Vitamins for Insulin Resistance

By: Lexi Mezo and Igor Klibanov

When you have insulin resistance, you won’t turn to medical procedures for help, at least not until you’ve tried other things, such as exercising, reducing sugar intake and taking supplements.

This is where vitamins for insulin resistance come in. But first, let me be clear: I know you are interested in vitamins, but there are 6 supplements that aren’t vitamins that have been scientifically proven to improve insulin resistance more than vitamins. 

 Vitamins vs. Supplements

What is the difference between vitamins and supplements? First, vitamins are what our bodies need to function properly. They are known as Vitamin D, Vitamin C and many others. They are found in food. Vitamins are good for your health, but sometimes you don’t get them in sufficient enough amounts, and need something extra so you don’t get vitamin deficiencies. This is where supplements come in.

Supplements can come in multiple different forms, such as liquid, powder and pills. They can also be a type of herb, vitamin, mineral, amino acid, or fatty acid to classify as a supplement. You could choose to take one to add more to your diet, or because you may want a specific benefit, like soft skin and stronger hair.

Think of it this way: vitamins are what our bodies need in order to be healthy, and can be obtained in what you eat and drink. Supplements are something you can add on to your diet to have more benefits, but they aren’t needed. For example, taking a multivitamin in the morning every day isn’t needed in order for you to be healthy, but they can help.

 What Qualifies Me to Write About Vitamins?

You might be thinking, “what qualifies you to write about vitamins for insulin resistance?” A few different factors:

1. I am a personal trainer, who specializes in diabetics. I’ve done the research on what works for them and what doesn’t, and even wrote an article on how to find the right personal trainer for diabetics. 
2. I train other trainers in how to work with diabetics.
3. I’m the author of the Amazon bestseller Type 2 Diabetes Reversal Secrets.

 Will Vitamins Cure Me?

The first thing that needs to be taken into account, is that most vitamins are a hit or miss, and aren’t guaranteed to magically cure you. You may think to yourself “this will never work,” (you aren’t alone, we’ve all been there.) But even so, there have been certain vitamins that have proven to be effective in reducing your HbA1C. 

Another thing to remember is that everybody is different, and what works for some people, might not work for you. In this article, we will cover the only 4 supplements proven to lower your HbA1C by 1% or more, plus a few supplements that don’t work quite as well, and a few others that don’t work at all. 

Also, let’s be clear on the difference between “cure” and “reverse.” Put simply, there is no cure for diabetes. You can reverse it, but you can’t cure it. What’s the difference? A cure is something you do, and there’s nothing that can be done to bring it back. In other words, if there was a cure for Type 2 diabetes, there would be nothing you could do to bring it back. But that’s not the case. You can use supplements to reverse diabetes, but if you stop using those supplements, your blood sugar will rise back up.

The same applies to food and exercise as well.

 What is Insulin Resistance?

But before we get into that, it helps to understand exactly what insulin resistance is. 

Insulin resistance is when cells don’t respond to insulin efficiently, which leads to sugar levels building up in your blood, harming your health. The overall role of insulin is to allow glucose to enter the body’s cells to provide energy. Because of this, having good insulin sensitivity is beneficial to your health.

When I do my public speaking engagements, I explain to my audiences that insulin resistance is like you sitting at home, with someone ringing your doorbell, but you don’t hear the doorbell, so of course, you don’t let them in. Insulin resistance is the same – your cells don’t “hear” the message of insulin, so they don’t allow glucose to enter.

How Does Insulin Resistance Develop?

How does insulin resistance develop? The general principle is that bodies ignore constant stimuli. For example, when you put on the clothes that you’re wearing right now, you felt the texture on your skin. But after a few seconds, you didn’t feel it anymore, even though you’re still wearing the clothes. 

Same thing with insulin – if you produce a lot of it, all the time, the body starts to “ignore” the message of insulin. So you need more and more insulin over time to bring your blood sugar to normal (normal being an HbA1C of about 5.1-5.4%).

What Are the Main Causes of Insulin Resistance?

There are multiple different factors that can make someone insulin resistant that aren’t controllable – genetics and aging are two causes that can contribute to you having insulin resistance, but also not something you can change. Here are 5 things that can play a part in developing insulin resistance, that you do have control over:

• Excess body weight (especially belly fat)
• Smoking 
• Not getting enough sleep
• No exercise 
• Poor nutrition

Some signs that you may have insulin resistance are:

• Large waist circumference (over 35 inches for women, and 40 inches for men).
• Frequent thirst
• Frequent urination
• Getting tired after meals
• Wounds are slow to heal

What is HbA1C?

It also helps to understand exactly what HbA1C is. First of all, HbA1C stands for glycated hemoglobin and is the average blood sugar level over the last 3 months. The average HbA1C percentage is between 4% and 5.6% (but ideal 5.1-5.4%). If you have diabetes or insulin resistance, it is vital to monitor your HbA1C level. 

There is a maximum amount of anything to where it becomes unhealthy and toxic to the body. Monitoring the supplement doses that go into your body is crucial. In this article, we will look at levels of toxicity, and the recommended dosage for each different supplement, as well as toxicity symptoms. 

Now that you know both how insulin resistance develops, as well as what HbA1C is, let’s talk about the most effective supplements that have been proven to lower your insulin by a substantial amount.

I like to talk about ingredients, as opposed to brands or companies – I simply don’t make money on supplements.           

Aloe Vera

Aloe Vera is something that you can take in both powder and liquid form to see a reduction of 1.05% HbA1C in 4 to 14 weeks. 

One meta-analysis (which is a study of studies) saw that people with a higher blood sugar level at baseline also had greater reductions from taking aloe vera.

This herb works through several mechanisms: 

• It decreases the absorption of sugar after a meal.
• More of the sugar that is absorbed is stored in tissues other than blood (muscle tissue, fat tissue, etc.).
• It decreases the production of glucose by the liver.

There have currently been no studies showing how high of a dosage of aloe vera you have to take, in order to see symptoms of toxicity. 

Doses of aloe vera range from 100-1000 mg a day in powder form, and 15-150 ml a day in liquid form. 

Some symptoms of toxicity include:

• Rash
• Vomiting 
• Diarrhea 

Milk Thistle 

Milk Thistle is a type of plant that is even more effective at lowering HbA1C. In one meta-analysis, it lowered HbA1C by 1.40%, after 1.5 to 12 months.

The dose used in most studies is 700mg of silymarin (the active ingredient in milk thistle) 3 times a day.

Milk Thistle works in various different ways:

• Decreases visceral fat (this is the fat that surrounds your abdominal organs, and is highly inflammatory).
• Decreases fat in your liver.
• Decreases how much sugar the liver makes from non-sugar substances (that’s called “gluconeogenesis”).

There has only been one study that has looked at the toxicity of milk thistle, and found that doses as high as 700 mg, 3 times per day is safe. 

Symptoms of toxicity include:

• Nausea
• Diarrhea 

Alpha Lipoic Acid (ALA) 

I know, I know, seeing the word ‘acid’ definitely makes you question things, but Alpha Lipoic Acid is a strong antioxidant, and good for your overall health. 

Despite its interesting name, it is a natural fatty acid. It’s actually in a lot of nuts and seeds, like flaxseeds, chia seeds, hemp seeds, walnuts, and others.

There have been different studies on how well this vitamin helps lower HbA1C, and different meta-analyses have found different things. 

One meta-analysis found alpha lipoic acid to lower HbA1C by 0.35%, whereas another one found that it lowered HbA1C by 1.27%. 

This potentially helpful supplement works by protecting beta cells (the cell type in the pancreas that makes insulin). It’s the wearing out of beta cells that can cause insulin production to decrease.

Alpha Lipoic Acid is a substance where there have been some rare case studies of ALA poisoning, but no research has been done in humans to determine the safe maximum dosage. 

But, humans have used doses of Alpha Lipoic Acid as high as 2400 mg a day.

Symptoms of ALA are:

• Heart irregularities 
• Metabolic acidosis 
• Skin irritation 
• Nausea 

Ginger 

If you’ve ever had ginger tea, you probably would have heard great things about it. Ginger is a type of root that comes from a plant, and is used for its many health benefits. 

A meta-analysis found that by taking it for 1 to 3 months, the subjects’ HbA1C decreased by 1.0%. 

This supplement works to decrease your blood sugar in a number of different ways:

• It inhibits 2 enzymes that will help with carbohydrate digestion and absorption.
• Allows the glucose that does get absorbed to metabolize better.
• It allows the cells to absorb more glucose, getting it out of the blood.

The primary ingredient in ginger is gingerol which is a powerful antioxidant, and responsible for ginger’s medicinal properties. 

There has currently been no research done for the toxic dose of ginger in humans. 

Symptoms of ginger toxicity are:

• Heartburn
• Diarrhea 
• Burping 

Berberine 

Berberine is a chemical found in plants, such as tree turmeric, phellodendron and Oregon grape. 

One meta-analysis found that berberine lowers HbA1C by 0.72% more than placebo, over 8-24 weeks. 

This unique supplement works to lower your blood sugar in 3 different ways:

• Increases insulin secretion.
• Decreases insulin resistance.
• Reduces inflammation. 

Berberine is thought to have a toxicity level of 2.97 g/kg. This is higher than the typical dose used in some studies. 

Symptoms of berberine toxicity are:

• Diarrhea
• Constipation
• Gas 
• Upset stomach 
• Headaches  

Gymnema Sylvestre

Gymnema Sylvestre is a type of herb that comes from a plant, but is available in capsules as well. One systematic review (which is a type of review that analyzes the results of multiple studies) found that this herb lowers HbA1C by about 0.6% after taking it for 15-90 days. 

This supplement works by the following different mechanisms:

• May increase the secretion of insulin from the pancreas.
• Promotes the regeneration of damaged pancreatic cells (these are called “islet cells”).
• Promotes using up glucose, so that there is less of it hanging around in your blood.
• Decreases how much glucose is absorbed from the small intestine, therefore ultimately reducing the amount of glucose that goes into the blood.
• Reduces sugar cravings.

So far, there has been no research done to determine the most amount of gymnema sylvestre that you can take safely. 

Symptoms of toxicity for Gymnema Sylvestre are:

• Excessively low blood sugar.
• Weakness
• Confusion 
• Dizziness 

Why Certain Supplements May Not Work for You

Again, it’s important to understand the fact that supplements are not guaranteed to work for everyone. There are multiple reasons why even after taking supplements for months, they still may not work for you.

• You’re taking the wrong supplements together. Some supplements clash when taken together and they end up cancelling each other out.
• Taking other medications. Some medications for other medical problems can clash with supplements and the two just won’t work well together.
• You’re not taking the right supplements. Not every brand or type of supplement was made for you specifically, and is not guaranteed to work for everyone.
• Taking them at the wrong time of day. Depending on what the supplement is supposed to help with, there are certain times of day you should be taking them. 

Ineffective Supplements for Insulin Resistance

We’ve talked about the most effective supplements to lower your HbA1C, so now let’s go into the ineffective supplements. 

Why talk about ineffective supplements? Why not just give you the effective ones, and be done with it? To warn you – a lot of ingredients that have been proven to be ineffective for lowering blood sugar are still included in a lot of supplements, making claims that they lower blood sugar, despite evidence pointing to the contrary.

These ineffective supplements either don’t help to lower your HbA1C at all, or just don’t do it to a great extent. While those supplements may be effective for other things, they aren’t effective in regards to blood sugar. 

Now that we have that out of the way, here are the ineffective supplements for insulin resistance. 

Carnitine 

Carnitine is an amino acid that is found in most animals, plants and some bacteria. The evidence behind this supplement is very weak, despite the fact that it is frequently added to blood sugar formulas. 

This is one of the supplements that do help in a very minimal way, with an effect size of 0.30% (that’s how much it lowers HbA1C) according to one meta-analysis. 

Because this supplement has such a minor effect size, it’s not one to consider getting excited about. 

Bitter Melon

Bitter Melon is a tropical plant that again, is commonly used in blood sugar formulas, but has very weak evidence behind it.

In one meta-analysis, it was found that this supplement lowers HbA1C by only 0.13%. 

Ginseng 

Ginseng is a highly valued herb that is used for many things, such as controlling your blood sugar. One meta-analysis has proven that it is not effective for that purpose.

Magnesium

Magnesium is a mineral that is a fantastic supplement for many things, such as sleep, relaxation, heart health, muscle cramps, and mental health to name a few. 

However, for all its benefits, blood sugar control is not one of them. One meta-analysis found that it only lowers HbA1C by 0.018%.

Chromium 

Chromium is another mineral. A little amount of this goes a long way for human health, which is why it’s a theoretical reason for blood sugar control.

Since chromium is needed for healthy insulin function, it is a highly studied supplement, but it doesn’t actually work.

One meta-analysis has found that it only lowers HbA1C by 0.33%, making it rather ineffective despite the fact it’s needed for your health. It looks like we get enough through our diet, and at a certain point, more is not better.

Unproven Supplements

It’s very common to think that “unproven” and “ineffective” mean the same thing, but that’s simply not the case. “Ineffective” means that it does not work, and “unproven” means that we don’t know whether it works or not.

In order for a supplement to be labelled as “unproven”, it can be one of two things:

1. Studies haven’t been done on that supplement.
2. Studies have had flaws that make conclusions about effectiveness difficult.

It is recommended to first try the supplements that have been proven to be effective, but you can also choose to do your own study… on yourself. Now, here are 6 supplements that are unproven.

Vanadium 

Vanadium is a mineral that is found in a variety of foods, such as cereals, grains and vegetable oil. 

There have been some studies on how vanadium works mechanistically, and also how it affected diabetic rats, but there have not been any studies on the effects of vanadium supplements for humans. There have been claims that it does help with blood sugar, but nothing has been proven yet. 

It’s supposed to work by mimicking the effects of insulin, thus lowering your blood sugar.

If you do choose to take vanadium as a supplement, here are some helpful things to know:

• You probably shouldn’t exceed taking about 2 mg/day.
• Side effects include diarrhea, gas and abdominal pain 

Biotin 

 Biotin is one of the B vitamins, claimed to lower blood sugar, although there is no research on whether or not it actually does that. 

Biotin helps with carbohydrate metabolism (as well as fats and amino acids). The overall theory is that if it helps metabolize carbohydrates, fewer of them will end up in the bloodstream. 

Since this is also one of the B vitamins, it’s very unlikely for there to be any toxicity, or the dose you take would have to be so high that it hasn’t been reported. 

Inositol 

Inositol is a vitamin-like substance that is actually really similar to biotin:

• It’s in the family of B vitamins (despite not being a true vitamin).
• It helps with carbohydrate metabolism.
• It hasn’t been studied in diabetics.

For diabetics, it is unknown whether inositol works or not. It’s used for a lot of other issues (like restoring fertility and possibly insulin sensitivity in women with PCOS). But whether or not it works in diabetics is still yet to be determined.

The recommended dosage for inositol is unknown, but one study used 12 grams of inositol, which is a much higher dosage than what was needed for PCOS treatment (approximately 3-6 times higher). With this, the only side effects were nausea, diarrhea and gas.

Zinc 

Zinc has many different uses for the body, the main ones being:

• Immune health 
• Wound healing
• Taste and smell

One area in which zinc hasn’t been studied is its role in blood sugar regulation in humans, though it has been studied in rats. 

There is only one study I am aware of that looks at the role zinc plays in preventing diabetes, as opposed to treatment, and even that one concluded that zinc supplements don’t help with the prevention of diabetes. 

Since the main studies on zinc have been for rats, here is how it’s supposed to work:

1. Decreases the absorption and synthesis of glucose.
2. Improves insulin sensitivity by improving glucose absorption in both muscle and fat cells.

Levels of toxicity for zinc aren’t just a straight number. Some people noticed toxicity at doses of 50 mg/day, while others used doses of 150 mg/day for several months and hadn’t noticed any negative effects. 

Symptoms of toxicity include:

• Nausea 
• Vomiting 
• Stomach ache 
• Diarrhea 
• Loss of taste
• Frequent colds and infections

But hey, if your pet rat has diabetes, you can give zinc to it 😉

Carnosine 

Carnosine is an amino acid that is thought to help with blood sugar. If there was more evidence on this supplement (the evidence that does exist is very limited), it would have been categorized in one of the others. 

One meta-analysis ran into problems with their studies, as there have been very few people to participate in the study, and short durations. Because of this, it’s difficult to draw the right conclusion about carnosine right now. 

It’s not proven how carnosine is supposed to work, but here are some theories:

• Improves insulin sensitivity, so you need less insulin to lower your blood sugar.
• Improves insulin secretion, so there is more of it to go around.

There has not been research to see what the maximum dosage is, but some side effects can include:

• Dry mouth
• Fatigue 
• Sleep disturbances 

Probiotics 

Probiotics are typically healthy bacteria that live primarily in the large intestine, and to a lesser extent, in the small intestine. Probiotics have gained a lot more recognition and popularity with more and more research (and hype). 

They have started to become a staple supplement, but it doesn’t mean it will help with everything. Right now, it’s not clear whether it does help with diabetes or not. 

While there is research out there that has been done on the connection of probiotic supplements and diabetes, the research is very conflicting. 

There have been multiple meta-analyses performed to determine whether or not probiotics are sufficient in preventing diabetes, but there have been different answers. Two different meta-analyses concluded that probiotics don’t work for diabetes, but one meta-analysis concluded that probiotics do work for diabetes. 

A fourth meta-analysis found that probiotics do work for diabetics, but the effect is extremely minimal. 

It’s not completely clear how probiotics would work on and improve blood sugar, if they would at all. Even so, a potential mechanism is that it might improve carbohydrate digestion. 

Combining supplements

The savvy reader might have gotten to this point in the article, and think to themselves “if supplement X lowers blood sugar by Y, and supplement A lowers blood sugar by B, I’ll just take both, and have a combined effect.” Of heck, you might be thinking “I’ll buy them all!!!.”

Don’t.

When it comes to studies and research on supplements, they are done separately and in isolation. Basically, there aren’t studies on how two supplements interact with each other; Sure, they might enhance the effect. But, they could also either completely cancel each other out, or have negative side effects. These side effects could be:

• Your blood sugar will drop too low.
• You may be more prone to fainting.
• You might feel very weak.

…and others.

Ya try to do something good for yourself, and end up making things worse. Definitely not what you want.

If you do want to combine supplements, there is a process you need to follow in order to do it safely.

First, you pick a supplement that you would like to try.

Then, find the right supplement dose for you. I wrote an entire article on it, so I won’t rehash it here. But if you want to read the article, here it is.

Once you have the supplement you want to take, and the right dose, take it until your blood sugar stabilizes.

Next, you can add another supplement and repeat the process.

With every supplement you add, it is vital for your health and safety to monitor your blood sugar continuously to see if that supplement combination is working for you or not. You could either notice that it is lowering your blood sugar more than the supplement(s) you were taking before, or if the effects negate the effects of the previous supplements. 

It’s important to speak to a pharmacist before doing this, because they are the experts when it comes to drug-herb-nutrient interactions.

Whether you yourself have diabetes, know a family or friend who has it, or simply just want to know more about it, you now do! 

From this article, you learned about vitamins for insulin resistance, blood sugar levels, HbA1C levels, and even more. 

You now know about the 6 best supplements for insulin resistance, along with what doesn’t work, and what we’re not yet sure about.