Chromium picolinate supplementation alone does not improve insulin sensitivity. Chromium picolinate may aid muscle insulin sensitivity, and initial reports suggest that it is an effective therapy for type 2 diabetes. The quest for the molecular mechanisms of chromium in relation to diabetes continues. The recommended daily allowance of chromium picolinate is 50–200 micrograms, but information about its toxicity is limited. Drug histories should include attention to the use of over-the-counter nutritional supplements often regarded as harmless by the public and lay media. Trivalent chromium compounds ( chromium chloride, chromium nicotinate, and chromium picolinate) are used by patients to enhance weight loss, to increase lean body mass, or to improve glycemic control. The biochemistry of chromium has been reviewed, as have the mechanisms of its toxicity, carcinogenicity, and allergenicity and its general toxicology. Trivalent chromium is supposedly an essential trace element, but its essentiality continues to be discussed. Chromium picolinate has been promoted as a nutritional supplement and has received a great deal of interest because of its possible beneficial effects on muscle strength and body composition.Ĭhromium picolinate is a widely used nutritional supplement for optimal insulin function. Chromium compounds are also used in oral and parenteral nutrition and in artificial hip and knee joints. 24) that occurs naturally in minerals such as fuchsite and picotite.Ĭertain salts of radioactive chromium are used as radiopharmaceutical tracers in various hematological procedures. Aronson MA, DPhil, MBChB, FRCP, HonFBPhS, HonFFPM, in Meyler's Side Effects of Drugs, 2016 General informationĬhromium is a metallic element (symbol Cr atomic no.