Supplements

Selenium

Selenium, a trace mineral, is an important part of the enzyme glutathione peroxidase. It is an effective antioxidant, especially when combined with vitamin E. Selenium and vitamin E act synergistically to aid in the production of antibodies and to help maintain a healthy heart and liver.

Working as part of this enzyme, selenium or, more specifically, the organic complex selenocysteine, helps protect intracellular structures by preventing the formation of damaging free radicals.

Extreme selenium deficiency can lead to a rare heart disorder known as Keshan disease, which results in congestive heart failure and is most evident in parts of China where soil-selenium levels are low. More commonly, though, selenium deficiency is indicated in high rates of cancer, heart disease, and immuno-depression.

Those with low selenium levels have a 70 percent greater risk of coronary heart disease than those with normal levels. Low plasma levels of selenium have been found (in a Danish study) to be a significant risk factor for heart disease.

Clinical studies have shown that selenium is an important supplement for the management of cardiac arrhythmias and the prevention of sudden cardiac death.

Doses of selenium may help to keep the HIV virus dormant and prevent it from developing into full-blown AIDS. People infected with HIV a deficiency of selenium is very common. One theory of how AIDS becomes manifest is that HIV drains selenium from an infected cell until it reaches a critically low point. The cell then bursts and the virus replicates.

Gerhard Schrauzer, Ph.D., asserts that selenium may be the single most important nutrient for people infected with the deadly virus. Although a standard supplement program may not show improvement for a long as six months, Schrauzer suggests that doctors may coax a speedier response time by prescribing a very brief initial course with daily dosages as high as 8,000 mcg.

Lab studies show that when deprived of selenium, a range of viruses, including those responsible for hepatitis B and the common cold will mutate into more dangerous forms.

Cancer prevention studies show that a 50 percent decrease in cancer deaths with selenium supplementation. Wherever soil selenium levels are higher, there are significantly lower levels of cancers of the lungs, rectum, bladder, esophagus, cervix, and uterus. Finland studies show that male cancer patients have lower levels of selenium in their blood and that selenium may be the most important protective nutrient against these forms of cancer.

Selenium levels are low in people with rheumatoid arthritis. Selenium's anti-inflammatory properties have helped relieve symptoms, especially when combined with vitamin E and other antioxidants.

People suffering from osteoarthritis have also benefited from selenium supplementation. However, it may take six months for selenium's benefits to become apparent.

Selenium is also helpful in treating a wide-range of other inflammatory conditions, such as colitis and psoriasis. The best results with psoriasis take place with a direct application of selenium to the affected skin.

The enzyme that activates the main thyroid hormone (T4) depends on selenium. Without selenium the benefits of thyroid replacement therapy may be incomplete; which may lead to sluggish metabolism or even obesity. Selenium also protects the thyroid from free radical damage that can decrease the thyroid function.

Selenium binds with toxic metals, such as lead, platinum and mercury, leaving them inert and harmless. A clinical advantage recently demonstrated is its ability to reduce the toxicity of platinum-containing chemotherapeutic agents.

A major cause of multiple sclerosis is a systemic accumulation of toxic metals. Low glutathione levels, a sign of selenium deficiency, are found in MS patients.

Fertility of both men and women depend upon optimal selenium intake. Along with folic acid and zinc, selenium is crucial in preventing the malformed spines seen in neural tube defects.

Babies who die from sudden infant death syndrome have shown several signs of selenium deficiency.

Doctors found that administering selenium to patients with acute cases of pancreatitis, reduces pancreas inflammation within twenty-four hours.

Other studies have determined that selenium improves liver and metabolic function, and even in extreme cases of alcoholic cirrhosis of the liver. Additionally, sufficient selenium intake has been indicated in prostate health and sperm motility, plays a prominent role in skin health and elasticity, and protects against cataract formation.

Deficiency: Premature stamina loss; Keshan disease, cancer and heart disease, growth impairment, high cholesterol levels, infections, liver impairment, pancreatic insufficiency, and sterility.

Depleting Agents: Food processing techniques.

Sources: Selenium can be found in Brazil nuts, brewer's yeast, broccoli, brown rice, chicken, dairy products, dulse, garlic, tuna, vegetables, wheat germ, and whole grains.

Herb Sources: Alfalfa, burdock root, catnip, cayenne, chamomile, chickweed, fennel seed, fenugreek, garlic, ginseng, hawthorn berry, hops, horsetail, lemongrass, milk thistle, nettle, oat straw, parsley, peppermint raspberry leaf, rose hips, sarsaparilla, uva ursi, yarrow, and yellow dock.

Precautions: Symptoms of excessively high levels of selenium can include arthritis, brittle nails, garlicky breath odor, gastrointestinal disorders, hair loss, irritability, liver and kidney impairment, a metallic taste in the mouth, pallor, skin eruptions, tooth loss, and yellowish skin.

Dosage Ranges and Duration of Administration: Selenium is available as part of many vitamin-mineral supplements, all nutritional antioxidant formulas, and, increasingly, as an independent supplement. Suggested intake is between 50 and 200 mcg per day for adults. Men apparently require more than women, because stores are lost with ejaculation. Selenium should be taken with vitamin E, as the two acts synergistically, and without vitamin C, which decreases absorbability and is likely to increase risk of selenium toxicity.

A minimum RDA for selenium is as follows:

• Neonates to 6 months: 10 mcg.
• Infants 6 months to 1 year: 15 mcg
• Children 1 to 6 years: 20 mcg
• Children 7 to 10 years: 30 mcg
• Males 11 to 14 years: 40 mcg
• Males 15 to 18 years: 50 mcg
• Males over 19 years: 70 mcg
• Females 11 to 14 years: 45 mcg
• Females 15 to 18 years: 50 mcg
• Females over 19 years: 55 mcg
• Pregnant females: 65 mcg
• Lactating females: 75 mcg
• Usual dosage for children: 30 to 150 mcg or 1.5 mcg per pound of body weight. For adults: 50 to 200 mcg/day.

INTERACTIONS

Cisplatin; Doxorubicin
Selenium may reduce side effects from cisplatin without reducing the clinical effectiveness of this medication (Olas and Wachowicz 1997). Administration of sodium selenite (2 mg/kg) one hour before cisplatin treatment greatly reduced the nephrotoxic effects associated with the drug but did not alter antitumor activity (Baldew et al. 1989). The pharmacokinetic parameters of the drug were also not affected by the combination of radiolabeled sodium selenite and cisplatin (Vermeulen et al. 1993).

A clinical trial involving 41 patients with ovarian or metastatic endometrial cancer evaluated the effects of selenium on various cancer treatments (Sundstrom et al. 1989). Patients were treated with cisplatin in combination with either doxorubicin and cyclophosphamide or melphalan. In addition, some patients were supplemented with selenium (200 mcg/day sodium selenate), vitamin E (300 mg/day), or selenium and vitamin E. Selenium supplementation during cisplatin treatment reduced measures of oxidative stress.

Preclinical studies also suggest that selenium supplementation limits doxorubicin-induced cardiotoxicity (Boucher et al. 1995; Dimitrov et al. 1987). Selenium was more effective when given prior to doxorubicin exposure.