Will chromium help depression in people with heart disease?

Q: Dear Doctor,
I had triple coronary artery bypass surgery 3 years ago and I went into a deep depression afterwards. My psychiatrist has prescribed several antidepressants, but none have helped much. After reading your book, I tried chromium and it has helped immensely. How would you explain this wonderful result?

A: Dear Sir,
Your case report sounds very much like that of a man who had a heart attack, followed by severe depression that did not respond to synthetic antidepressants. After he read Lifting Depression: The chromium Connection, he started taking chromium and his depression lifted quickly and dramatically. He describes these encouraging events in a book review. I read yet another report, in the Raleigh News and Observer, on the link between heart disease and depression.

How do I explain you positive response to chromium? Numerous studies, summarized by the National Institute of Mental Health, show that people with heart disease are more likely to become depressed than people without heart disease, and people who are depressed are more likely to develop heart disease than non-depressed people. Another important piece of the puzzle: at the 42nd annual meeting of the American Heart Association, Dr. Eric Rimm, PhD, of the Harvard School of Public Health presented the results of a study that showed that low chromium levels are associated with an increase in the risk of having a heart attack. On the other hand, subjects with higher chromium levels had less risk of a heart attacks.

How might dietary supplementation with chromium lift depression? Low chromium levels impair the ability of insulin to function normally and convert glucose (blood sugar) into energy. The pancreas tries to correct this problem by secreting large amounts of insulin. High insulin levels are associated with heart disease and, as I discovered by luck, low chromium levels also contribute to depression. Chromium improves the body's response to insulin, which results in lower insulin levels and lifts depression
.
An argument can be made that chromium is very safe and it may lift depression and perhaps prevent or delay heart disease. So why not take chromium? The data are limited. So, make sure to discuss these matters with your cardiologist and psychiatrist. In the final analysis, you must make a personal decision, based on limited data, whether to continue chromium or not.

Thank you very much for bringing to my attention the connection between heart disease and depression and for telling me about the response of your depression to chromium. I hope other people will benefit as much as you have.

Do I have atypical depression?

Question:
Dr. McLeod

Hi I just found your study and I am going to see if my local bookstore has your book and if they do I am going to get it. If they don't I am going to order it. I wanted to tell you my story and see if you think I might have atypical depression and a deficiencies of chromium. I am 27 and female 5'9 359lbs. I had a great childhood parents stayed together and were happy I was always loved and had lots and lots of family around. I have a huge appetite and do not know why. I crave candy and cookies and cake and bread and pasta and potatoes and french fries that sort of stuff all the time. I feel like I never get enough sleep. I sleep at least 11 hours a day and I could sleep all day if I was able. I am more tired when I wake up in the morning than I am before going to bed. My husband says I am weird that he has never heard of someone who has more energy at night time than they do after a good nights rest. I have gained about 100lbs in the last 2 years and I have seen my doctor and their is no medical condition for the weight gain. I feel like my arms and legs are heavy and they seem hard to lift. I recently woke up feeling weird and strange then I started to get worried then I felt as if I couldn't breath and that I was going to pass out. I was very scared and I knew I was going to die. I called the ambulance and everything looked great, but they took me to the hospital anyway. All my blood work, EKG, O2 sat, blood pressure everything was perfect, no blood clots, no pe nothing. The Doc said he was pretty sure I had a panic attack. It does not take much to hurt my feelings. I have been known to cry easily and I take everyone personal even from my own husband. I also feel as if everyone is mad at me and doesn't like me. I am sorry to keep going on and on. I was wondering if you thought I might have this type of depression. Thank you for any advice you can give me. I recently went to a vegan diet and I have started exercising by walking everyday. Thank you again

C.
Answer:
Dear C.
I cannot give individual advice. You must consult your healthcare professional before acting on any suggestions I'm about to make. But yes indeed, it sounds like you have atypical depression and you sound like a good candidate for chromium. The shortness of breath may be due to sleep apnea, with your abdominal weight pushing up on your diaphragm and making it difficult for you to breathe. Hopefully chromium will curb your food cravings and give you enough energy to exercise and lose weight.
Please let me know if chromium helps you.
My best wishes to you,
Malcolm McLeod, MD

Chromium in combination with diabetes medications?

Dear Dr. McLeod:

I heard your interview this past Sunday morning. I'm 43 yrs old, 295 lbs. and 5'9". I'm interested in trying the chromium picolinate supplement, but I have a couple of questions. I take Amaryl (2 mg daily) and Avandia (4 mg daily), I take both in the morning, for Type 2 diabetes. I also take Wellbutrin (150 mg daily) in the morning. I do take a Centrum multi once a day (usually before bed). What concerns should I have about taking the chromium picolinate supplement? Would the supplement have any counter-reaction with the Amaryl and/or Avandia? How would the supplement react with Wellbutrin? And, if I should not have any concerns about taking the supplement, what do you recommend the proper dosage to be? Your "rule of thumb" of 5 mg per pound would mean you would be recommending 1500 mg per day for me. Is that right? But, if each of the multivitamin pill I take contains 100 mg, should I limit myself to 2 500 mg tablets?

Thank you in advance for your attention and response.

Dear Sir,
Thank you for contacting me. First of all, I must tell you that I'm not able to offer personal advice, as that would be a shoddy attempt to practice medicine without meeting with you. So, please consult your healthcare professional.
With that caveat, let me address your several questions in a general way:

Medications for type 2 diabetes can lower blood sugar too much. Because chromium makes the body more sensitive to insulin, it might contribute to low blood sugar. On the other hand, taking chromium might allow a person to take less medications for type 2 diabetes. Again, do so under the careful supervision of your healthcare professional.

I've found that people who respond favorably to Wellbutrin also respond well to chromium. You may be able to take less Wellbutrin.

The multivitamin you're taking may contain chromium chloride, which is difficult to absorb. You may not be absorbing any appreciable amount from your multivitamin. If you decide to take chromium, I suggest you take chromium picolinate, which is readily absorbed.

My "rule of thumb" is to begin by taking 3 micrograms per pound per day, in the morning, and to increase that to 5 micrograms per pound in a week if no improvement.

Please let me know what you and your physician decide to do and the results.

Again, thank you for asking this very important question.

Malcolm McLeod