Getting Enough Chromium? It Can Help Prevent Diabetes

Chromium is one of the most important minerals that you may have never heard of, and has been shown in studies to not only help you to lose weight but also control diabetes. Chromium is vital in helping your body to produce and utilize the compound called insulin, which helps to transport the sugar created by your body from the foods that you eat from your blood and into your cells. Since chromium is essential in the production of insulin, it would help to keep the rate of transport of sugar at optimal levels, and have to keep your blood sugar from escalating which could result in a medical condition called hyperglycemia. A deficiency in chromium could also cause hypoglycemia which is a condition where the sugar in the blood is too low, and can have many harmful effects.

Recent studies have shown that chromium, when added to the diet of a diabetic can help the incident that the body produces to be more effective in taking sugar from their blood, and since most diabetic's bodies cannot properly do this, chromium it seems may be a lifesaver. The chromium showed in the studies to reduce the amount of insulin diabetics required each day to keep blood sugar optimal.

Chromium was also shown to lower the "bad" cholesterol or LDL cholesterol in the blood while consequently raising the good cholesterol or HDL cholesterol. The chromium therefore in addition to preventing diabetes could also lower your risk of heart disease.

Chromium is the forgotten mineral and many people do not get enough chromium in their diets to suffice for their daily metabolic needs. Trauma to the body also increases the need for chromium and any burns, courts, drug or alcohol abuse would increase your need for a higher chromium intake.

Those who participate in heavy exercise will have the best chromium in the body since it has been proven that strenuous exercise such as a running, baseball, paintings, football and other such sports cause the body to lose chromium faster that normal. The chromium is also a difficult mineral for your body to absorb and studies have shown that approximately 1% of the chromium available to your body through consumption of food is actually absorbed. Chromium is also removed from food that is highly processed and seems the consumption of processed foods is so high in developed countries the population may not be getting enough chromium for their daily needs.

If you would like to find out if you are not getting enough chromium in your diet, you should speak to your doctor and ask them to administer a serum chromium test before taking any chromium supplements. You can get chromium naturally from foods such as: yeasts, naval, mushrooms, prunes, nuts, and apples. Chromium is not a cure for diabetes, but this mineral can be very effective in its control, and have diabetics using less insulin as well as generally feeling happier and healthier.

References
1. The Complete Guide to Vitamins, Minerals and Supplements. Fisher Books. Arizona. 1998
2. The Real vitamin and Mineral Book. Avery Publishing group. NY 1990
3. The Doctor's Complete Guide to Vitamins and Minerals. Dell Publishing. NY. 1994