ARS | Publication request: Dietary Boron As a Factor in Glucose and Insulin Metabolism

Submitted to: International Society For Trace Elements Research In Humans
Publication Type: Abstract
Publication Acceptance Date: July 1, 2004
Publication Date: December 1, 2004
Citation: Hunt, C. 2004. Dietary boron as a factor in glucose and insulin metabolism [abstract]. The Journal of Trace Elements in Experimental Medicine. 17(4):258.

Technical Abstract: Insulin resistance is a component of the Metabolic Syndrome, a condition that affects approximately 22% of the American population (47 million persons). The Syndrome is an important risk factor for cardiovascular disease, the leading cause of death for the obese. There is emerging evidence that boron is one of several dietary factors important in insulin and glucose metabolism. Boron deprivation perturbs energy substrate metabolism in humans and animal models, particularly when other nutrients are provided in suboptimal amounts. For example, boron deprivation can increase fasting serum glucose concentrations in volunteers fed a low magnesium diet (~115 mg/d) and can induce hyperinsulinemia in the vitamin D-deficient rat. In the chick, boron deprivation exacerbates the rise in plasma glucose concentrations induced by marginal vitamin D deficiency. Moreover, newer findings indicate that boron reduces insulin resistance independent of other nutritional stressors. For example, in the growing rat, boron can independently reduce plasma insulin while maintaining glucose concentrations. In the chick model, boron can independently decrease in situ peak pancreatic insulin release. Because boron reduces circulating insulin concentrations while maintaining serum glucose concentrations within the normal range, dietary boron might help prevent pancreatic exhaustion caused by chronic hyperinsulinemia. The findings to date are probably relevant to human health because the amounts of dietary boron that improve glucose and insulin metabolism are similar to those found in diets that include ample amounts of fruits, nuts, vegetables, and legumes.