From: "Paul Ernsberger, Ph.D." <pre@po.cwru.edu>

Subject: Re: Chromium and bg: Not weight loss

 

At 12:33 AM 1/18/97 +0000, you wrote:

>

>theresa wrote"

>> "A few years ago, researchers found that diabetics who had chromium

>> *deficiencies* benefitted by a chromium supplement, in that their blood

>> sugars improved. However, if one does *not* have a chromium deficiency,

>> taking chromium is not likely to help. ALSO, somehow this information

>> made a giant leap to people claiming that chromium will aid in weight

>> loss...

>

>this is *not* true!"***well, actually many diabetics who get their bg's in

>control GAIN weight because they arent peeing the glucose out as they have

>been but are now absorbing into their cells. I'm on 2 diabetes mailing

>lists and

>have never heard this weight loss claim, altho there are many of us who

>take chromium for bg lowering.

 

Chromium ius VERY heavily marketed in the US for weight loss --often with

odd brand names.

 

However, by promoting inuslin action, chromium would actually promote slight

weight gain.

 

>> I personally think the leap may have been because some of those diabetics

>> whose blood sugars came down may have also lost weight.

>

>****Like so many things in the world, supps are a YMMV thing.

 

Statistically, type II diabetics lose weight as their disease progresses,

unless they are treated with insulin, which promotes massive weight gain.

Again, there is no evidence that chromium promotes weight loss.

 

 

> Any excesses may

>> eventually filter through our systems, but it makes our organs work much

>> harder to get them out of our bodies. It can affect our kidneys, liver,

>> etc. So, if a person already has any organ that is diseased, it will

>> damage it further, especially the kidneys.

>

Chromium can be toxic in high doses, certainly. But its toxicity has no

relation to the glomerulosclerotic process in the diabetic kidney, which

involves proliferation of mesangial cells and damage to Bowman's capsule.

 

Paul Ernsberger, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Medicine, Pharmacology and

Neuroscience

Case Western Reserve School of Medicine, 10900 Euclid Ave., Cleveland, OH

44106-4982

Email: pre@po.cwru.edu FAX: (216) 368-4752

Visit the Imidazoline Receptor Web page at

http://www/mmcc.monash.edu.au/phimr/ireceptor