Do you recommend chromium picolinate or chromium polynicotinate?

Below in italics is a question I received:

I'm curious to know if Chromium Polynicotinate GTF with the trademark ChromeMate would work for depression and Diabetes just as well as Picolinate.

Thanks,

Jenny

Dear Jenny,
I recommend Chromax®chromium picolinate. It the best preparation of chromium, in my experience, and it has no known side effects.

Years ago, soon after I accidentally discovered chromium's benefits in depression, I learned that there is great variation in quality among distributors of chromium products. Some chromium products didn't work, other tasted awful and some caused a total body rash. Gradually I narrowed the two most effective preparations down to chromium picolinate and chromium polynicotinate. Both helped lift depression, gave more energy, and curbed appetite. Not long thereafter, however, I learned that chromium polynicotinate, which is chelated with niacin, can cause dizziness, I sent several patients to neurologists for dizziness and fainting, and no cause was found. I began to suspect the culprit was the niacin in chromium polynicotinate. After the patients switched from chromium polynicotinate to chromium picolinate, their dizziness disappeared. Other side effect associated with the polynicotinate chromium preparation are flushing, rashes, and skin hyperpigmentation.

In summary, both chromium picolinate and chromium polynicotinate improve insulin sensitivity and help associated symptoms, but chromium polynicotinate causes unwanted side effects. So I recommend Chromax®chromium picolinate, distributed by Nutrition 21.