Keep your blood sugar level in check
DIABETES mellitus (DM is a complex disorder mostly associated with obesity and has become a Malaysian epidemic, posing a real and significant threat to individuals.
The increase in the prevalence of diabetes is paralleled by a marked increase in the prevalence of people with high cholesterol problem. And it is said that a diabetic patient has two to three times higher chances of getting cardiovascular diseases and two to four times higher of getting a stroke or heart attack.
Diabetic dyslipidemia means one’s lipid profile is going in the wrong direction – a deadly combination that puts patients at risk for premature cardiovascular disease.
Many people with diabetes share a common pattern of raised blood fats, which includes:
– normal or slightly raised levels of cholesterol
– moderately raised triglycerides – low HDL cholesterol (good cholesterol)
– small dense LDL cholesterol (bad cholesterol).
It is this distinctive pattern of dyslipidaemia (altered blood fats) that increases the risk of heart and circulatory disease in people with diabetes. Together with uncontrolled diabetes, both continue to be a growing challenge and a major contributor to the risk of cardiovascular disease.
Despite the usage of modern medicine, the prevalence of diabetes have not decreased significantly. In addition, such drugs are often very expensive and can produce numerous adverse effects.
There is a need to identify and evaluate adjunct therapies that are safe, efficacious and cost-effective. One adjunct therapy commonly used by patients to manage Type 2 diabetes is chromium, consumed alone or in combination with biotin.
Chromium is an essential trace mineral required for carbohydrate and lipid metabolism. However, the body must obtain this element through the diet or by supplementation.
Unfortunately, nutritional chromium that can be found in foods such as organ meats, oysters, mushrooms and broccoli are in minute quantities, and is poorly absorbed by the intestinal tract.
The best way to maintain sufficient blood chromium level is through supplementation, and the best from of chromium supplement is Chromium Picolinate (CrPic).
Biotin, on the other hand, is a water-soluble B vitamin that plays an essential role in carbohydrate and lipid metabolism.
It stimulates insulin secretion, hepatic glucose uptake, and the suppression of glucose synthesis in the presence of high plasma glucose, as in the case of prediabetes and diabetes.
While taking each individual nutrient help to maintain blood sugar levels, many human clinical studies prove that combination of both chromium picolinate and biotin show synergistic effects.
Apart from keeping blood sugar levels low, this combination also helps to bring down levels of haemoglobin A1c (HbA1c), the advanced glycation end product associated with long-term exposure to elevated sugar concentrations.
These benefits are accompanied by healthy reductions in abnormal lipid levels and increases in artery-cleansing high-density lipoprotein (HDL) in the blood. A 30-day human trial using chromium picolinate and biotin showed an improvement in cholesterol levels.
Chromium’s multi-targeted actions not only able to lower blood sugar levels low but also reduces abnormal lipid levels and increase in artery-cleansing high-density lipoprotein (HDL) in the blood – greatly reduce the risk of getting heart diseases.
Consuming CrPic and biotin together alongside anti-diabetic medication can help patients reach their blood sugar level goals and cholesterol levels simply, effectively and safely.
This health information is brought to you by the panel pharmacists of Cambert (M) Sdn Bhd.
■ Contact Cambert at 03-5638 3660 (Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm).