Nowadays, many parents are keen to supplement their children with trace elements, and there are various kinds of health products, which also cause many misunderstandings to parents. Here is a brief introduction to some trace elements of the human body.
Trace elements are elements that account for less than 0.01% of the total weight of the human body and contain a very small amount of elements less than or equal to iron, which can be divided into 3 major categories: essential, harmless and harmful according to their impact on life activities in the human body. Essential elements include iron, zinc, copper, manganese, chromium, molybdenum, selenium, cobalt, iodine, etc.; harmless elements include aluminum, barium, titanium, silicon, etc.; and harmful elements include lead, cadmium, mercury, bismuth, antimony, etc. And also known as “trace elements” of calcium is actually not a trace element, but a macronutrient. The following is an introduction to focus on the common elements.
Calcium
Calcium accounts for about 2% of the body, of which 99% is distributed in bones and teeth and 1% in blood, intercellular fluid and soft tissues. Generally speaking, calcium deficiency in children is often manifested as night terrors, night cries, irritability, night sweats, anorexia, square skull, rickets, skeletal dysplasia, adolescent weak legs, cramps, tooth decay, dental dysplasia, short stature, growing pains and other manifestations. The absorption and metabolism of calcium is closely related to vitamin D. Most calcium deficiencies in children are related to vitamin D deficiency, so when supplementing calcium, you should also supplement with an appropriate amount of vitamin D. In addition, since vitamin D has the potential to accumulate poisoning, large amounts of vitamin D supplementation should be applied with caution and under the guidance of a doctor.
Foods rich in calcium include milk, kelp, shrimp and soy products. Vitamin D is low in food, but with 1-2 hours of outdoor activity daily, our skin can produce enough vitamin D for our daily needs.
Iron
Iron is widely distributed in the human body, and almost all tissues contain iron, which is the building material for human development. Because of its wide distribution, it has a wide range of physiological functions, most importantly, it is involved in energy metabolism and hematopoiesis, as well as in human immune function. Clinical manifestations are related to the degree of anemia, except for pallor, depression, fatigue and loss of appetite, etc. In severe cases, there may be enlarged liver and spleen and edema of the limbs. Animal blood, liver and lean meat are rich in iron and have a high absorption rate, while kelp, black fungus and sesame paste are also rich in iron.
Zinc
Zinc is an essential trace element, which is necessary for the composition of various proteins in the human body and can promote growth and development. About 160 enzymes in the human body contain zinc, which has a nutritional and regulatory effect on immune function. The most common symptoms of zinc deficiency are poor appetite, heterophagia, slow growth, short stature, poor immune function, weakness and disease, lower IQ due to brain function, impaired sexual development during puberty, and infertility. The above signs and symptoms may improve rapidly or disappear after zinc supplementation. The dietary requirement of zinc is related to its availability. Zinc from animal foods is more available than from plant products. Foods that contain zinc include meat, dairy, seafood, liver, eggs, legumes, hard fruits and various seeds. Breast milk is an important source of zinc for infants.
Selenium
In recent years, there have been breakthroughs in research on selenium, which plays an important role in life activities. Selenium deficiency can cause cardiovascular diseases, tumors, large osteoarthritis, etc., while for children, selenium can increase the immune function of the body. The content of selenium in food varies greatly due to its geographical location, generally speaking, the content of selenium in field chicken, animal liver and seafood is higher.
Iodine
Iodine exerts its physiological effects through thyroxine, so all biological effects of thyroxine are related to iodine. Insufficient iodine at an early age leads to hypothyroidism and significantly stunted growth, especially in the nervous system, resulting in mental retardation, unresponsiveness, short stature, poorly developed sexual organs and, in adults, goiter (big neck disease).
Lead
Lead is a multi-system, multi-affinity toxicant, mainly involving the nervous, hematopoietic, digestive, cardiovascular and urinary systems, causing irreversible damage to growth, psycho-behavioral development, intellectual development, and potential development in children and adolescents and retaining it for life. The symptoms of lead damage in childhood are non-specific, often including dizziness, irritability, inattentiveness, hyperactivity, calcium deficiency, zinc deficiency, iron deficiency, growth retardation, immune deficiency, motor incoordination, visual and hearing impairment, unresponsiveness, lower IQ, anorexia, heterophagia, anemia, abdominal pain, etc. Given that lead can cause irreversible damage to the human body, protecting children from lead poisoning is an important task. Among them, the most important measure is to keep children away from the sources of lead pollution, such as strengthening health education and correcting bad habits appear to be crucial.
Mercury
Mercury, commonly known as mercury, evaporates at room temperature. Mercury poisoning is chronic and mainly occurs during production activities, due to long-term inhalation of mercury vapor and dust of mercury compounds. Studies have concluded that small amounts of mercury can damage the nervous system of infants and children. Psycho-neurological symptoms may begin with dizziness, headache, insomnia, and dreaminess, followed by agitation or depression, anxiety and timidity, and manifestations of phytodysfunction such as flushing, excessive sweating, and skin scratching signs, in addition to muscle tremors. In the kidney, there is initially a subclinical impairment of renal tubular function. Oral symptoms are mainly mucosal congestion, ulcers, swollen and bleeding gums, loose and lost teeth. If mercury poisoning is detected in children, prompt medical attention should be sought.
Cadmium
Cadmium is not an essential element for the human body. Cadmium in the human body is absorbed from the external environment after birth o mainly through food p water and air and into the body to accumulate down. Long-term chronic poisoning o can cause kidney damage o mainly manifested as a large amount of low-molecular-weight protein in the urine. The most typical example is the famous Japanese public disease – painful disease, chronic cadmium poisoning can also cause anemia.
The above briefly introduces several common essential and toxic elements, but not all essential elements are the more the better, too much of any one element can cause poisoning. Therefore, it is recommended that parents who are keen to blindly supplement their children with trace elements should give their children a clinical diagnosis and then follow a scientific approach under the guidance of a doctor. Generally speaking, a child with a normal diet, balanced nutrition and normal growth and development is mostly normal and does not need any element supplementation.