Selenium has become severely deficient or exhausted in all chemically farmed soils and there is now a wide-spread selenium deficiency almost everywhere - and consequently, in most of our daily food. The August 2000 issue of the British medical journal "Lancet" contains a summary of evidence from 80 scientific studies published around the world which show why selenium is so essential to our health and why we are not getting enough of it
Why is it so important?
- Selenium is essential to the proper functioning of the immune system and boosts our defences and resistance to infection
- It improves male fertility and prevents miscarriage
- Low levels are associated with depression and other mental disorders
- High levels help prevent cancer.
- Deficient levels in the diet may even have played a role in the emergence of new strains of the flu virus in China and the crossing of the HIV virus from animals to man in Central Africa
Repeated analyses have shown that not a single country in Europe has a selenium intake high enough for the population to enjoy the maximum protective effect. In the UK, the average intake of 29-39 micrograms of selenium a day is half the recommended daily amount of 75 micrograms for men and 60 for women (**still much too low, see below). Selenium enters into the food chain through plants which take it up from the soil but in many parts of the world, including Europe, iron and aluminium in the soil reduce uptake. Blood levels of selenium are lowest in Spain, Greece and Eastern Europe and are generally lower in Europe than in the US because soil levels in Europe are lower. In the UK, intake of selenium has "declined considerably" in the last 25 years, according to Dr Rayman.
Most of our selenium is obtained from meat, poultry and fish which together account for over a third of our daily intake. Another fifth comes from bread and cereals made with wheat, which, although not a good source, is so commonly consumed it accounts for a significant proportion of the total. The best sources of selenium, containing the highest level of the mineral, are brazil nuts, and kidneys. Other good sources are shellfish, especially crab, other fish and liver.
Questions remain whether a daily selenium supplement is a valid substitute, but the evidence is growing. In a study called the Nutritional Prevention of Cancer (NPC) trial in the US 1,300 people who had been treated for skin cancers other than melanoma (the most serious kind) were given selenium supplements or a placebo to see if the mineral reduced the recurrence rate.
It did not, but to everyone's surprise, the trial did show that deaths from all kinds of cancer were halved in the group given selenium and there were 63 per cent fewer cancers of the prostate, 58 per cent fewer cases of bowel cancer and 46 per cent fewer cases of lung cancer. The strongest effect was seen in those with the lowest blood level of selenium at the outset, below 106 micrograms per litre.
At this point it should be mentioned that the chemical forms of Selenium, sodium selenite and L-selenomethionine will not perform at the same effective level as the foodstate Selenium, and these chemical varieties have toxicity concerns.
The impact of supplements is expected to be greatest on those with the lowest levels of selenium in their blood. But even for those with relatively high levels, supplementation appears to have beneficial effects. One study in the US showed that people with natural levels between 120 and 134 micrograms per litre who took supplements of 200 micrograms a day** showed evidence of "considerable immuno-enhancing effects" - that is, a stronger immune system. Another study showed a near doubling in the activity of killer cells in the immune system.
Low levels of selenium appear to allow otherwise harmless viruses to become virulent and this could be a factor in the spread of infection. In experiments on mice, the mineral has been shown to be protective against heart damage caused by the coxsackie virus and if other viruses were implicated, such as polio, hepatitis, flu or HIV "there would be considerable public health implications," Dr Rayman says.
She adds: "The steady emergence of new strains of influenza in China with its selenium deficient belt or the first crossing over of HIV to human beings in the selenium-deficient population of Zaire, might also be explained."
If the results of the PRECISE trial are positive, and the cancer-preventive effect of selenium is confirmed, it could do more than trigger a rush for the supplement. With clear evidence that our national diet is deficient in the mineral more radical action may be necessary. In Finland, where selenium intakes were very low, the mineral has been added to fertilisers since 1984 to boost selenium levels in the population.
Selenium linked to lower skin cancer risks
Higher blood levels of selenium may reduce the incidence of skin cancer by about 60 per cent, according to a new study from Dutch and Australian researchers. Writing in Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention, the researchers report that the mineral was associated with reduced risks of both basal cell carcinoma (BCC) and squamous cell carcinoma (SCC).
In the US, over 1.5 million people are diagnosed with skin cancer every year. According to Cancer Research UK, a charity, over 76,000 cases of skin cancer were documented in 2005 but this is thought to under-represent the problem.
Jolieke van der Pols and her co-workers examined 485 adults randomly samples in from an Australian community.
“Relatively high serum selenium concentrations are associated with an approximately 60 per cent decrease in subsequent tumour incidence of both BCC and SCC,” wrote the researchers