A new study published in February's Journal of Nutrition reports chromium prompts muscles to become more efficient.
Researchers found that daily use of chromium picolinate enhanced muscle sensitivity to insulin in obese, insulin-resistant rats.
Specifically, chromium improved the ability of insulin, after attaching to muscle cells, to enhance chemical signals in the cell that promoted blood sugar uptake.
The study, funded in part by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and conducted by researchers at Pennington Biomedical Research Center (PBRC), is the first published study using this animal model to demonstrate chromium's action in this way.
"Insulin resistance is a condition in which tissues such as fat and muscle in the body respond poorly to insulin, the major hormone required for glucose metabolism. This condition is present in pre-diabetic states and continues when a person develops diabetes. Previous research suggested that supplementation with chromium picolinate may help improve this condition," said Dr. William Cefalu, investigator and chief of the division of nutrition and chronic diseases at PBRC. "This animal study is significant because it suggests a more detailed mechanism of action for chromium on improving insulin sensitivity in muscle, a major insulin-sensitive tissue."