Good sources of chromium are yeast, prunes, asparagus, mushrooms, beer and wine. The chromium content of the Western diet is estimated to be 13-28 mg/1000 kcal. Blood levels of chromium are not related to tissue levels and this makes body stores of chromium difficult to estimate. A study of liver levels in Finnish accident victims gave a figure of 179 pmol/g at 0-4 months of age and 138 pmol/g at 3-8 years of age (2). Chromium levels in urine and serum have been estimated as less than 3.8 nmol/l. The detection limit with these methods is 1 nmol/l. Dual label isotope spectrometry, radiochemical neutron analysis and Zeeman graphic furnace atomic absorption spectrometry are the current detection methods (1). Special clean labs and equipment are needed to make accurate measurements and care is needed in obtaining uncontaminated samples. Background environmental levels of chromium exceed that in the body, making contamination a major problem. The low levels of chromium in the diet and in body tissues have made detection of chromium in the body difficult until recently. This spotlight covers chromium detection in tissues, chromium intake, absorption and transport, chromium action, chromium deficiency and chromium in diabetes. These extremely low levels of chromium in the body have hampered research on its role in the body, as detection is difficult. It is found in the human body in minute quantities. Email: is an essential trace element for man that potentiates the action of insulin in carbohydrate, lipid and protein metabolism and may play a role in diabetes. By Isobel Hoskins PhD CAB International, Wallingford, Oxon, OX10 8DE, UK.
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