SELENIUM, A CRITICAL MINERAL
FOR HEALTH AND DEVELOPMENT
by Dr. Lawrence Wilson
© August 2019, LD
Wilson Consultants, Inc.
All information in this article is for
educational purposes only. It is
not for the diagnosis, treatment, prescription or cure of any disease or health
condition.
Update 8/27/19. A recent medical
journal article confirms what we teach about the importance of zinc and
selenium for health and longevity.
The article is at: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0048969711000544?via%3Dihub.
Contents
Food
Sources We Recommend
Food
Sources We Do Not Recommend
Nutritional Supplementation
Toxic Sources From Industrial Contamination
Thyroid Gland Activity
Detoxification
Anti-Oxidant Activity
Infection-Fighting Activity
Cancer Prevention
Development
Other
IV. SYMPTOMS OF DEFICIENCY AND TOXICITY
Physical Deficiency Symptoms
Mental and Emotional Deficiency Symptoms
Toxicity Symptoms
Selenium Supplements
Selenium As One Of The ÒAmigosÓ
Hair Mineral Analysis And Selenium
__________________________
Selenium is an amazing and fascinating
element. A few of its salient
qualities are:
- Selenium, along with iodine, is also a critical
mineral for proper thyroid activity.
Selenium deficiency is a major reason for the almost epidemic levels of
thyroid problems in the people and creatures of earth.
- It is required for so many enzymes that they are
not possible to count. Science has
only discovered a few of them at this time.
- Selenium is required for the activity of certain
areas of the brain that open a person to higher emotions and higher
thought. In this sense, selenium
is the mineral that allows higher thought in human beings and in animals. For this reason and next one, we call
it a spiritual mineral.
- It is one of the major minerals needed for
development, along with zinc.
Not all sources of selenium are equally
bioavailable. This is very
important to know! The best
sources, in our view, are sardines, blue corn, onions and a few other cooked
vegetables. Other sources are not
as good, and a few are toxic.
Everyone
needs more bioavailable selenium. Increasing selenium in the body is a goal of all
development programs. The
recommended foods contain a lot of it and it is often given in supplement form,
as well.
FOOD
SOURCES WE RECOMMEND
Most food, especially refined and processed foods,
is very low in selenium. Also, the
selenium in many foods such as most meats, Brazil nuts and seafood is not
well-utilized, in our experience.
Therefore, we are dividing this section into foods we recommend and
those we do not recommend.
Best
sources. The best sources of well-utilized selenium are:
Onions. These are excellent sources of
well-utilized selenium! This is
why we recommend eating at least three kinds of onions with every meal.
Sardines are another excellent source, especially sardines
that have the skin and the bones. Other
good fish sources are herring and anchovies, but they are not as good as
sardines. For more details about
this excellent food, read Sardines.
Blue corn that has been made into blue corn tortilla chips is another excellent source of available selenium. Other blue corn products donÕt work as well.
White and yellow corn also have some selenium, but are not as
good as the blue corn variety. For
details, read Blue Corn.
Almond butter. This is an excellent source, particularly if it is made with
organically grown almonds. We
prefer almond butter to eating whole almonds because it is much easier to
digest. For details, read Almond Butter.
Horse Radish. This is a newer preferred vegetable and
a good source of the selenium compounds needed for development. However, it is slightly toxic, so only
have a very thin slice, about the size of a dime (1 centimeter in diameter) and
only once a day.
Garlic. This is also a good source. Garlic is a little toxic, so we only recommend eating one
clove once or twice a week.
Ginger. This root contains selenium compounds that assist
development. However, it is somewhat toxic, so only have a very thin slice less
than the size of a dime (1 centimeter in diameter) about twice a week.
Nutritional yeast and brewerÕs yeast. These are good sources of
selenium. However, they are not
recommended with a development program.
Yeasts are all very yin, and they may also contain high amounts of other
elements that are not needed.
Raw dairy products such as raw cow or goat milks, some raw cheeses, yogurts and kefir. Dairy products often contain some selenium. We donÕt recommend eating much dairy products because they donÕt contain many of the nutrients needed for development.
Dairy products must
not be pasteurized or homogenized for their selenium to be most biologically
available. For details, read Raw Dairy Products.
Arrowroot powder. This contains some well-utilized selenium. Arrowroot is a thickener used in soups and in other dishes, in Oriental cuisine. It is more costly than corn starch, but also far more nutritious. A little can be added to any meal during preparation in which a thickener is needed or can be used.
FOOD SOURCES WE DO NOT RECOMMEND
The selenium
compounds found in the following products do not support development as much,
so we do not recommend them:
Nuts. Brazil nuts and other nuts contain some selenium. However,
they are very yin so we donÕt eating recommend them, except for two tablespoons
of almond butter for adults and less for children.
Seafood and some fish contain some
selenium. Most fish, however, is
much very contaminated with toxic metals such as mercury and others. As a result, we cannot recommend eating
them. The exception is sardines
which are less toxic because they are smaller.
Liver and kidney are also good
sources. However, organ meats are
usually contaminated with toxic metals, even grass fed and organic meats.
Alfalfa and some mushrooms are also
good sources, but not recommended for regular use. Mushrooms are yin and somewhat toxic. Alfalfa flakes or powder used in Ôgreen
superfoodsÕ are also very yin.
Spirulina, chlorella, cilantro and other chelators contain some selenium. However, all these products are somewhat toxic, and their selenium is less well-utilized by most people. For these reasons, we never recommend them. We would avoid these products strictly, in fact, although we know that some holistic personnel recommend them for chelation therapy.
If one follows a development program, chelators are not required. In fact, they get in the way because they are yin and a somewhat toxic. A development program eliminates toxic metals excellently without them.
Most other foods are quite deficient in bioavailable selenium today.
NUTRITIONAL SUPPLEMENTS
We prefer a food-based selenium supplement. Other supplements are made from yeast
and this one is okay.
Another common one is sodium selenite, which is not absorbed as well.
SOURCES
OF TOXIC SELENIUM
Some selenium compounds are quite toxic. The most common source of toxic
selenium is selenium-containing dandruff shampoos such as Selsun Blue shampoo
and Naturaltech Purifying Shampoo by Davines. Avoid these
and any other selenium-containing hair products.
Occasionally, a water supply will be contaminated
with toxic selenium that is an industrial waste product. Water contamination more often affects
birds and other wildlife.
III. PHYSIOLOGICAL ROLES OF SELENIUM
These
include:
Thyroid
gland activity. Selenium has many roles that affect the
functioning of the thyroid gland.
They include:
- Selenium is required to produce thyroid hormone,
called tetraiodothyronine or T4.
- It is required for the conversion of T4 to the
more active form of the hormone, called triiodothyronine or T3.
- It helps get rid of HashimotoÕs disease also
called HashimotoÕs autoimmune thyroiditis.
- It counteracts the ocular or eye dysfunction of
common hyperthyroidism. This is
also called GraveÕs disease orbitopathy, and characterized by exothalamus
(protrusion of the eyeball), and proptosis (movement outward of the eye). These
occur in response to swelling and inflammation of the muscles and structures
behind and around the eyeball.
Detoxification. Selenium is required for glutathione synthesis. Glutathione is one of the most
important substances in the human body.
It is produced in the liver and elsewhere and is required for
detoxification within the liver and in every body cell.
Glutathione production depends on the availability
of several amino acids, along with available iron and selenium. A low level of glutathione results in
impaired detoxification throughout the body.
Anti-oxidant
activity. Selenium also functions as an
anti-oxidant substance. This means
it helps scavenge or neutralize singlet oxygen atoms in the body. These cause oxidant damage, which just
means oxidation or mixing with oxygen.
A well-known example of how oxidation damages metal
is rusting. A similar activity can
occur in human bodies.
Infection-fighting
ability. Selenium enhances the immune response. This has to do with all of the roles
above.
Cancer
prevention and possibly correction.
Dr. Emanuel Revicci and
some other researchers used selenium products to help reverse cancer in a
non-toxic manner. The reason it
works may be the physiological effects described above.
Mental
health. Selenium, along with silicon, helps impart a relaxed and
happy quality to the personality.
Development
and life extension. Selenium is absolutely essential for
Development. This is the expansion
of the human energy field and fulfillment of the full genetic potential of a
human being. For details about
development, read Introduction To
Development.
Selenium has other roles in the body, as well. The ones above are considered the most
important ones.
IV. SYMPTOMS OF DEFICIENCY AND TOXICITY
DEFICIENCY
SYMPTOMS
Selenium deficiency is extremely common today. The reasons are:
- Most diets are deficient in selenium.
- Selenium is required for detoxification, and this
is a burden on the bodies of almost everyone. Thus, even more selenium is required.
Physical
symptoms often include impaired
hair and nail growth, fatigue that can be severe, and nervous sensitivity and
irritability. One may also have a
tendency for infections and cancer, an impaired immune response, and weak
adrenal activity. Other symptoms
may include hypoglycemia, allergies, asthma, low or high blood pressure, and
arterial disease.
Mental or
emotional symptoms include
irritability, anxiety, feeling hopeless, depressed, and negative, and being
pleasant to be around. They all
have low thyroid function, even if the serum thyroid hormone levels seem
normal.
SELENIUM
TOXICITY
Selenium can be toxic if consumed in an incorrect
form or if too much is ingested.
Industrial
contamination. Selenium toxicity occurs due to industrial
contamination of water supplies.
This mostly affects animals because most human water supplies are
monitored for excess selenium.
The poisoning causes conditions called selenosis, blind
staggers and alkali disease. These
diseases give us indicators of the effects of too much or toxic forms of
selenium.
Dandruff
shampoo. The most common cause of selenium toxicity in human beings
is the use of Selsun Blue or other dandruff shampoos. These products contain a toxic form of selenium that is
absorbed into the scalp. Avoid all
selenium-containing shampoos and dandruff products.
Effect on
copper. Toxic forms of selenium cause the human hair level of copper
to decrease into the poor eliminator or very poor eliminator ranges. The reason is that the toxic selenium
damages the liver, which is then unable to detoxify copper.
A good substitute is Head N Shoulders shampoo, which contains
zinc, rather than selenium.
SELENIUM
AS ONE OF THE ÒAMIGOSÓ
An oxidized and toxic form of selenium is often
used by our bodies to support adrenal glandular activity in the body. This phenomenon is called the amigos, or
the friends.
The same phenomenon occurs with oxidized forms of
iron, manganese, aluminum, nickel, cobalt, chromium, boron, calcium, magnesium
and other trace minerals.
All of these minerals can form oxides that the body may use to irritate
and stimulate adrenal activity.
This phenomenon is described fully in a separate
article entitled Manganese,
Iron, and Aluminum, The Amigos. They are called amigos because the
first three above are usually found together in the body and they all perform a
similar function.
This form of selenium must be eliminated from the
body. It cannot be converted
easily and used by the body.
If oxidized selenium is present when a person
begins a development program, the selenium level in the hair may rise very high
for a few months. Then the level
will drop back down into the normal range, indicating that it has been
eliminated from the tissues and the hair.
HAIR
ANALYSIS AND SELENIUM LEVELS
Selenium levels can be read in the hair tissue with
a fair amount of accuracy. Blood
tests to detect selenium are much less useful.
At this time (2019) we use an ideal hair tissue
selenium level of 0.12 mg% or 1.2 parts per million. An acceptable range is 0.05 to 0.12 mg%. A level greater than this is a toxic
level. Hair must not be washed at
the laboratory at all to obtain accurate mineral readings.
For the newest ideal mineral values, read Mineral Ideals.
For more information with medical studies about
selenium, read Selenium - From The Journal Alternatives.
Home | Hair Analysis | Saunas | Books
| Articles | Detox Protocols