As we age, our body has to deal with many deficiencies. In fact, our reserves decrease sharply as our birthdays pass and unfortunately, this would explain a lot of health concerns related to age. Almost all nutrients and minerals have been scrutinized, but let's take a look at the case of chromium, whose reserve decreases significantly over the years. Chromium is an essential bioregulatory trace element. Thanks to our body, it can be stored in several organs such as the spleen, kidneys, testicles, heart, pancreas, lungs or brain, but unfortunately only 3% of dietary chromium is retained by our body. This is obviously very little.
Our body draws from food all the minerals and trace elements it needs to grow, evolve and stay healthy. However, for some of them, assimilation is complicated and not quite optimal. Moreover, our diet is not always ideal: not varied, poor in nutrients because of the denaturing and industrialization of many foods. Therefore, this poor organic assimilation must be reviewed and compensated by a quality external supplementation.
Chromium and diet
Fortunately, chromium is found in both the plant and animal kingdom, so no matter what your diet, you can always benefit from it. Whether you are a carnivore, vegetarian or even vegan, a dietary intake is therefore quite possible within the measures of a good assimilation. Nevertheless....
Seaweed, cereals, broccoli, green beans, potatoes, nuts, legumes in general, calf's liver, chicken, eggs, brewer's yeast, beer, mushrooms are foods that have an interesting contribution of chromium for the health of everyone. Of course, it will be recommended to consume organic and unrefined food to avoid a significant loss of minerals. Remember, refined and industrial products are low in good nutrients.
At the same time, certain foods can reduce the absorption of chromium, such as whole wheat, soy and corn. Therefore, do not consume too much of it to avoid malabsorption.
What are the recommended intakes?
Each human being needs a daily intake of more or less 50 µg, this rate can of course vary depending on your own situation: pregnancy, illness, etc.. A blood test will be able to detect if you have an adequate intake and reserve in your body.
Deficiencies are often diagnosed by hyperglycemia, i.e. an excess of sugars in the blood, or hyperlipidemia, i.e. an excess of fats in the blood.
Moreover, we have noticed that people suffering from chromium deficiency are very often diabetics or suffering from hypoglycemia, malnourished or elderly people. If you are accustomed to consuming large amounts of phytate-rich foods such as beans, whole wheat, soybeans and corn, you may be at risk of a deficiency because these foods reduce the absorption of chromium.
The impact on weight gain.
We will then understand that chromium has a very important impact on our weight gain or its regulation. As part of a weight loss program, it is sometimes useful to supplement with chromium to regulate carbohydrate and fat metabolism. By combining magnesium, a vitamin B complex and L-carnitine, we have an appropriate complex for optimal weight control. If you are following a weight loss program, it might be interesting to have a sufficient chromium intake to regulate your weight.