Monique M. Moona, MD Richard Smits, MD Joseph Kertesz, MA Albert Meyer, MD New Hanover Regional Medical Center Residency in Family Medicine, Wilmington, NC
Leslie Mackler, MSLS Moses Cone Medical Center, Greensboro, NC
ASSISTANT EDITOR Anne Mounsey, MD University of North Carolina School of Medicine, Chapel Hill
Four small, placebo-controlled RCTs of fenugreek, milk thistle, and safflower oil found statistically and clinically significant reductions in HbA1c, but all these studies were of poor quality with unclear methods of randomization, threats to blinding, and a lack of baseline demographics.5-8
RECOMMENDATIONS
Both the American Diabetes Association (ADA) and the Diabetes UK Nutrition Working Group state that, “there is no clear evidence of benefit from vitamin or mineral supplementation in people with diabetes (compared with the general population), who do not have underlying deficiencies.”9,10 The ADA specifically states that chromium cannot be recommended because it lacks any clear benefit.9
