating eggs.  I have since found that drinking the local municipal water causes my blood sugar to rise, because of CHROMIUM-6 in your drinking water; and because of periodic Space weather.  Now, after several years, realizing that the primary variables in my health are related to these three topics has helped me a great deal to understand how to improve my health.  It just so happens that my health in the last 9 months has improved due to: drinking purified, or distilled water, and with the decline of Space weather, and the continued consumption of both eggs and nutritional yeast.

[Jhanananda]

In recent research I found that most of the municipal water in industrialized nations is contaminated with cr-6; so combined with my chromium deficient diet for 37 years of veganism; plus having a vigorous outdoor lifestyle and career from 1990 to 2008, which involved a lot of sweating, I believe was the cause of my severe joint pain starting in 2000, and a blood sugar of 250-350 starting in 2008. 

Now, me not sweating so much and being on an ultra-low-carb diet which is based upon eggs; and consuming purified or distilled water, my blood sugar now ranges from 80-150.

Since I check space weather everyday, I notice that there are odd rises in my blood sugar that bring it up from 80-120, to the 150 range, and it seems to correspond with solar weather.  For instance, with no change in my diet my blood sugar went from 100-120 for two weeks, to 150s for the last week when we went into a series of solar storms.  We are currently 2-days into the worst one that we have had in months, and my blood sugar has gone up to 150-190.

One of the things that has concerned me is stainless steel is made with chromium-6.  It has been shown since the 50s that we acquire chromium from cooking on stainless steel cookware.  I have, and continue to, cook on stainless steel cookware most of my life.  Perhaps continuing to cook on stainless steel cookware is continuing to contaminate me, and everyone else, with cr-6.

No one has sent off water samples of water that was heated in, or stored in, stainless steel cookware to determine if cr-6 migrates into the water at levels that are of health concern.  My hypothesis is that it does.  I would like to send off such samples for cr-3 and cr-6 testing, but there is no funding for it. 

I would also like to send off samples of eggs for cr-3 and cr-6 testing as well, because commercial chicken ranching might just expose chickens to cr-6; and those chickens may not be able to convert the cr-6 to cr-3 when they store chromium in their eggs.  It is just something that should be tested, and reported, but has not.

I am planning on purchasing replacement cookware, which is not stainless steel, to replace my stainless steel set.  Just tracking my blood sugar through that period should determine whether stainless steel cookware is causing my health problems.

The problem with me switching to cooking on cookware that is not stainless steel and tracking my blood sugar daily through that period is likely to take years of data acquisition to demonstrate that hyothesis; whereas sending in water samples as above should clearly show whether cr-6 is migrating into our body through using stainless steel cookware.

There is a broader implication here.  If it can be shown that cr-6 is migrating into our body through using stainless steel cookware; then even drinking purified, or distilled, water is likely to be a problem, because most of that water is most probably processed or stored in stainless steel tanks and pipes.  This is also true for processed foods, and even food prepared in a commercial kitchen, because stainless steel surfaces, tanks, and pots are required by the FDA and health departments.