chromium / biotin supplement (Diachrome) improves blood sugar

[Guest guest]

This study shows this supplement (600 mcg chromium picolinate and 2 mg

of biotin) lowers blood sugar and improves insulin sensitivity in

people with poorly-controlled blood sugar (diabetics).

It does not show that it reduces blood sugar in people with " normal "

levels, but maybe getting adequate amounts of these 2 supplements is

good insurance?

Dave

Link and full text:

http://www.docguide.com/news/content.nsf/news/8525697700573E188525707B006C431F

Study Results Show Diachrome® Improves Poorly-Controlled Blood Sugar

Levels for People on Antidiabetic Prescription Medications

Findings Presented at 41st Annual Meeting of the European Association

for the Study of Diabetes

ATHENS, GREECE -- September 13, 2005 -- A sub-set of analysis from a

Diachrome® XLHealth clinical trial demonstrates that adding daily

supplementation with Diachrome to prescription treatment regimens can

significantly improve glycemic control in poorly controlled blood

sugar levels in people with type 2 diabetes.

The results of this study conducted in collaboration with XLHealth, a

U.S. based and U.S. nationally recognized disease management firm

handling chronically ill patients for the Centers for Medicare and

Medicaid Services (CMS), were presented today at the 41st Annual

Meeting of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD)

in Athens, Greece.

The randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, multi-center 12-week

study was designed to examine the efficacy of Diachrome as an adjunct

to medications in 369 patients with type 2 diabetes.

This analysis of the trial looked specifically at 60 patients who had

hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) greater than or equal to 10% and were taking

one or more oral antidiabetic medication, including: sulfonylureas,

biguanides, and thiazolidinediones. Study participants taking

Diachrome with one or more antidiabetic medications saw an average

range of 0.7 - 1.9% point reduction in HbA1c levels. The study also

showed that insulin resistance was significantly reduced (P<0.05) in

those taking thiazolidinediones and Diachrome. In addition, there were

no adverse reports of hypoglycemia in these patients.

" Diachrome's impact in the more severe diabetes cases is positive, as

these patients can be the hardest to control and are more likely to

develop debilitating and costly disease-related health complications

such as amputation and heart disease, " said Serini, executive

vice president of XLHealth. " Given the high cost of diabetes care,

those of us involved in the delivery of healthcare should look

carefully at complementary, cost-effective nutritional therapies, like

Diachrome, and their potential benefits for patients and third-party

payors. "

Nutrition 21, the maker of Diachrome, and XLHealth recently announced

an agreement to make Diachrome available to physicians participating

in the Center for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) sponsored-Medicare

Health Support (formerly known as the Chronic Care Improvement

Program) program in Tennessee. XLHealth's Medicare Health Support

program, created by U.S. Congress as part of the 2003 Medicare

Modernization Act, will begin to address the need for diabetes

management by reaching out to 20,000 Medicare patients in Tennessee

who are living with diabetes and heart failure.

" We are confident that these new scientific findings and the treatment

success that will be seen in the XLHealth Medicare Health Support

program will fuel further adoption of Diachrome in diabetes care, "

said Gail Montgomery, president and CEO of Nutrition 21.

The Economic Toll of Diabetes

At least 171 million people worldwide have diabetes. The World Health

Organization (WHO) estimates that anywhere from 2.5% to 15% of

healthcare budgets are spent on diabetes-related illnesses depending

on local diabetes prevalence and the sophistication of the treatment

available. Findings from the Diabetes Control and Complications Trial,

a 10-year clinical trial conducted by the National Institute of

Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK), indicate that a

low-cost intervention that decreases HbA1c could be beneficial to

patients, third party payors and society as a whole.

A recent economic analysis conducted by Jefferson University

and published in the August 2005 issue of the publication Disease

Management, demonstrated that daily use of Diachrome in addition to

traditional anti-diabetic medications could deliver a potential

average three-year cost savings of up to $52.9 billion for patients

within the United States already diagnosed with diabetes, plus a

lifetime cost savings of $42 billion for newly diagnosed patients

annually as a result of the therapy's effect on HbA1c.

Diachrome is a nutritional supplement specifically formulated for

people with diabetes. It contains 600 mcg of chromium as Chromax®

chromium picolinate and 2 mg of biotin. These two compounds are both

Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) for use as ingredients in food and

supplements.

SOURCE: Nutrition 21