What Benefits Can Chromium Picolinate Provide?
Chromium picolinate is commonly used in multivitamins and supplements. Humans require a very small amount of chromium, and most people consume chromium through their diet. As with most other vitamins, minerals, or supplements, people use chromium picolinate for many different uses. Chromium picolinate supplements are often claimed to help with the following uses:
- To aid in weight loss
- To lower blood sugar in people with type 2 diabetes
- To increase blood sugar in people with hypoglycemia
- To help with depression or other mood disorders
- To treat polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS)
- To help in athletic training (such as for body building).
Of all the common chromium picolinate uses, using it to help with type 2
diabetes has the most scientific evidence. The other uses have little (or sometimes no) evidence in their favor
(see Does Chromium Picolinate Work? for more information).
You may read on the Internet that most people can benefit from chromium picolinate supplements because chromium deficiencies are very common. However, it is difficult to diagnose a chromium deficiency, because tests (such as blood, urine, or hair sample tests) do not accurately reflect the level of chromium in the body.
Therefore, most of the claims about the frequency of chromium deficiencies are based on the dietary intake of chromium (even though some studies have shown that most Americans get enough chromium). However, the body seems to adjust its absorption and excretion of chromium as necessary, so a low dietary intake may not actually indicate a chromium deficiency. If you do not get enough chromium in your diet, your body may be able to compensate somewhat by absorbing chromium better and by excreting it into the urine less.
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