Most all major medical organizations all agree that the best way to get the vitamins and minerals you need is through a nutritionally balanced diet. However, we all do not live in a perfect world and sometimes it is beneficial to add vitamin supplementation to your diet.  Other reasons due to genetic and environmental influences cause us to be deficient in certain vitamins so a supplement may be appropriate.

You need vitamins for normal body functions, mental alertness and resistance to infection. They enable your body to process proteins, carbohydrates and fats. Certain vitamins also help you produce blood cells, hormones, genetic material and chemicals in your nervous system. Unlike carbohydrates, proteins and fats, vitamins and minerals don't provide fuel (calories). However, they help your body release and use calories from food.   The vitamin supplements of interest to the Atkins Dieters are L-Carnitine and Chromium Piconolate.

When carnitine is deficient, overweight people have difficulty getting into lipolysis and the secondary process of ketosis. L-carnitine is a product of two of the essential amino acids that the body cannot produce on its own: lysine and methionine. L-carnitine is often referred to as a vitamin-like molecule because it is synthesized in the liver and kidneys from the amino acid lysine and other nutrients. At a basic cellular level, L-carnitine plays a critical role in the metabolism of fat, contributing to the oxidation of fatty acids and transporting long-chain fatty acids to the place in the cells (mitochondria) where they are processed to help provide energy, among other things.  For weight loss, a typical dose is 1,500 mg.

The trace mineral chromium helps improve insulin resistance and cut sugar cravings.  Chromium is an essential trace mineral for the human body. It is important in processing carbohydrates and fats and it helps cells respond properly to insulin, the hormone produced in the pancreas, that makes blood sugar available to the cells as our basic fuel.  The best and safest source of chromium is food. Whole grains, ready-to-eat bran cereals, seafood, green beans, broccoli, prunes, nuts, peanut butter, and potatoes are rich in chromium. Sugary foods are low in this mineral and may even promote chromium loss.  The research is mixed on this supplement so use with caution. Because of its role in regulating blood sugar and insulin, metabolizing fat (as well as carbohydrates), and lowering cholesterol, many of the diet authors (as well as other physicians, such as Dr. Perricone [who wrote The Wrinkle Cure and The Perricone Prescription] often recommend Chromium Polynicotinate (not chromium picolinate, since it has been linked to some health concerns). It is typically recommended at 200-400 mg per day.

If you're interested in trying chromium as a way to help control your blood sugar and put a stop to sugar cravings, be sure to discuss it with your doctor first. Chromium supplements may affect any medications you're taking for diabetes, blood-sugar control or cholesterol. Also, to be safe, take chromium polynicotinate and not chromium piconilate.