Nature's Way - Chromium Picolinate, 200 mcg
Chromium is an essential part of the GTF (glucose tolerance factor) molecule. GTF is an important cofactor for insulin in the regulation of blood sugar which is necessary for proper metabolism.

Nature's Way Chromium Picolinate is 100% natural, patented Chromium Picolinate. It contains no artificial ingredients or preservatives.

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You can find chromium in an excellent doctor-formulated multivitamin product.
Chromium picolinate is also found in Diet Rx.  

High Quality products formulated by a medical doctor
Mind Power Rx for better mental focus, concentration, and mood; Diet Rx with chromium picolinate and Green Tea Extract which helps you eat less. It really does curb appetite; Good Night Rx for better sleep; Eyesight Rx for better vision, often within days; MultiVit Rx, a daily comprehensive multivitamin for more energy and vitality; Joint Power Rx for healthy joints; Prostate Power Rx for a healthy prostate gland; and Passion Rx for sexual enhancement, better libido, and improved performance and stamina in men and women.

Chromium Function
Chromium is generally accepted as an essential mineral that enhances insulin action and thus influences carbohydrate, lipid, and protein metabolism.

Chromium Benefits
Chromium supplements may help some individuals who have diabetes, particularly for people living in non-Western countries. A National Institutes of Health study indicates that chromium picolinate supplements significantly enhanced insulin sensitivity. However, other studies dispute the benefit of chromium supplements in diabetes or blood sugar control. For a natural sugar alternative, see stevia benefit information.

Dr. Nanno Kleefstra from Isala Clinics in Zwolle, and colleagues investigated the effects of chromium in people with type 2 diabetes residing in a northern region of the Netherlands. Fifty-seven patients were randomly assigned to take 400 micrograms of chromium per day or a placebo. After 3 and 6 months of treatment, there were no differences between the chromium group and the placebo group for fasting blood glucose levels, long-term control of glucose levels as measured by A1c, blood pressure, body fat percentage, weight, lipid profile, and how well they responded to the insulin their bodies produced, the investigators report in the medical journal Diabetes Care. Diabetes Care, May 2007.

Availability of Chromium
Chromium is available in a variety of dosages and forms, most commonly in 100 or 200 mcg. A dosage of 100 to 200 mcg of chromium could be taken by healthy individuals a couple of times a week, while those with diabetes may benefit from taking chromium 3 to 5 times a week. A combination of chromium picolinate and biotin is found in a patented formula called Diachrome.

Chromium Research update
Effectiveness of chromium in atypical depression: a placebo-controlled trial.
Davidson JR,. Duke University Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina 27710, USA.
Biol Psychiatry. 2003 Feb 1;53(3):261-4.
Chromium picolinate (CP) has been reported to benefit patients with symptoms of atypical depression. METHODS: A placebo-controlled, double-blind, pilot study of CP was conducted in 15 patients with DSM-IV major depressive disorder, atypical type. Patients received 600 micro g of CP or matching placebo (PBO) for 8 weeks. RESULTS: Seven (70%) CP and zero (0%) PBO patients met responder criteria. Other outcomes were consistent with greater effect of CP. Three patients on CP failed to show any improvement. Chromium picolinate was well tolerated. Chromium picolinate shows promising antidepressant effects in atypical depression. Its mechanism of action may relate to 5HT2A downregulation, increased insulin sensitivity, or to other effects.

Beneficial effects of chromium in people with type 2 diabetes, and urinary chromium response to glucose load as a possible indicator of status.
Bahijri SM, Mufti AM. King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
Biol Trace Elem Res. 2002 Feb;85(2):97-109.
No reliable method for the estimation of chromium (Cr) status is available yet. The aim of this study is to investigate the possibility of using urinary Cr response to glucose load as an indicator of Cr status. Seventy-eight non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus patients, were divided randomly into two groups and given Cr supplements as brewer's yeast and CrCl3 sequentially with placebo in between, in a double-blind, crossover design of four stages, each lasting 8 wk. At the beginning and end of each stage, subjects were weighed, their dietary data and drug dosage recorded, and blood and urine samples collected for analysis of glucose and urinary chromium (fasting and 2 h post-75-g glucose load) and fructosamine. The mean urinary Cr after the glucose load was significantly higher than the fasting mean at zero time. However, only 52 of the patients showed an obvious increase; the others showed a slight decrease or no change. Both supplements caused a significant increase in the means of urinary Cr and a significant decrease in the means of glucose and fructosamine. Only those subjects responding to Cr supplement by improved glucose control showed an increase in post-glucose-load urinary Cr over fasting level, after the supplement but not at zero time. Therefore, it was concluded that urinary Cr response to glucose load could be used as an indicator of Cr status.

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