Health Hazard Nutritional deficiencies can cause cancer

Scientists have discovered a link between low selenium levels and increased risk of developing liver cell carcinoma (HCC). Selenium deficiency has been shown to be associated with other cancers.

The diet in Europe contains selenium in trace quantities only in small quantities, which could explain why so many Europeans are suffering from cancer. A recent epidemiological study of 520,000 European men and women from Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom found that low levels of selenium increased the risk of developing a type of liver cancer Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The study, published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, supports the findings of previous studies in which researchers found a link between low levels of selenium and increased risk of various cancers, particularly prostate cancer and colorectal cancer.

Who takes too little nutrients, risking an increased risk of cancer. Picture: Selenium deficiency can cause cancer. Image: vkuslandia - fotolia

Important selenoproteins
Selenium, a nutrient found mainly in fish, meat, nuts, onions and cereals, is needed by about 30 different selenium-dependent enzymes (selenoproteins) in the body. One of these selenoproteins, the selenoprotein P, appears to be particularly important for cancer prevention. In addition, in the above-mentioned study, the scientists observed that in the subjects with diagnosed hepatocellular carcinoma, the levels of circulating selenoprotein P were lower than in the control group.

Europeans have selenium deficiency
In many parts of Europe selenium intake is worryingly low, for which there are various causes. One of these is the fact that farmed soils in Europe contain only relatively small amounts of this vital nutrient. The content can only be increased by enriching the soil accordingly. In this way, the Finnish government countered the low selenium status of the population in the 1980s and imposed a legal selenium content for all fertilizers. In Sweden, scientists have recently pointed out that the selenium levels of the elderly population are below the optimum. In addition, according to the British selenium expert Prof. Dr. med. Margaret P. Rayman of Surrey University in Guildford has more than halved selenium intake over the past three to four decades.

Dietary supplements are the solution?
It is well known that not all Europeans adhere to the guidelines for a healthy diet, but even if they do, it is questionable whether this would ensure a sufficient selenium intake. More and more people are using selenium supplements to make up for the low selenium content in European food. This could be a wise decision, as the results of a Swedish study published in 2013 suggest. In the study, 443 normal, healthy older people received either a selenium supplement (combined with coenzyme Q10) or inactive non-content pills (placebos) over a five-year period. The group treated with selenium and coenzyme Q10 had a 54% lower risk of dying from cardiovascular disease. In addition, her heart muscle function was significantly better than that of the placebo group.

Source:
Prediagnostic selenium status and hepatobiliary cancer risk in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition cohort.