CHROMIUM
Deficiencies of Chromium are thought to be wide spread, affecting roughly 50% of the population in Western societies.
Older women, and expectant mothers, need to ensure that their chromium levels are maintained.
Chromium is necessary for the processing of sugar and alcohol.
It feeds the nerves and helps to promote a calm state of mind.
Chromium helps to monitor your cholesterol levels and helps in the manufacture of essential natural cholesterol.
It helps prevent high blood pressure, heart attack and stroke.
Chromium is especially important because it helps regulate the supply of insulin in the body. Adequate chromium helps protect you against sugar-related conditions like hypoglycaemia and diabetes.
A normal healthy body will utilize the Chromium within foods to process their sugars: Fruits, honey, root vegetables, treacle, molasses and maple syrup all contain chromium, which is used by the body to process the sugars they contain.
The reason why refined, white sugar is so bad for the general health is perhaps not just because of the sugar content, but because processed sugar has been stripped of its chromium value. White sugar has been left bare of the valuable nutrients which naturally help with the assimilation of sugar in the body:
Sugar cane is extremely high in Chromium. Treacle and molasses, which come from the less refined sugar cane product, are also rich sources of Chromium.
Chromium is found naturally in the outer part of grains which contains the bran. Hence, processed grains are deficient in Chromium. Brown rice is preferable to white rice for this reason, just as wholewheat flour is the preferable choice
to white flour. Use oat bran instead of the more processed fine oatmeal to make your porridge.
Chromium is found in good quality cooking oils such as grape seed, olive oil, avocado oil and rice bran oil.
The recommended daily allowance of Chromium is 200 mcg.
One of the best sources is Brewer’s yeast, which contains 100 mcg per each tablespoonful.
Two eggs contain 60 mcg.
1 cup of fruit juice such as orange or apple contains about 115 mcg.
Kiwifruit is fairly high with 35 mcg per average sized fruit.
One potato contains roughly 20 mcg of Chromium.
Most other vegetables contain roughly 20 mcg per 100 grammes.
Meats contain about 55 mcg per 100 grammes.
One slice of wholemeal bread has about 17 mcg.
One tablespoon of molasses or treacle has about 25 mcg.