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by Parris M. Kidd, Ph.D.
Selenium has had a good health record
for decades. It is a proven essential
mineral (technically a “trace element”)
for humans. It is an integral component of
our antioxidant defenses, which are involved
in protecting and regulating virtually all our
life functions. Human deficiency states of
selenium have been documented and
extended deficiency can lead to death. But
the findings from this large trial positioned
selenium on the cutting edge of the movement
towards cancer prevention.
In a landmark double-blind, randomized,
placebo-controlled trial, reported in
the Journal of the American Medical
Association (JAMA ) selenium produced an
astonishing 50 percent reduction in total
cancer mortality. Selenium supplementation
was found to reduce the incidence of all cancers
by better than one-third (to 63 percent
of the placebo incidence). Selenium cut lung
cancer incidence by almost half (to 54 percent
of the placebo), colorectal by more than
half (to 42 percent of placebo) and prostate
cancer by two-thirds (to 37 percent of
placebo).
How might selenium be working against
cancer? Many mechanisms have been suggested.
What we can be sure of is that
through its antioxidant connections selenium
permeates all our vital functions,
including our immune defenses against cancer. Analysis of the findings indicate selenium
protects better against early-stage
cancer than later stages but is almost equally
effective in older people compared with
younger. This suggests that it may never be
too late to start taking selenium as a cancer
protectant.
It is important to understand that the
JAMA trial was conducted with a very highquality
baker’s yeast now trademarked as
SelenoPrecise. Since we still don’t know
which exact selenium compounds protect
against cancer in the body nor all the metabolic
pathways that are involved, in my best
judgment it is safest to supplement with
SelenoPrecise in order to be most ensured of
access to the anticancer benefits of selenium.
The recommended daily intake of
SelenoPrecise is around 150–200 mcg. The
maximum advisable daily intake of selenium
as a dietary supplement is around 400 mcg,
unless otherwise prescribed by a knowledgeable
health care professional.
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