American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol 49, 685-689, Copyright © 1989 by The American Society for Clinical Nutrition, Inc

ORIGINAL RESEARCH COMMUNICATIONS

Circulating and excreted levels of chromium after an oral glucose challenge: influence of body mass index, hypoglycemic drugs, and presence and absence of diabetes mellitus

KE Earle, AG Archer and JE Baillie
University of Cambridge, Department of Medicine, Addenbrooke's Hospital, UK.

The aim of this study was to observe the effect of obesity on the plasma chromium profile and excretion after a glucose challenge in control subjects and noninsulin-dependent (NIDD) and insulin-dependent diabetics (IDD). All subjects were given 75 g glucose orally; serial blood and urine samples were collected for Cr analysis. Lean control subjects had significantly lower plasma Cr and insulin values than did obese control subjects at all times except zero (1 h, 12.69 +/- 6.73 vs 22.31 +/- 13.27 nmol/L, p less than 0.020). No significant differences were seen between lean and obese NIDDs and IDDs. NIDDs taking drugs had higher Cr values than did lean control subjects (13.08 +/- 0.58 vs 22.31 +/- 5.00 nmol/L, p less than 0.02). Cr concentration of oral drugs was 22.4 ng/tablet and of the soluble insulins was 0.012 +/- .003 ng/U. The lean IDDs excreted higher levels of Cr than did the control subjects; however, Cr excretion within individual groups was not found to be significantly different. The results suggest Cr metabolism is influenced by BMI in control subjects but not in diabetics.