9 Benefits of Zinc and Where to Find It in Food

Many people complain about the inability to focus and are often emotionally unstable, have a poor stress response, and have weak immunity. People also complain about hair loss and acne.

All these problems are likely to be related to one important micronutrient: zinc. In this article, we will discuss how zinc benefits our health. How much zinc should we take? Are there any side effects if we take too much zinc through supplements?

The 9 Functions of Zinc

According to a report published in Scientific Reports in 2015, one out of every seven people in the world suffers from zinc deficiency.

Zinc is an essential nutrient in our bodies, and since our bodies cannot manufacture or store zinc, it must be continuously provided directly from food or supplied from nutritional supplements. That is why a lot of foods have zinc added to increase their nutritional value.

Zinc is the most abundant trace element in our bodies second to iron. It exists in every cell and serves nine functions as follows:

1. Regulates Gene Expression

Human genes cannot be changed, but their expression can be regulated, and it is this regulation of gene expression that determines how healthy we are. Zinc is involved in every bit of this critical regulation process.

2. Affects Activity of Over 300 Enzymes

Through such activity, zinc exerts great influence on the metabolism, nerves, digestion, immunity, and many other important physiological processes.

3. Regulates and Enhances Immune Function

Zinc affects the development and function of immune cells and can directly inhibit the replication of viruses in cells. Therefore, zinc is often added to anti-cold medicines. People with zinc deficiency often suffer from a variety of immune function problems and autoimmune diseases.

4. Maintains Health of Hair, Nails, and Skin

Zinc affects the synthesis of protein, so the health of hair, skin, and nails, and the healing of wounds are indispensable parts of it. If you want to reduce facial acne and grow beautiful hair, you should take extra care not to become deficient in zinc.

5. Affects Body Growth and Development, Reproduction, and Sexual Function

Whether you’re young and want to grow to be tall and strong, or you are middle-aged or elderly and want to maintain youthful vitality, zinc is indispensable. Zinc is abundant in the pituitary gland, which promotes the secretion of growth hormones. Growth hormone is not only related to the growth and development of young people but is also important for middle-aged and elderly people to burn fat and upkeep their muscles.

6. Improves Taste and Smell

Zinc has an important relationship with the hormone for taste and smell. When zinc is deficient, the sense of taste and smell will not work properly. Therefore, people with zinc deficiency often like to eat things that have a strong taste. If you’ve been infected with COVID-19, your body uses up a lot of zinc, which will likely result in an abnormal degradation in sense of smell and taste. Supplementing zinc at this stage can speed up recovery.

7. Acts as an Anti-Inflammatory and Antioxidant

Zinc takes part in the fight against the cytokine and free radical storms that cause the severe symptoms of COVID-19, and is an essential nutrient for the prevention and treatment of the virus. In addition, chronic inflammation and oxidative stress both induce aging and chronic diseases in the body.

8. Regulates Nervous System

Zinc is involved in the synthesis of neurotransmitters in the brain, the conduction of nerve signals, and the functional regulation of neurotransmitter receptors. These neurotransmitters directly affect our regulation of emotions, ability to withstand stress, memory, attention, learning ability, motivation, and task execution. Zinc deficiency is present in many people diagnosed with various mental illnesses.

9. Promotes Brain Development

Zinc promotes the growth and maturity of brain cells. When zinc is insufficient, brain cell growth decreases and apoptosis accelerates, which in turn leads to some degenerative brain diseases, such as Parkinson’s disease and Alzheimer’s disease.

Symptoms Related to Zinc Deficiency

Symptoms of zinc deficiency include slow body growth and development, decreased sexual function and fertility, hair loss, acne and skin problems, poor wound healing, chronic diarrhea, mood swings, poor resistance to stress, poor concentration, and other psychobehavioral problems.

People Likely Prone to Zinc Deficiency

1. Patients with chronic gastrointestinal diseases, such as Crohn’s disease
2. Vegetarians
3. Pregnant and lactating women
4. Babies raised exclusively on breast milk
5. Patients with sickle cell anemia
6. Malnourished people
7. Patients with chronic kidney disease
8. People struggling with alcoholism
9. Pyrrole disorder patients: Pyrrole disorder is a metabolic disease that may be related to genes. Pyrrolic acid itself is neither useful nor harmful. It is excreted in the urine, but it is tightly bound (chemically) to vitamin B and zinc. If the body produces too much of this acid, it will cause the body to lose a lot of vitamin B6 and zinc, resulting in various diseases and symptoms mentioned above.

9 Foods That Provide the Most Zinc

Some foods are high in zinc and can be found in your daily diet. Zinc-rich foods include:

1. Shellfish: oysters, crab, lobster
2. Meat: beef, pork, lamb, chicken, turkey
3. Fish: cod, sardines, salmon
4. Beans: black beans, peas, soybeans, mung beans, lentils
5. Nuts: pumpkin seeds, flax seeds, cashews, almonds
6. Dairy products: milk, yogurt, cheese
7. Eggs
8. Whole grains: oats, black rice, quinoa
9. Vegetables: mushrooms, green beans, asparagus, leafy vegetables, cabbage, beets. However, some other substances in certain vegetables can inhibit zinc absorption.

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Side Effects of Too Much Zinc

People with zinc deficiency need to find appropriate dosages for their zinc supplements.

For the prevention of illness during the pandemic, it is safe for healthy adults to take supplements of about 40 to 60 mg a day.

Taking more than this amount will cause nausea and vomiting, loss of appetite, diarrhea, stomach pain, headache, and other symptoms.