Chromium Picolinate Toxic to Fruit Flies

TUSCALOOSA, Ala.--Researchers reported that in a study using fruit flies, chromium picolinate appeared to be toxic. However, chromium picolinate proponents were quick to point out the problems with this study, which appeared in the early edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (www.pnas.org)

John Vincent, a bioinorganic chemist at the University of Alabama and a study author, told the media outlet United Press International that he and colleagues found the supplement was linked to major health concerns. Using fruit flies in order to document any link chromium picolinate might have on genetic damage, the researchers raised four generations of fruit flies (which have a lifespan of 30 to 40 days) on food laced with chromium picolinate. There was a 20-percent drop in life expectancy at the pupal stage. The surviving flies had delayed development, hatching from pupal cases 24 hours later than what was expected. In terms of sexual health, fewer males were born to chromium picolinate supplemented females, and there were higher numbers of sterile females. Supplementation was reportedly equivalent to that of humans--240 mcg/kg food.

The authors noted, however, that there was no evidence that this data could be translated at a mammal--or human--level.

According to James Gormley, director of trade communications for Purchase, N.Y.-based Nutrition 21, the company's own Chromax™ has received GRAS (generally recognized as safe) affirmation through an extensive safety review from ENVIRON. Furthermore, the chromium picolinate used in this study is not commercially sold in dietary supplements. "What was used in that study was a lab-synthesized version of chromium picolinate that will never see the light of day outside of the lab and is not commercially available," Gormley told HSR.

"The National Academy of Sciences [via publishing this paper] is sensationalizing the results of an isolated fruit fly study that has no relevance to human, or mammal, metabolism," he said, adding that the dosage of chromium picolinate used in the study was not an amount typically given to humans.

The Washington-based Council for Responsible Nutrition (CRN) also stood up for the safety of chromium picolinate. "The study . provides no meaningful conclusions that change the weight of the strong scientific evidence for safety in humans," said John Hathcock, Ph.D., vice president of scientific and international affairs. CRN added that when the Institute of Medicine, which is under the National Academy of Sciences, conducted its chromium picolinate review, the agency found that even up to 1,000 mcg per day was non-toxic.