Insulin (All Types)
Common brand names: Lantus, Basaglar, Humalog, NovoLog, Tresiba, Levemir
Three nutrients listed against this medication. The most severe is marked moderate.
At a glance
None of the three is marked well documented. Each row carries its own evidence level.
At a glance
- MagnesiumModerate · Mechanism only, no human trial
- ChromiumModerate · Moderate evidence
- ZincMild · Traditionally cited, limited evidence
Color shows how serious each listed effect is. The label beside it shows how strong the evidence is. The cards below explain each one and show its evidence.
Nutrients it can lower
Mechanism, Insulin drives magnesium into cells alongside glucose. Hyperinsulinemia exacerbates magnesium depletion, low magnesium worsens insulin resistance in a vicious cycle.
Common signs, Worsening insulin resistance, muscle cramps, fatigue, hypertension, cardiac arrhythmia
Paolisso et al. (Am J Clin Nutr, 1992; PMID PubMed ID: the permanent number the US National Library of Medicine gives a published paper. Each one links to that paper's record on PubMed. 1595589): daily magnesium supplements improved glucose handling in elderly subjects. This is a supplementation trial; it does not itself establish that insulin therapy depletes magnesium, which remains the mechanistic claim above.
Magnesium glycinate was used at 300–400 mg daily, with serum and RBC magnesium tested.
Mechanism, Chromium is required for insulin receptor binding. Insulin surges from injected insulin increase urinary chromium excretion.
Common signs, Worsening glucose intolerance, carbohydrate cravings, impaired insulin receptor function
Morris et al. (J Endocrinol, 1993; PMID 8308470): in healthy volunteers, insulin infusion (euglycemic clamp) lowered plasma chromium and raised urinary chromium excretion; zinc was unaffected.
Chromium picolinate was used at 400–1,000 mcg daily; this is discussed with the prescriber, as it may require insulin dose adjustment.
Mechanism, Proposed mechanism, not measured: zinc is needed for insulin synthesis and storage in beta cells, and insulin therapy has been suggested to increase zinc use. Zinc supplementation has been studied for blood sugar control, which is a different question from depletion. Insulin therapy has not been shown to deplete zinc.
Common signs, Impaired wound healing, immune suppression, loss of taste/smell, increased infection risk
Zinc supplementation modestly improves glycemia (Jayawardena, 2012, augmentation); insulin therapy is not shown to deplete zinc. (Insulin does lower chromium. See above.)
Zinc 15–30 mg daily with food is a range in common use, not from a trial cited on this row. Long-term zinc intake at this level is paired with copper 1–2 mg in practice, because sustained zinc can lower copper status.
For your next appointment
It prints or saves as a single page. Whether to add a supplement for a nutrient this medication may lower is a decision for your prescriber.
Disclosure
These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. Any grade on this page describes the strength of published human trial evidence in the populations studied. It is not a recommendation for any individual and is not medical advice. Starting, stopping or changing any supplement or medication is a decision for your physician.
Grades move when new trials publish. A free monthly email lists every grade EBL moved, with the reason and the trial behind it: the sign-up is on the Evidence Log →