Table 1 Dietary Reference Intakes for Chromium5 Life-stage group
Infants, mo 0-6
7-12
Children, y 1-3 4-8
Males, ya 9-13
14-18 19-50 ≥51
Females, ya 9-13
14-18 19-50 ≥51
Pregnant individuals, y 14-18 19-50
Lactating individuals, y 14-18 19-50
AI, mcg/d
0.2 5.5
11 15
25 35 35 30
21 24 25 20
29 30
44 45
Specific recommendations for transgender people were not provided. UL
ND ND
ND ND
ND ND ND ND
ND ND ND ND
ND ND
ND ND
Abbreviations: AI, Adequate Intake; ND, not determinable; UL, Tolerable Upper Intake Level. a
Excessive Intakes
To date, a Tolerable Upper Intake Level for trivalent chromium has not been established by the National Academy of Medicine5
associated with excess intake from either food or supplements.6
mean there are no toxic effects that might be associated with high chromium intakes, par- ticularly if provided intravenously. The chromium content of PN has recently become a health concern.7,8
Sources and Bioavailability
Main Food Sources
Chromium is ubiquitous in foods at very low concentrations. Foods reported to contain higher concentrations of chromium include broccoli, lobster, and certain beers. The con- centrations of chromium in foods seem to increase during processing, particularly when stainless-steel equipment is involved. Consequently, most of the chromium in some foods may come from processing. Given the amount of chromium in the diet that comes from modern processing, the chromium intake of early humans must have been extremely lim- ited. In addition, its low concentration in food, along with the ease of contamination and low
CHROMIUM 157
because no adverse effects have been convincingly However, this does not