Effects of combination of zinc and vitamin A supplementation on serum fasting blood sugar, insulin, apoprotein B and apoprotein A-I in patients with type I diabetes

Abstract

Background and aim There is accumulating evidence that shows the metabolism of zinc and vitamin A are altered in diabetes mellitus type I (DMTI), thus the present study was conducted to evaluate the effects of combination of zinc and vitamin A supplementation on serum fasting blood sugar (FBS), insulin, apoprotein B and apoprotein A-I in patients with DMTI.

Design Forty-eight, 7-year-old to 20-year-old patients with at least 2 years of DMTI history, without any metabolic condition or medicine intake with insulin treatment, participated in a randomized double-blind clinical trial for 12 weeks. They were divided into zinc and vitamin A (VAZ)-supplemented (10 mg elemental zinc per day and one-half of a 25,000 IU vitamin A tablet every other day) and/or placebo groups after matching for sex, age and DMTI duration. Nutrient intake was estimated using 24 h recall and was analyzed by food processor program. Serum apoproteins B and A-I, FBS and insulin levels were determined at the beginning and end of the trial.

Results There was significant increase in apoprotein A-I (P < 0.0001) and a significant decrease in apoprotein B (P < 0.0001) and apoprotein B/apoprotein A-I ratio (P < 0.0001) at the end of the study compared with baseline values in the VAZ group but apoprotein A-I had a significant increase (P < 0.0001) and the apoprotein B/apoprotein A-I ratio had a significant decrease (P = 0.02) at the end of study in the VAZ group compared with the control group

Conclusion It seems that combined zinc and vitamin A supplementation can improve serum apoprotein A-I, apoprotein B and the apoprotein B/apoprotein A-I ratio in patients with DMTI.

Keywords::

• Vitamin A
• zinc
• apoprotein
• fasting blood sugar
• insulin
• diabetes mellitus type I

Acknowledgements

The study was financially supported by Iran University of Medical Sciences. The authors thank staff of the Institute of Endocrinology and Metabolism of Iran University of Medical Science.

Declaration of interest: The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper.