Impact of Oral Zinc Supplementation on Glycemic Control in Type 2 Diabetic Patients: Single-blinded Randomized Controlled Trial

Objective: Type 2 diabetes mellitus is one of the world's most prevalent and fatal diseases.Zinc is involved in metabolism of glucose via its participation in insulin crystallization and signaling.This study aimed to evaluate the effect of zinc supplementation on glycemic control in type 2 diabetic patients. Materials and Methods:The participants consisted of 200 type 2 diabetic patients attending the family medicine outpatient clinics in Suez Canal University who were randomly assigned into two groups, intervention, and control group.The study was approved by Ethics Committee of Suez canal University and all participant' consent was assured.This study was carried out between April 2019 and June 2019.The intervention group received oral capsule of zinc sulphate (25 mg) daily, the second control group was given placebo, identical for 12 weeks.outcome measures consisted mainly of Glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c %) that was assessed at baseline and after 12 weeks.Follow up visits were conducted at the 4 th , 8 th and 12 th week from beginning of the study to check adherence to treatment every visit by interview and pill counts.Results: Glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c %) was significantly reduced in zinc group compared to placebo group (p = 0.008). Conclusion:Zinc supplementation addition to routine management of adult type 2 diabetics on oral hypoglcemics only may improve glycemic control in this short single blinded randomized controlled trial.