Number 30

The Natural Connection

Many years ago, I had in my office a poster titled “The Periodic Table of Desserts”. The usual obscure chemical nomenclatures representing the rare earths, metals, and noble gases like Cs, Yb, and Xe were replaced with objects much more interesting and easy to remember, such as apple turnovers, pumpkin pie, or Popsicles. It was a chemistry teacher’s nightmare, but my patients loved it.

Zinc, element number thirty on the Periodic Table of the Elements, was represented by a hot fudge sundae. The designer of the poster was obviously a woman of insight, not to mention good taste. The perfect dessert to represent the perfect trace element. It is difficult to survive without either.

Don’t ask me how we know, but an adult human carries around some 2 kg (4.4lb) of metals inside his or her body. Only 250 grams of that chunk of change is zinc, but a little goes a long way. Zinc is now known to be vital to the proper functioning of more than 200 enzymes in the human body. It supports physical processes such as digestion, reproduction, wound healing, kidney function, immune function, breathing, diabetes control, vision, taste and smell.

While zinc is commonly found in soil, its richest food sources include oysters, liver, and shellfish. Possibly due to the fact that people rarely crave a diet purely of braised liver and Oysters Rockefeller, zinc deficiency has been found in recent years to be much more common than previously thought.

Children, in particular, are very susceptible to the deleterious effects of low dietary zinc intakes. Even mild deficiency states have been shown to adversely affect immune function, growth, and even intellectual development in children. It is known that in the first two years of life, infants often do not ingest enough zinc from dietary sources to meet their Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) of 5 mg.

Research indicating that preschool children with low zinc status suffered from increased rates of diarrheal illness, pneumonia, and even death, prompted the Gerber Company to introduce zinc fortification in its infant cereals recently. Some studies show that children who receive adequate zinc supplementation decrease their incidence of severe respiratory infections by almost 50%. The USDA reports that most school lunch programs and daycare programs do not provide a diet that includes an adequate level of zinc.

Young athletes are known to benefit from adequate zinc to achieve optimum performance. A study released in September 1999 by the USDA reported that college athletes with low zinc diets suffered from decreased energy production during peak exercise. The RDA for zinc for males over the age of 10 is 15 mg per day, and for females 12 mg.

For years there has been controversy as to the effectiveness of zinc lozenges in curing the symptoms of the common cold. Studies are conflicting, but there seems to be a modest effect, with the lozenges reducing the duration of the cold by 3-4 days. One problem with treating patients with zinc lozenges is that there tends to be a rather unpleasant metallic taste from the medication, which limits its popularity. (Doctors are resigned to the fact that no medication invented will work if you can’t convince the patient to take it.). Lozenges that are combined with additives like citric acid to improve the taste, are often ineffective.

In the October 2000 issue of the Ear Nose and Throat Journal, it was reported that an over the counter zinc nasal gel was effective for the treatment of common cold symptoms. Dr. Michael Hirt from UCLA treated over 100 sneezing, sniffling, nose-blowing patients with either a nasal gel called Zicam, or a placebo. The group that got Zicam showed a 75-80% reduction in the cold’s duration, recovering in two days or less. Patients who received the placebo gel were sick for about nine days. This is potentially wonderful news for the 66 million Americans who will catch a cold this year.

While zinc is the least toxic of the trace elements, adult intakes of over 100 mg/day can impair immune function. It is generally recommended that adult patients take no more than 30-60 mg/day—or about the amount in 6 oz of oysters. Pediatricians should be consulted before a young child is given supplements as well.

There also exist complex interactions between zinc, copper, folate, and iron. Excessive zinc can cause copper and folate deficiency states, therefore it is recommended that zinc supplements be taken in the form of a balanced vitamin/mineral preparation. Hopefully, manufactures of designer vitamins will find a way to combine zinc with chocolate, as they have with calcium, so it can one day re-assume its rightful place on the Periodic Table of Desserts.

To receive a Patient Information Sheet on Zinc, please write to The Natural Connection, c/o Dr. Pauline Bellecci, PO BOX 777, Waycross, GA 31502 or visit our web site www.swampdocs.com