Chromium
Chromium is a trace mineral thought to help insulin move sugar into cells, though experts still disagree on whether people truly need it. Adults get a few dozen micrograms a day from whole grains, vegetables and meat.
20-35 µga day for adults, adequate intake (US)
40 µg on EU food labels (NRV), the figure behind label percentages
Upper limit · none set by the US National Academies or EFSA
- Main sources Whole grains, broccoli then meat, potatoes and grape juice
- Absorbed Under 2.5% of what you eat
- Nutrient form Chromium(III) not the toxic chromium(VI)
- Essential? Disputed EFSA set no reference in 2014
Daily amount: the US adequate intake for adults aged 19 and over (NIH). The Caltide food library does not measure chromium yet.
Food Sources of Chromium
Chromium is spread thinly across many foods, and no large food table measures it reliably, so there is no ranking here. The amount in a food changes with the soil it grew in and how it was processed.
Foods With Chromium
- Vegetablesbroccoli is one of the richest in the NIH table, with potatoes and green beans lower
- Whole grainswhole wheat bread and muffins
- Meat and poultrybeef and turkey breast
- Fruit and juicegrape juice and orange juice, apples and bananas
- Herbs and spicesdried garlic and dried basil, in small amounts
Chromium Supplements
Chromium is sold alone and in multivitamins as chromium picolinate, chloride, nicotinate or histidinate, or as chromium-enriched yeast. Labels list elemental chromium in µg. Some studies suggest picolinate and histidinate are absorbed better than chloride, but how much that matters is not known.
Sources: NIH Office of Dietary Supplements, EFSA. Not medical advice.
What Is Chromium?
Chromium is a metal that exists in two forms that matter for health, and they behave like different substances. Trivalent chromium, chromium(III), is the form in food and supplements. Hexavalent chromium, chromium(VI), comes from industry such as chrome plating and is a known cause of lung cancer when breathed in. Everything on this page is about the first.
What Chromium Is Thought to Do
The leading idea is that chromium makes insulin work better. When insulin binds to a cell, a small chromium-carrying molecule may amplify the signal, so the cell takes in more glucose. Chromium may also play a part in how the body handles fat and protein. These roles come mostly from lab and animal work, and the exact mechanism is still not settled.
In the blood, chromium travels on transferrin, the same protein that carries iron. Less than 2.5% of the chromium in food is absorbed, and vitamin C eaten at the same time may raise that share.
Is Chromium an Essential Nutrient?
Whether chromium is a nutrient at all is still in doubt. In 2001 the US National Academies set an adequate intake, based on how much healthy people already eat. In 2014 EFSA looked again and found no convincing sign that people need chromium at all, so it set no reference amount. Yet the 40 µg EU label reference, set earlier, still appears on packs.
The case for need rests on a handful of patients fed only by vein in the 1970s and 1980s. They developed high blood sugar, weight loss and nerve problems that eased when chromium was added to the drip. No deficiency has been shown in people eating ordinary food.
What Chromium Supplement Trials Found
Chromium picolinate is marketed for blood sugar, weight loss and muscle. For type 2 diabetes, trials have given mixed results, and the American Diabetes Association finds the evidence too weak to recommend it. For weight, pooled trials show about 0.5 kg (1 lb) more loss than placebo, too small to notice. Studies in athletes have not shown more muscle or strength.
Common Chromium Mistakes
Thinking the food label settles it. A percent of NRV for chromium is printed against a reference that EFSA's 2014 review did not support.
No upper limit means no risk. The limit is missing for lack of data, not proof of safety. A few case reports tie high-dose supplements to kidney and liver damage.
How Much Chromium You Need
The US figures are adequate intakes, the amounts healthy people are seen to eat, not proven needs.
| Age | Male | Female |
|---|---|---|
| 1 - 3 years | 11µg | 11µg |
| 4 - 8 years | 15µg | 15µg |
| 9 - 13 years | 25µg | 21µg |
| 14 - 18 years | 35µg | 24µg |
| 19 - 50 years | 35µg | 25µg |
| 51+ years | 30µg | 20µg |
| Pregnancy | - | 30µg |
| Breastfeeding | - | 45µg |
Tracking Chromium in Caltide
- Not totaled yetCaltide does not add up chromium yet, because food data rarely measures it.
Chromium Sources and References
The figures and claims on this page are checked against these sources.
Questions About Chromium
Adults need 20 to 35 µg a day (US adequate intake): 35 µg for men and 25 µg for women aged 19 to 50, and 30 µg and 20 µg after 50. EU food labels use 40 µg as their reference.
It is disputed. The US set an adequate intake in 2001, but in 2014 EFSA found no convincing evidence that people need it and set no reference amount. Clear deficiency has been seen only in a few patients fed by vein.
Broccoli, grape juice, whole grains, potatoes, meat, garlic and dried basil are among the better sources in the NIH table. Amounts vary widely with soil and processing, and most food tables do not measure it.
Barely. Reviews of trials found people taking chromium lost about 0.5 kg (1 lb) more than those on placebo over several weeks to months, a difference whose practical value is unclear.
Trials in people with type 2 diabetes have had mixed results, and the American Diabetes Association says there is not enough evidence to recommend it. It can add to the effect of diabetes medicines.
No. Food and supplements contain trivalent chromium, chromium(III). The toxic form is hexavalent chromium, chromium(VI), an industrial pollutant that is not a nutrient.
No upper limit has been set, because little harm has been seen from food or usual supplement doses. A few case reports link high-dose supplements to kidney or liver problems, so more is not better.
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