Written by Dr. Sanjana V.B Bhms,dbrm,cdn

Founder & medical director of siahmsr wellness.in

All rights reserved with siahmsr digital healthcare[siahmsr wellness]

Reviewed by SIAHMSR medical team.

How do zinc & selenium help your skin & hair

Overview

Trace elements like zinc and selenium have crucial role in maintaining the health of vital organs as well as skin and hair. They act as cofactors for many enzymes related to antioxidant activity in the body against oxidative stress caused by free radicals

 Role of zinc &selenium

·       Zinc helps wound repair. In dermatology and cosmetic treatment wound healing is an important determinant of recovery and zinc plays a crucial role in wound healing.

·       Topical skin care preparations like zinc oxide, calamine, or zinc pyrithione are used in sunscreen lotions for protecting the skin from UV rays of sun.

·       Chronic telogen effluvium (TE) type hair loss is also associated with low levels of zinc in the blood. It is the commonest type of hair loss associated with stress to body and mind and nutritional deficiencies.

·       Zinc is a cofactor for many enzyme action related to antioxidant activity and helps in preventing oxidative stress caused by free radicals on skin and vital organs. Zinc protects your skin from damage.

·     Sources of zinc-

Zinc is rich in foods such as meat, eggs, fish, and oysters and legumes.

 Selenium-  

·       Selenium also is important for protecting your skin against oxidative stress from free radicals.

·        Selenium can protect your skin from damages induced by UV rays of sun. It can protect keratinocytes, melanocytes and fibroblasts of the skin from UV-rays of sun induced cell death.

·       Selenium deficiency may lead to skin damage, weakening of immunity, muscular, neurological, and cardiovascular disorders. Your muscles, nerves ,heart and blood vessels and immune system require selenium for proper functioning.

·       Selenium deficiency can affect the functioning of the thyroid gland.

·       Selenium has some role in cancer treatment also due to its protective effect against DNA damage.

·       Selenium deficiency, may  also cause depression, or intensification of anxiety.

·       Sources of selenium in the diet are foods including   cereals, meat and dairy products, fishes, seafood, milk, and nuts.

 

 

  Zinc- Health benefits

 Zinc is an essential micronutrient mineral for proper functioning of human body. Zinc is important for reproductive function, immunity, and wound healing.

 Cofactor for metabolic activities in the body

 Zinc is an important component of more than 300 metalloenzymes and over 2000 transcription factors in the body. These enzymes are needed for regulation of lipid, protein and nucleic acid metabolism, and gene transcription processes. Thus zinc helps metabolism in your body.

 Helps wound repair

 The mineral zinc helps wound healing and repair through regulation of DNA and RNA polymerases, thymidine kinase, and ribonucleases. In dermatology and cosmetic treatment wound healing is  an important determinant of recovery and it is dependent on immune status of the individual. In both wound healing and immunity zinc plays a crucial role.

Important role in immunity

 It is very essential for immunity also, as it helps to maintain macrophage and neutrophil functions, natural killer cell activity, and complement activity. All these blood cells are related to immunity and zinc helps their proper functioning.

Zinc is rich in foods such as meat, eggs, fish, and oysters. Cereals and legumes contain moderate amount of zinc, but only 20–40% of the consumed zinc is absorbed.  The  presence of phytates, calcium, and phosphates reduce the absorption of zinc from plants.

Zinc deficiency 

Zinc  deficiency can occur from inadequate dietary intake [ low consumption of zinc rich foods] and poor absorption or due to increased loss from body. Other causes are poor-socioeconomic status, protein calorie malnutrition, protein restricted and vegetarian diets.

  A disease state of poor food intake known as anorexia nervosa, exclusive parenteral nutrition[ in patients with serious diseases], chronic gastrointestinal diseases, hookworm infestation, pancreatic insufficiency, kidney failure and cancers may also cause zinc deficiency in human body.

The recommended daily allowance[ RDA] of zinc

 For an average adult male it is 11 mg and the requirement increases from 8 mg/d to up to 12 mg/d in females during pregnancy and lactation.

Topical or external uses of zinc

 Zinc is used for skin diseases including infections such as leishmaniasis, warts, pimples-acne vulgaris, rosacea, pigmentary disorders, and cancers (basal cell carcinoma).

Zinc in cosmetic and skin care preparations

Topical skin care preparations like zinc oxide, calamine, or zinc pyrithione have been in use in sunscreens for protecting from UV rays of sun induced damage, as soothing agents or as active ingredient of antidandruff shampoos.

 

Selenium - health benefits

Selenium is an important micronutrient for human body helping functions various of organs such as thyroid , brain and immune system.

A cofactor for enzymatic functions

It is a cofactor of many enzymes, for example, glutathione peroxidase or thioredoxin reductase.

Antioxidant function

 It is important for the protection against oxidative stress from free radicals  on skin and vital organs.

Sources of selenium

The level of selenium in food products in a particular geographical region is proportional to its amount in the soil of that region. 

The main sources of selenium in the diet are foods including  cereals, meat and dairy products, fishes, seafood, milk, and nuts. Another rich sources of selenium are sea salt, eggs, giblets, yeast (yeasts containing selenium), bread, mushrooms, garlic, asparagus, kohlrabi.

Selenium absorption from food sources is facilitated by vitamins A, D, and E.

Selenium deficiency:

 The optimal daily dose of selenium is 55 µg. Skeletal muscles contains 46.9% of the total selenium while  kidneys contain only 4% of the selenium in human body.

Low blood levels of selenium has been linked with occurrence of prostate cancer. It is found that decreased selenium concentration in plasma is associated with 4- to 5-fold increased risk of prostate cancer [12].

 In humans selenium deficiency occurs when its amount in plasma is lower than 85 µg/L.

Therefore it can be presumed that too high level of selenium as well as its deficiency is harmful to human health.

 

The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends a daily dose of selenium at a level of 55 µg for adults.

 Selenium deficiency may lead to skin damage, weakening of immune defenses, muscular, neurological, and cardiovascular disorders etc.

Selenium deficiency, may lead to development of depression, or intensification of anxiety also.

Alzheimer’s disease is also associated with deficiency of this element in the body.

Selenium can affect the functioning of the thyroid gland also. Its deficiency is associated with autoimmune thyroiditis and Grave’s disease.

Selenium has some role in cancer treatment also. Antioxidant properties of glutathione peroxidase enzyme and selenium and their protective effect against DNA damage are used in anti-cancer therapies.

 However, the tolerable upper intake limit is 300–400 μg/d for adults over 19 years old.

Selenium toxicity

Chronic selenium intake at >900 µg may cause selenium toxicity or selenosis.

Signs of selenium toxicity include hair loss, dizziness, nausea, vomiting, facial flushing, trembling hands, muscle soreness, severe fatigue, irritability, bad breath, sensitivity to inflammation, stained fingernails, mottling of teeth, nerve lesions and diarrhea.

 In severe cases, acute selenium toxicity can lead to heart attack, kidney failure, nervous system problems  and death.

 

Zinc and selenium are important for your skin & hair health

a] Helps antioxidant enzyme activity

   Skin ageing is associated with oxidative stress caused by free radicals particularly reactive oxygen species. Antioxidants help your skin counteract the harmful effects of these free radicals. Antioxidants, includes enzymes such as superoxide dismutases (SODs), catalase, glutathione peroxidases (GPxs), glutathione-S-transferase, thioredoxin reductase, and many others.

  The activity of these antioxidant enzymes  is dependent on  trace elements, such as copper and zinc and selenium .Therefore zinc and selenium plays a key role in the proper functioning of antioxidants which controls ageing changes on your skin.

  Skin ageing prevention is intricately connected with antioxidant vitamins also as they play a key role in scavenging the free radicals & preventing oxidative damage to your skin. Vitamin E is a very effective antioxidant helping to prevent oxidative stress.

b] acts conjointly with vitamin E against oxidative stress.

  The association between vitamin E and selenium is studied by researchers for a long time.  Studies show that both of these molecules act in synergy in eliminating lipid peroxides free radicals [3].That is, vitamin E and selenium act together to protect your skin from damage caused  by free radicals and oxidative stress.

c] protects your skin from U V rays.

 Selenium can protect your skin from damages induced by UV rays of sun. It can protect keratinocytes, melanocytes and fibroblasts of the skin from UV-induced cell death [6].

  Oxidative stress to skin is associated with telomere shortening [of chromosomes] and the aging of human skin. Selenium contributes to prolonged telomere length [7].

Selenium deficiency may cause exacerbation of atopic dermatitis in children [8].

It has long been suggested that Zn plays an important role in hair loss.

Studies have shown reduced serum Zn in individuals with male pattern baldness or androgenetic alopecia [ AGA] [9].

Zinc and selenium have important role in hair loss prevention.

Chronic telogen effluvium (TE)or common type hair loss is also associated with low levels of serum zinc. 

Selenium levels imbalance may act as a triggering factor for oxidative stress, inducing mitochondrial membrane damage, which leads to hair cycle impairment and telogen effluvium type hair loss usually seen after physical or mental stress. [11].

 Although zinc and selenium are crucial for the health and beauty of your skin and hair, it is recommended that consuming natural foods rich in these minerals are safer than over the counter supplement intake. You may take zinc and selenium supplements only under the strict guidance of a healthcare provider as excessive intake is associated with toxicity and adverse effects.

 

 

References for further reading

1. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4120804/

2.    https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9686906/
3.    https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34267193/
4.    Thomson C.D. Encyclopedia of Human Nutrition. 3rd ed. Elsevier; Amsterdam, The Netherlands: 2013. Selenium; pp. 186–192. [Google Scholar]
5.    https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9686906/
6.    https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11167979/
7.    https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21371125/
8.    https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30912673/
9.    https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30714301/
10.  https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5939011/
11.  https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21366699/
12.   https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28634111/
13.   https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24668686/
14.   https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28255299/
15.   Frączek A., Pasternak K. Selenium in medicine and treatment. J. Elem. 2013;18:145–163. doi: 10.5601/jelem.2013.18.1.13. [CrossRef] [Google Scholar]