This book provides readers with a clear and reliable account of the extraordinary story of selenium and its role in human health. It is written in a readable and user-friendly manner, and takes into account the considerable amount of fresh information that has been published over the past decade. The book if for the reader who wants to make an informed judgment about the competing claims for and against Selenium’s value as a nutritional supplement.

This volume is the newest release in the authoritative series of quantitative estimates of nutrient intakes to be used for planning and assessing diets for healthy people. Dietary Reference Intakes (DRIs) is the newest framework for an expanded approach developed by U.S. and Canadian scientists. This book discusses in detail the role of vitamin C, vitamin E, selenium, and the carotenoids in human physiology and health. For each nutrient the committee presents what is known about how it functions in the human body, which factors may affect how it works, and how the nutrient may be related to chronic disease. Dietary Reference Intakes provides reference intakes, such as Recommended Dietary Allowances (RDAs), for use in planning nutritionally adequate diets for different groups based on age and gender, along with a new reference intake, the Tolerable Upper Intake Level (UL), designed to assist an individual in knowing how much is "too much" of a nutrient.

Selenium is an important micronutrient in humans and animals, despite its toxicity at high concentrations. This first chapter performs a thorough review of selenium bioavailability in food stuffs and human diet. The second chapter reviews the selenium essentiality and toxicity, the aspects related to the selenium dietary supplementation and its daily consumption. The third chapter describes the status of selenium and their metabolites in an antiretroviral therapy context. The next chapter looks at selenium supplementation and autoimmune thyroid diseases. Next, the authors address the association between diabetes type-2 and its levels in serum related to nutritional habits. Then, the preparation of nanosystems based on zero-valent selenium nanoparticles since this essential trace elements carries unique characteristics is explored. Finally, the prospects of using nanoparticles of elementary selenium as a nutrition source are discussed.

This book provides information about selenium as an important part of integrated antioxidant systems in animal and human bodies responsible for maintaining health. It contains practical advice in relation to effective usage of selenium supplements, including optimal forms and doses. It also combines fundamental information on selenium biochemistry and metabolism. It also presents the most recent findings, unresolved puzzles and future directions for selenium research. In recent years, natural antioxidants have received tremendous attention in relation to human health and food quality. However, the scientific background of many health-promoting claims for natural antioxidants is not always understandable for the general public and needs further clarification. Furthermore, agricultural applications of antioxidants await further investigation.

The Role of Selenium in Nutrition reviews the most pertinent scientific literature dealing with the basic aspects of the present understanding of the roles of selenium (Se) in nutrition and health. The book begins with a general discussion of Se, covering its various forms, chemistry and physical properties, and techniques for Se analysis. This is followed by separate chapters on the environmental aspects of Se, including its presence in mineral deposits, soils, water, air, and uptake by plants; Se contents of human foods and animal feedstuffs; biological utilization of dietary Se; and absorption, excretion, metabolism, and tissue concentrations of Se. Subsequent chapters deal with the biochemical functions of Se; Se-related diseases of animals and livestock; the role of Se in human health and in support of normal immune function and disease resistance; and the relationship of Se and cancer. The final chapter reviews the evidence concerning the toxicity of Se compounds and sets this in perspective with current knowledge of the roles of Se in nutrition and health, and of the normal exposures of animals and humans to Se compounds.

Selenium plays a fascinating and still poorly understood role in the function of living cells and therefore in human health. Starting with investigations over 60 years ago into its role as a toxic agent in livestock disease, selenium studies have progressed rapidly with the application of tools from immunology and molecular biology. Selenium is now known to be important in human and animal nutrition, has been discovered as a structural component of so-called selenoproteins, and may play a number of physiological roles, ranging from cancer protection to hormone metabolism. Selenium in Biology and Human Health presents research syntheses on a range of topics involving selenium, written by specialists from around the world. It will be of interest to cell biologists and physiologists, nutritional scientists, and animal health researchers.

This book describes the role of trace elements in health and longevity, pursuing a biogerontological approach. It offers essential information on the impact of trace elements on molecular and physiological processes of aging, and on their impact on health in connection with aging. The major topics covered in its 11 chapters, each dedicated to a specific trace element or mineral, are: a) Role of the element in species longevity, b) Recommended intake for longevity in animal species and in the elderly, c) Deficiency and age-related disease, d) Excess/toxicity and age-related disease, and e) Interactions with drugs prescribed in the elderly. Clinical, animal and other laboratory models of interest in aging are included, which enable a more in-depth analysis to be made. The respective chapters are a mixture of overviews and more in-depth reviews in which the mechanisms of aging are described from the point of view of their specific interactions with trace elements and minerals.