A Cross-sectional Study of Serum Levels of Zinc, Copper and Magnesium in Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus in South Indian Urban Population

Introduction: Variability in the levels of these trace elements may reflect altered insulin metabolism and poor glycaemic control in the background of elevated oxidative stress. Mineral metabolism is another entity that may be disrupted by diabetes mellitus. Conversely, there are studies implicating early imbalances of trace elements in upsetting glucose homeostasis and insulin metabolism. Aim: To estimate and compare serum zinc, copper and magnesium in Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (DM) patients with non diabetic controls and to correlate the serum zinc, copper and magnesium with Glycated Haemoglobin levels in Type 2 DM. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted at the Sapthagiri Institute of Medical Sciences and Research Center, Bengaluru, Karnataka, India. The study included 30 Type 2 DM patients and 30 healthy, age and gender matched controls without Type 2 DM. Their serum levels of zinc, copper and magnesium were measured and compared. Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 16 software was used to perform the statistical analysis. The data obtained was subjected to descriptive statistical analysis. Results: Mean +/- SD of serum zinc in Type 2 DM and controls was 93.44 +/- 46.99 mu g/dL and 121.74 +/- 37.15 mu g/dL, respectively. Serum zinc was significantly decreased in Type 2 DM. However, there was no significant alteration with respect to serum copper and magnesium. Pearson's correlation analysis showed that the association between HbA1c with zinc (r=0.069, p=0.718), copper (r= -0.094, p=0.622) and magnesium (r=0.116, p=0.543) was random. Conclusion: Zinc deficiency noticed in Type 2 DM patients may be due to increased excretion in urine. Zinc oral preparations are cheap and easily available. Considering these, it can be further explored if micronutrient supplementation would help to improve the glycaemic variability in Type 2 DM.