Health: On The Benefits of Zinc
Excerpt from Contact 381, March 3, 2015:
Billy:
Thanks. - Can you explain how much zinc the human being needs daily and how important it is in addition to vitamin C in order to strengthen the immune system?
Ptaah:
28. Vitamin C alone is not enough to strengthen the immune system, because for this there are still various other vitamins as well as minerals and trace elements required in sufficient quantities.
29. A very special factor, in addition to iron, cobalt, copper, manganese, fluorine and iodine, is zinc, because these substances are of particular importance for an intact immune system.
30. The human body contains about 2 to 3 grams of zinc, whereby the important significance with regard to the zinc balance is largely unknown to non-medically educated people.
31. Even those who consciously try to eat a healthy diet usually have no idea of the importance of this substance, especially the vegetarians and vegans.
32. As a rule, it is not easy to cover the daily zinc requirement with food, as is the case with vitamin C, other vitamins, minerals and trace elements.
33. The daily zinc requirement of humans can be broken down as follows: (see at bottom of article)
45. Consuming the necessary amount of zinc every day is just as problematic for the human beings as well as with regard to vitamin C and other vitamins as well as with regard to trace elements and minerals.
46. Today's food is so poor in these substances that the human being has to ingest them with special products if he/she really wants to cover the needs of all substances in their entirety.
47. For the daily need for zinc e.g. it would be necessary to eat 5 kilograms of vegetables because these are very low in zinc.
48. If he/she wanted to cover the demand with cheese, he/she would need half a kilo of it every day.
49. With meat, for example, 300 grams of beef liver would have to be eaten, etc.
50. Stress, such as exercise, or rigorous physical work and illness, as a rule, necessitates an elevated zinc requirement, but also increased vitamin C and all forms of vital substances.
51. The trace element zinc is also vital because this is contained in all organs and cells which cannot exist and cannot survive without the necessary zinc requirement.
52. The skin, hair and testicles as well as the bones, the teeth, the liver and the muscles are especially reliant on the daily zinc intake.
53. As with different trace elements, for example, iron, copper, chrome, cobalt, fluorine and iodine, etc., the human organism also does not produce zinc itself, which is why these substances need to be supplied to the body.
54. Normally the organism gets the zinc into the blood through the mucous membranes of the small intestine.
55. Excess zinc is primarily excreted via the liver and kidneys.
56. Zinc is not consumed by the organism, as is the case with fats and carbohydrates, because this trace element supports the work of the enzymes, after which, unchanged, it is used for other tasks as well.
57. Healthy people only excrete very little zinc via the kidneys and, in and of themselves, small amounts are stored in the organism.
58. About 3 milligrams of zinc are lost from the body every day, and by body excretions like sweat, stool and urine.
59. Without zinc, the human being is not viable, for which the reason is that the zinc controls the function of more than 200 enzymes.
60. These are proteins that are involved in practically all important reactions in the entire cell organism, which control the course of the metabolism.
61. They also control the breakdown of alcohol and regulate fat and sugar metabolism.
62. Zinc is also of further importance because it is also responsible for regeneration of the mucous membrane and for the health of the hair and the skin.
63. Furthermore, it also has an effect on the hormones, which cannot develop without this trace element.
64. However, also without zinc, the essential insulin cannot be formed and cannot be stored.
65. Insulin, in turn, is responsible for supplying the cells with blood sugar.
66. The male hormone testosterone also requires zinc, whereby the male reproductive system as well as sperm maturation and fertility are regulated.
67. The metabolism of vitamin A is also dependent on zinc, among other things, which is in direct connection with a good visual capacity, and indeed, to a certain extent, even in the darkness.
68. If a zinc deficiency occurs, then it can lead to the so-called night blindness.
69. The taste and the smell are also dependent on zinc, however, also the process of the blood formation which would not exist without this trace element.
70. The function of zinc in relation to immune strengthening has already been discussed.
71. All areas of cell growth and the tissues are controlled by zinc, which is also is responsible for the cell division.
72. Basic repair functions of the cells and tissues cannot work without the necessary zinc supply, just as the necessary proteins cannot be produced for all life processes.
73. Furthermore, zinc also protects cells from damage, just like zinc ions also deactivate the 'free radicals'.
74. Zinc deficiency can be extremely detrimental to the human being if nothing is is undertaken against it.
75. First of all, there is only a general deterioration in well-being, whereby also the performance capability declines and colds appear more and more frequently.
76. Fatigue and tiredness increase more and more, whereby slowly also the skin and hair become problem factors, while wounds heal more and more slowly and poorly and even lower leg ulcers can appear.
77. Weight loss is also sometimes associated with this, as well as a change in the sense of taste, which means, for example, that different foods can be eaten together although they do not fit together in any way, as for example, meat and berries, etc.
78. A decrease in appetite also occurs, as also psychical distress up to depression and a loss of drive and a listlessness.
79. Of course, the ability to smell is also affected, as is ultimately the entire organism, whereby chronic diseases can occur, which result, for example, in rheumatism colon and liver diseases, etc.
80. Diabetics are particularly at risk.
81. Special signs of a dangerous zinc deficiency include growth disorders in children or adolescents, and in adults wound healing disorders, hair loss, depression, psyche-changes, changes in behavior, changes in smell and taste, dry and flaky skin, weight loss for no apparent reason, skin cracks, tears all around body openings, night blindness or darkness vision disorders, as well as susceptibility to infections.
82. Vegetarians and vegans are particularly at risk with regard to a zinc deficiency because of fruits, salads, vegetables and whole grains contain relatively little zinc.
83. In addition, oat flakes and wholemeal products, for example, impair the use of zinc by the organism, as they contain special substances such as phytates, which are harmful for the utilisation of zinc.
84 This is the most important thing to be mentioned with regard to zinc.
Billy: Thank you, that was more than I had expected.
Ptaah: That should be enough for today, because I now feel like competing with you in chess.
Billy: I would be very glad to. Here we go - there's the game.
translated by Michael Uyttebroek Feb. 2, 2020
Adult from 20 years = 10 to 11 mg daily
Youth 16 to 20 years = 10 to 11 mg daily
Child 1 to 4 years = 3 mg daily
Child 4 to 8 years = 5 mg daily
Child 8 to 11 years = 7 mg daily
Child 11 to 14 years = 9 mg daily
Child 14 to 16 years = 9.5 mg daily
Infant 0 to 5 months = 1 mg
Infant 5 to 12 months = 2 mg
Pregnant from four months = 10 to 13 mg daily
Sedentary = 10 to 14 mg daily, sometimes even over 20 mg