Diabetes Research and Clinical Practice 65 (2004) 21–28 The impact of vitamin and/or mineral supplementation on lipid profiles in type 2 diabetes Maryam Sadat Farvid a,∗ , Fereydoun Siassi a , Mahmoud Jalali a , Mostafa Hosseini b , Navid Saadat c a Department of Nutrition and Biochemistry, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran b Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran c Endocrine Research Center, Shaheed Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran Received in revised form 13 September 2003; accepted 21 November 2003 Abstract Objective: The purpose of the present study was to assess the impact of Mg + Zn, Vitamins C + E, and combination of these micronutrients on serum lipid and lipoprotein profiles in type 2 diabetic patients. Materials and methods: In a randomized, double-blind, placebo controlled clinical trial, 69 type 2 diabetic patients were randomly divided into four groups, each group receiving one of the following daily supplement for 3 months; group M: 200 mg Mg and 30 mg Zn (n = 16), group V: 200 mg Vitamin C and 150 mg Vitamin E (n = 18), group MV: minerals plus vitamins (n = 17), group P: placebo (n = 18). Fasting blood and urine samples were collected at the beginning and at the end of the trial. Serum triglyceride, total cholesterol, high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-c) and low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-c) were measured enzymatically. Apolipoproteins (apo) A1 and B were measured by immunoturbidimetric method. Adjustment for differences in baselines covariates and changes in variables during study were performed by analysis of covariance using general linear models. Results: Results indicate that after 3 months of supplementation mean serum levels of HDL-c and apo A1 increased significantly in the MV group by 24% (50.4 ± 19.3 mg/dl versus 40.6 ± 10.8 mg/dl) and 8.8% (169.8 ± 33.8 mg/dl versus 156.1 ± 23.9 mg/dl), respectively (P< 0.01). There were no significant changes in the levels of these parameters in the other three groups. Serum levels of total cholesterol, LDL-c, triglyceride, and apo B were not altered after supplementation in all four groups. Conclusion: It is concluded that since co-supplementation of Mg, Zn, Vitamins C and E significantly increases HDL-c and apo A1, supplementation of these micronutrients could be recommended for the type 2 diabetic patients based on their daily requirements. © 2003 Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd. Keywords: Diabetes; Lipid; Vitamin C; Vitamin E; Magnesium; Zinc Abbreviations: Apo, apolipoprotein; BMI, body mass index; Cr, creatinine; CVD, cardiovascular disease; HDL-c, high density lipoprotein cholesterol; LDL-c, low density lipoprotein cholesterol; LS--TOH, lipid standardized -tocopherol; M, mineral; Mg, magnesium; MV, mineral and vitamin; P, placebo; TG, triglyceride; V, vitamin; Zn, zinc ∗ Corresponding author. Tel.: +98-21-8954911; fax: +98-21-8974462. E-mail address: farvidm@hotmail.com (M.S. Farvid). 0168-8227/$ – see front matter © 2003 Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd. doi:10.1016/j.diabres.2003.11.009