Chromium Picolinate Health Benefits

Chromium picolinate is a nutritional supplement that has come from relative obscurity to being one of the most well known and used supplements by those who are looking to increase muscle mass and burn fat. This surge in popularity has occurred largely as a result of the reputation that chromium has in being useful for suppressing appetite and promoting fat loss.

As you shall discover later in this article, many of the health benefits that are associated with chromium picolinate supplementation come as a direct result of its ability to help normalize blood sugar levels, which, as you may already know, plays a big influence in determining your energy levels throughout the day, how hungry you feel after meals and how likely you are to put on weight.

This is by no means a miracle cure all supplement, but considering the fact that most people in today’s society are deficient in chromium and that obesity levels have steadily been rising, this is one mineral that you may want to consider incorporating into your daily regimen if you have not done so already.

Why Is Chromium Important?

Chromium is defined as a mineral, and unlike vitamins, most minerals are only required in very small amounts. Such minerals are called trace minerals, and are naturally found in the soil from which we grow food.

There has been concern however, that since the agricultural revolution the levels of naturally occurring trace minerals have been slowly declining from our soils due to intensive farming practices.

As a result, many of the foods that we consume today, such as fruits and vegetables which absorb minerals from the soil, have become mineral deficient and so are not as nutritious as they once were.

This is one of the main reasons why people choose to supplement with specific minerals, because just like vitamins, minerals also play may essential roles within the body that are necessary for promoting optimal levels of health.

The health benefits of chromium, also known as trivalent chromium, are mainly due to the effects that it has on controlling the levels of glucose in your body. Therefore, in order to understand the benefits that chromium picolinate provides, it is first necessary to understand the process of blood sugar regulation.

If you would just like to learn about the health benefits that chromium picolinate provides, you can skip this section and jump straight to the summary of benefits that is provided directly after this section.

Blood Sugar Regulation

The body obtains energy from the proteins, carbohydrates and fats that you consume as part of your normal everyday diet. These foods are ultimately converted into glucose, which the body then uses as a source of fuel. Certain foods, namely carbohydrates, are made out of natural sugars and so are converted very quickly and easily into glucose providing a rapid, but short lived, energy boost.

Other foods, such as proteins and fats, must be converted into glucose via a process known as gluconeogenesis. This however, generally only occurs when the body is not receiving any carbohydrates and so the amount of glucose that is produced tends to be minimal.

It should also be noted that not all proteins and fats are converted into glucose, as the body can convert them into another source of energy known as ketones, which are actually longer lasting and more efficient at providing energy than glucose is.

It is partly due to these reasons that you can feel hungry shortly after eating a carbohydrate meal, but your hunger can be kept at bay for many hours after eating a meal that was rich in protein and fat.

Blood sugar levels

The amount of glucose in your blood is referred to as your blood sugar levels, and how quickly your blood sugar levels are raised as a result of eating carbohydrates can be measured by the glycemic index value a particular food has.

Certain carbohydrates, such as highly refined sugary foods, have a high glycemic index value meaning that they are broken down quickly and release glucose very rapidly into the bloodstream. This is why such foods are sometimes said to give a person a “sugar rush” because they are an almost immediate source of energy.

Other carbohydrates, such as complex carbohydrates like green vegetables, are digested more slowly and so result in a slower release of glucose into the bloodstream. This gives them a lower glycemic index value, and so generally indicates that they are a longer lasting source of energy.

When you have very low levels of glucose in the blood it is called hypoglycemia, and this can cause you to feel very weak and tired. Your body will also start to crave sugary foods, such as chocolate, in order to get your blood sugar levels back up again. When you have very high levels of glucose in the blood it is called hyperglycemia, and this can cause you to feel hyperactive and can also severely affect your ability to concentrate properly.

Having too high or too low blood sugar levels is obviously not a good thing, and so your body tries to get your blood sugar levels within a normal range by using a hormone known as insulin.

Insulin

After eating a carbohydrate based meal your blood glucose levels will start to rise. However, very high blood glucose levels can cause damage to your kidneys, your cardiovascular system, your eyes and many other parts of your body.

To prevent this from happening, insulin is released into the blood by the pancreas. This then lowers blood glucose levels by increasing the rate at which glucose is supplied to cells, who then use it as a source of energy.

Of course, cells will only require a certain amount of glucose to use as a source of energy, so a lot of the glucose in the blood is then sent to the liver and to muscles. There it is stored as glycogen, where it can be used at a later date if glucose levels ever become depleted.

However, even after excess glucose has been stored as glycogen, there will, depending on how much and what you have eaten, may still be more excess glucose that your body needs to get rid of. So the last remaining glucose is stored as fat under the direction of insulin.

Insulin Resistance

Insulin resistance, also known as metabolic syndrome, occurs when insulin becomes less effective at lowering your blood sugar levels because it is unable to facilitate the uptake of glucose into cells.

This results in rising blood sugar levels, which can subsequently cause damage to the various organs of the body such as the kidneys, liver and heart. It also leads to increased fat deposition around the body. In men, this first occurs around the waistline, whereas in women it first occurs on the buttocks.

Insulin resistance gradually gets worse over time as you age, and the more simple carbohydrates that your diet contains, the faster it progresses. In severe cases, it can lead to obesity and type 2 diabetes.

Now, after this long and detailed explanation about how blood sugar levels are regulated in the body, you will be able to much better appreciate why and how chromium picolinate can be beneficial to ones health.

Glucose Tolerance Factor

Many of the benefits that chromium picolinate provides is due to the presence of a compound known as glucose tolerance factor, or GTF for short.

Basically, the role of GTF is to help glucose get into cells more easily. This helps to prevent persistently high blood glucose levels, and can thus help to delay or mitigate the negative effects that insulin resistance has on your health.

GTF is able to exert this effect by helping insulin bind to insulin receptors on cells so that it can transport glucose into the cell faster. This then results in more stable blood sugar levels and improved health.

What Are The Health Benefits Of Chromium Picolinate?

Most of the health benefits that the trace mineral chromium provides the body with are due to the regulation of blood sugar levels, as has just been discussed in the previous section. Below, we provide a general summary of the main health benefits that have been associated with chromium picolinate intake.

• Helps to regulate blood sugar levels.

• Involved in the metabolism of carbohydrates.

• Regulates cholesterol levels.

• May help to reduce risk of diabetes and obesity.

• Lowers blood pressure and reduces risk of hypertension.

• May help to decrease risk of heart attack and stroke.

• Helps to control hunger pangs, food cravings and suppresses appetite.

• May increase resistance to infections.

• Can help to improve mood and reduce incidence of depression.

• Boosts energy levels.

• May be useful in helping to improve athletic performance.

• Can be useful for dieters as a weight loss aid.

Note: There is some debate over how beneficial chromium is to the body. Some studies state that it offers no benefits, but there are also studies which say it does offer benefits.

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How Much Do You Need?

The recommended daily allowance (RDA) for chromium is 30 mcg for male adults and 20 mcg for female adults up to the age of 50. Past age 50, the RDA increases to 35 mcg for males and 25 mcg for females.

Most chromium picolinate supplements purchased in health food stores will come at a dosage of 200 mcg.

Where Do You Get It From?

As a natural mineral found in soil, most foods will contain some amount of chromium. However, due to intensive farming practices, the levels of chromium in soils varies throughout the world.

In addition, chromium levels tend to be quite low anyway, and what little is found in food, also tends to be poorly absorbed by the body. The best sources are usually grains and yeasts.

What Causes A Deficiency?

A true deficiency in chromium is relatively rare due to its widespread presence in the food supply, but as has previously been stated, low soil levels of chromium mean that most people are not getting enough of it.

Those most at risk of suffering from a chromium deficiency are individuals who eat highly processed foods or consume lots of sugar, pregnant and breast feeding women, individuals under a lot of stress, people who eat a high carbohydrate diet and older adults.

Signs Of Deficiency

The main signs of a chromium deficiency are:

• Tiredness
• Sweet/sugary food cravings
• Irritability
• Poor concentration
• Weight gain/obesity

Who Needs Chromium Picolinate Supplements?

Due to the fact that chromium is found in low levels in foods and is poorly absorbed by the body, most people would benefit from taking a 200 mcg glucose tolerance factor (GTF) chromium picolinate supplement each day.

This is a very absorbable, or bioavailable, form of chromium, and its absorption can be further enhanced if you take your chromium picolinate supplement with vitamin C and niacin.

People who may especially benefit from chromium picolinate supplements include anyone who is trying to lose weight, people who are worried about developing insulin resistance and athletes looking to improve athletic performance.

Best Food Sources

If you want to obtain chromium from your diet, look out for the following foods:

• Beef
• Wholemeal bread
• Sweet peppers
• Eggs
• Oysters
• Brewers yeast
• Nuts
• Chicken
• Beans