Selenium: What It Is, What It Is For, In Which Foods It Is Found

What Is Selenium?

Selenium is a minor component (mineral salt) with cell reinforcement power. It is a fundamental micronutrient that we can take with food and is tracked down in numerous food varieties of plants and creatures beginning.

• Selenium is put away in the body in the muscles and the liver; it upholds the body’s regular protection since it plays a cell reinforcement job.
• In collective energy with different chemicals in the body, selenium checks the spread of free revolutionaries, yet notwithstanding its defensive capability, it additionally meaningfully affects our well-being, which adds to the appropriate working of our safe framework.

What Is Selenium Used For?

Selenium is a mineral found in soil and enters the pecking order through plants. We find it in many plant food sources, the meat of creatures that eat plants, and their items, like milk, eggs, etc.

• Selenium is demonstrated as a cancer prevention agent and, like this, has the disposition of balancing the impacts of free revolutionaries, unsafe substances that speed up cell maturing and favor cardiovascular illnesses. All in all, it neutralizes cell degeneration and cardiovascular gambling.
• Its job is key in thyroid digestion and forestalling the severe impacts of weighty metals like lead and arsenic. Moreover, selenium partakes in the resistant protection components and the body’s calming responses.

How Much Selenium Per Day?

The recommended daily intakes of selenium according to the LARN (Recommended Intake Levels of Nutrients) of the SINU (Indian Society of Human Nutrition) are in the order of 20-45 micrograms (mcg) per day up to the age of 18; about 55 mcg per day for adults, men and women, including pregnancy; 60-70 mcg per day for lactating women.

Properties Of Selenium

This mineral undeniably has several health benefits. We summarize below some of the most important functions in which it intervenes:

• Fights premature cellular aging
• Promotes the beauty of hair and nails
• Strengthens the immune system
• Shields the skin from untimely maturing brought about by free revolutionaries
• It acts against viral infections and in anti-inflammatory reactions
• helps to eliminate excess toxins ingested by the body (tobacco, alcohol, sun, pollution, etc.)
• Refines the assemblage of weighty metals
• Favors the correct functioning of the thyroid gland
• Helps regulate heart rate

Selenium deficiency is rare, and the most prominent clinical manifestation is Keshan disease (myocardial disease). However, due to its essential function in the body, the risks of deficiency can determine:

• poor resistance to viral infections
• Muscle problems or skin depigmentation

Foods Rich In Selenium

A varied and balanced diet can satisfy selenium requirements. The foods richest in selenium are protein foods such as:

• Fish and shellfish
• Meat, eggs, off
• Milk and cheeses such as Grana Padano DOP, which, in addition to selenium, is rich in calcium (the highest concentration among the most commonly consumed cheeses) and proteins of high biological value. It also contains B vitamins (such as B2 and B12) and other antioxidants, such as vitamin A and zinc. A spoonful of grated Grana Padano DOP on first courses and vegetable soups can replace salt and give us good quantities of selenium.
• whole foods
• Brazil nuts

However, the bioavailability of the mineral, i.e. the amount of selenium in foods that our body can use, is variable.

• It ranges from 20% to 50% for fish products, and 80% for cereals and brewer’s yeast, but milk and derivatives also have high bioavailability.

Selenium Excess And Contraindications

Caution should be exercised in pregnant or breastfeeding women to avoid exceeding the recommended doses of selenium. Selenium exposure levels have not been established to achieve toxicity. However, it has been observed that excess selenium is difficult to achieve with proper nutrition, while it can be achieved by taking too many supplements or fortified foods.

Symptoms of excess selenium are:

• Bullous dermatitis
• Nail changes
• Hair loss
• Neurological abnormalities
• Gastrointestinal disorders
• Characteristic “garlic” odor in sweat or exhaled air (indicating the presence of dimethyl sulfide), which should also be considered a sign of excessive intake.

Also Read: Top 10 “Joie De Vivre” Foods, According To Science!