An essential element involved primarily in enzymes that are antioxidants. Three selenium- containing enzymes are antioxidant peroxidases and a fourth selenium-containing enzyme is involved in thyroid hormone production. The prostate contains a selenium-containing protein and semen contains relatively large amounts of selenium. Clinical studies show that selenium is important in lowering the risk of several types of cancers. In combination with Vitamin E, selenium aids the production of antibodies and helps maintain a healthy heart. It also aids in the function of the pancreas, provides elasticity to tissues and helps cells defend themselves against damage from oxidation.

	Adolescent Acne Recommendation Selenium "Acne in both men and women can show improvement with vitamin E and selenium treatment..." Recommendation Vitamin E "Acne in both men and women can show improvement with vitamin E and selenium treatment..." Adult Acne Recommendation Vitamin E "...Male acne patients have significantly decreased levels of erythrocyte glutathione peroxidase, which normalizes with vitamin E and selenium treatment..." Alzheimer's Disease Recommendation Zinc "...An increase was found in aluminum, silicon and calcium; a significant decrease was found in zinc and selenium..." Antioxidant Related Topic "...Examples include vitamins C and E, beta carotene, the minerals selenium and germanium, superoxide dismutase (SOD), coenzyme Q10, catalase, and some amino acids..." Antioxidant Requirement The Condition "...Antioxidants from food include not only vitamins C and E and beta carotene, but also some elements such as selenium and copper (which form antioxidant metallo-enzymes), and other compounds found in plant foods such as flavonoids and polyphenols..." Antioxidants As A Treatment "..."Antioxidant" is a classification of several organic substances, including vitamins C and E, vitamin A (which is converted from beta-carotene), selenium (a mineral), and a group known as the carotenoids..." Asthma Relationship to Selenium Requirement "Dietary consumption of apples and selenium intake (assessed by food frequency questionnaire) were each associated with a reduced risk of asthma in an English study of adults..." Recommendation Increased Fruit/Vegetable Consumption "...Dietary consumption of apples and selenium intake (assessed by food frequency questionnaire) were each associated with a reduced risk of asthma in a case-control study (607 cases and 864 controls) of adults aged 16-50 in England..." Recommendation Selenium "People with low levels of selenium have a high risk of asthma..." Atherosclerosis Recommendation Selenium "Considered to be from 200 to 500 times more potent an antioxidant than vitamin E, selenium and vitamin E are synergistic as antioxidants and inhibit or prevent the damage to tissues by free radicals which have been cited as causal factors in heart disease, atherosclerosis, arthritis..." Birth Control Pill Issues The Condition "...Selenium..." Cataracts The Condition "...tissues of the body, is dependent on adequate levels and activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase, glutathione (GSH), and adequate levels of the accessory antioxidants vitamins E and C and selenium, to help prevent free radical damage..." Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia (CLL) Recommendation Selenium "In evaluating 59 patients with lymphoid malignancies such as Hodgkin's disease, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, multiple myeloma and chronic lymphocytic leukemia, serum selenium concentrations were significantly lower in patients than in controls..." Chronic Thyroiditis Recommendation Selenium "Three months of supplementation with 200mcg selenium daily reduced thyroid peroxidase antibodies (TPOAb) but had no effect on Tg antibodies (TgAb) in a well-controlled study of 70 women with autoimmune thyroiditis..." Cigarette Smoke Damage Recommendation Selenium "An Italian study of men who smoked found that heavy smokers had lower levels of selenium than lighter smokers and non-smokers..." Coronary Disease / Heart Attack Recommendation Selenium "Selenium is considered to be from 200 to 500 times more potent an antioxidant than Vitamin E..." Dandruff The Condition "...Treatment & Prevention The most common dandruff treatments are shampoos containing coal-tar, pyrithione zinc, salicylic acid, selenium sulfide, and sulfur..." Esophageal Cancer The Condition "...A supplementation plan should include nutrients that help support your immune system and reduce toxic side-effects, including ... Selenium..." Essential Fatty Acids As A Treatment "...Omega-6 conversion can be inhibited by bad fats (margarines, shortenings, trans-fatty acids, hard fats, sugar and cholesterol), lack of minerals (magnesium, selenium, zinc), vitamin deficiencies (B3, B6, C, E), viruses, obesity, diabetes, aging, and rare genetic mutations..." Female Infertility Recommendation Selenium "A deficiency of selenium can lead to infertility in women..." General Mineral Requirement The Condition "...For this reason, modern crops are frequently grown in depleted soils; in fact, most American farmland is severely depleted of selenium and often contains only marginal levels of zinc, magnesium, calcium and other minerals..." Glutathione Peroxidase Related Topic "A family of antioxidant enzymes containing selenium which are important in the reduction of different hydroperoxides, including hydrogen peroxide which is involved in the irritation of the gastrointestinal tract and increase in perspiration..." Gonads Related Topic "...Nutritional needs for the gonads vary somewhat, but all require plenty of essential fatty acids, vitamins C, E and B-complex, the minerals calcium, magnesium, selenium, iron and zinc..." Heavy Metal Detoxification / Avoidance As A Treatment "...In 80 patients with dental amalgam fillings and symptoms attributed to chronic mercury toxicity, 100mg per week of DMPS with 100mcg per day of selenium reduced symptoms after an initial 300mg DMPS oral challenge..." Heavy Metal Toxicity Recommendation Selenium "Selenium is able to combine with metals such as cadmium and mercury to reduce their toxicity..." Hepatitis The Condition "...The following are risk factors for Hepatitis B, which your doctor should be told about ... Having a poor selenium status..." Recommendation Selenium "Optimal selenium status should be ensured for both prevention and treatment: 200mcg per day is needed to keep your liver healthy..." Recommendation Alpha Lipoic Acid "...Alpha lipoic acid (ALA), silymarin, and selenium have been used in combination with success in reducing symptoms and elevated liver enzyme levels (though the viral load was not substantially reduced)..." High Total Cholesterol Recommendation Selenium "A selenium deficiency is associated with hypercholesterolemia..." Hyperthyroidism Recommendation Selenium "...Barbara Gasnier reported the findings at the 83rd Annual Meeting of the Endocrine Society in Denver, Colorado that selenium supplementation may prevent progression of autoimmune thyroid disease, especially during the onset of the disease..." Hypothyroidism The Condition "...It may be genetic, or triggered by stress or inactivity, as well as diet, selenium or zinc deficiency, heavy metals or starvation..." Recommendation Selenium "Selenium and iodine are two minerals which are important in the proper functioning of the thyroid..." Recommendation Iodine "...See link between hypothyroidism and selenium..." L-Glutathione As A Treatment "...Alpha lipoic acid, selenium, vitamin C, TMG, NAC, Milk Thistle (silymarin), coffee enemas, cold-processed whey proteins, colostrum, certified raw milk and L-glutamine support increased glutathione levels..." Liver Detoxification / Support Requirement The Condition "...reduction Alcohol avoidance Low fat diet High water-insoluble fiber consumption Carnitine supplementation (other lipotropics less effective) Protection from free radical damage Vitamins C, E, Zinc, Selenium, Lipoic acid..." Lung Cancer The Condition "...Prevention Apart from smoking cessation, further reduction of risk may be achieved by weight loss (when appropriate), a healthier diet (fruits and cabbage family vegetables), and supplements such as selenium and vitamins C and E..." Recommendation Selenium "A double-blind study demonstrated that supplementation with 200 mcg/day of selenium (in the form of high-selenium brewer's yeast) reduced the incidence of prostate, colorectal and lung cancer, and reduced overall cancer mortality by 50%..." Macular Degeneration Recommendation Zinc "...Intravenous administration along with selenium have demonstrated benefits in the treatment of macular degeneration..." Recommendation Vitamin C (Ascorbic Acid) "...People with high levels of vitamin C, vitamin E and selenium appear to have a 70% lower risk of developing macular degeneration..." Recommendation Selenium "Selenium is sometimes recommended, but you should always consult your physician to determine appropriate dosages..." Melanoma Recommendation Selenium "Serum selenium levels were inversely related to the degree of disease severity in 200 cases of melanoma studied..." Mercury Toxicity (Amalgam Illness) Recommendation Selenium "Selenium chelates heavy metals such as cadmium, lead, mercury and silver..." Multiple Mineral Supplementation As A Treatment "...Trace minerals include boron, chromium, copper, germanium, iodine, iron, manganese, molybdenum selenium, silicon, sulfur, vanadium and zinc..." Multiple Vitamin Supplement As A Treatment "...best multiple vitamins should contain a broad range of vitamins and minerals, particularly vitamins A, D, K, all of the B vitamins, and trace minerals, like boron, chromium, copper, iron, manganese, selenium, and zinc..." Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma Recommendation Selenium "In evaluating 59 patients with lymphoid malignancies such as Hodgkin's disease, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, multiple myeloma and chronic lymphocytic leukemia, it was found that serum selenium concentrations were significantly lower in patients than in controls..." Osgood-Schlatter Disease Recommendation Vitamin E "...bid of vitamin E along with selenium at 200mcg per day has proven beneficial against Osgood-Schlater disease..." Ovarian Cancer Relationship to Selenium Requirement "...Initial serum selenium levels were found to be inversely related to the risk of ovarian cancer..." Recommendation Selenium "...Initial serum selenium levels were inversely related to the risk of ovarian cancer..." Poor Prostate Health The Condition "...SUPPLEMENTS: Dietary supplements that contain lycopene, standardized saw palmetto extract, selenium, vitamin D, zinc and copper aid in the maintenance of the gland..." Pregnancy-Related Issues Recommendation Selenium "...The same study suggests that the antioxidant selenium protects the cell membrane, thereby maintaining appropriate levels of magnesium..." Premature/Signs of Aging Recommendation Selenium "Considered to be from 200 to 500 times more potent an antioxidant than vitamin E, selenium and vitamin E are synergistic as antioxidants and inhibit or prevent the damage to tissues by free radicals which have been cited as causal factors in heart disease, atherosclerosis, arthritis..." Prostate Cancer Recommendation Selenium "In one study, the risk of prostate cancer for men receiving a daily supplement of 200mcg per day of selenium was found to be one-third that of those receiving a placebo..." Rheumatoid Arthritis Recommendation Selenium "Selenium levels are generally low in patients with rheumatoid arthritis..." Schizophrenia The Condition "...It's been observed that geographical regions with low selenium levels in the soil and less sunshine have higher rates of "schizophrenia..." Selenium As A Treatment "Selenium is an essential mineral which works closely with vitamin E..." Selenium Allergy Protocol As A Treatment "The observation that selenium can help with petrochemical sensitivity was first made by Stephen Levine, Ph..." Selenium Requirement The Condition "Selenium is a mineral which is essential in human nutrition in very small amounts (larger amounts are toxic)..." Our Question about vitamin C supplementation "The availability of selenium for absorption was reduced almost to zero when sodium selenite (a common form of selenium) and 1gm ascorbic acid were taken together well before any meal..." Relationship to Hepatitis "Selenium is essential for healthy immune functioning..." Susceptibility To Miscarriages Recommendation Magnesium "...The same study suggests that the antioxidant selenium protects the cell membrane, thereby maintaining appropriate levels of magnesium..." Syndrome X Recommendation Selenium "Selenium is a mineral that works alongside vitamin E as part of the antioxidant protection against free radical damage caused by high insulin levels..." Thymic Factors As A Treatment "...Antioxidants like vitamins C and E, beta carotene and selenium help to protect the thymus from free radicals, unstable molecules that damage our cells..." Thymus Related Topic "...The thymus appears to need plenty of balanced protein, antioxidants like carotenes, vitamin C, E, B6, zinc and selenium..." Vitamin E As A Treatment "...Vitamin E works alongside other antioxidant nutrients including selenium, vitamin C, beta-carotene and others to quench free radicals, peroxides and other potentially harmful substances..." Weakened Immune System The Condition "...A high-quality multivitamin and mineral supplement (especially B6, B12, folate, pantothenic acid, C, zinc, selenium, chromium, and manganese) can be an important starting point..." Zeolites As A Treatment "...Anything that improves the immune defense system such as selenium, Burbur, N-Acetyl Cysteine etc..."

Last updated: May 10, 2007