By Dominic Londesborough
Zinc is one of the 8 trace minerals, and plays a crucial role in many functions of your body. The recommended daily amount for men is 11-15mg (depending on which expert source you use) and for women it's 8-12mg. Zinc is the most abundant trace metal in the cells of your body, with the exception of red blood cells where iron is the most abundant trace metal.
So why is zinc so important, and what would happen if you didn't get enough?
In times of rapid growth, such as a developing foetus, and throughout childhood, the primary function of zinc is growth and development. Zinc is needed for a growth process called gene transcription, which means reading genetic instructions for replication of human cells.
Many enzymes in the body are zinc dependent. Enzymes are proteins that catalyse (ie - speed up) biochemical reactions in the body, such as digestive enzymes, which is why zinc is so crucial for digestive functions. Thousands of processes in the body that involve enzymes are zinc-dependent.
Zinc deficiency can lead to growth retardation in children and sexual immaturity in adolsecents. The first major studies into zinc deficiency were conducted in the Middle East in the early 1960's, particularly in Egypt and Iran. It was found that the prevelence of growth retardation in children was due to lack of meat in the diet, but also the fact that the diet was high in unleavened bread, which was high in a compound called phytate, a major inhibitor of zinc absorbtion in humans.
If you're keen on building more muscle mass, zinc is crucial for muscle growth.
In addition to retarded growth, a key sign of zinc deficiency in the Middle East studies was low appetite, poor digestion, and diarrhoea. Trials of zinc supplementation were found to relieve these symptoms in cases where the cause was zinc deficiency. But before you rush out to buy zinc supplements, beware the dangers of overdosing on zinc, as the irony is you can damage your immune system with too much zinc, which is toxic above 40mg a day, and intake above 300mg a day is considered dangerous to health.
In adults, in addition to growth and repair of cells, another key role of zinc is to maintain your immune system, which helps protect you from infections. So if you're susceptible to coughs and colds, keep reading and make sure your diet contains the foods recommended below.
You also need zinc for the following:
- healthy hair, skin and nails
- sense of taste and smell
- healthy sperm count in men
- healthy digestive system, metabolism, and thyroid function
So what foods are rich in zinc? Here's a list of the best sources:
- Oysters (around 16mg/100g, depends on variety)
- Wheatgerm (17mg/100g)
- Calf's Liver (12mg/100g)
- Beef (10mg/100g)
- Pumpkin seeds (10mg/100g)
- Sesame Seeds (10mg/100g)
On a final note, it's how much you absorb that's important, not merely how much you consume. So you should know that smoking severely inhibits absorbtion of zinc, as does excessive consumpion of alcohol.
Dominic Londesborough is a top Personal Trainer in London
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Dominic_Londesborough
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