Fish oils can lower your vitamin E levels and therefore are usually added to a fish oil supplement. But what most people don’t know is that selenium is also used up when you consume fish oils. Selenium is an essential mineral. One reason why fish intake is associated with health is due to its high selenium content.
What Does Selenium Do?
Apart from its need to make amino acids, selenium can prevent lipid peroxidation and is part of the detoxifying system glutathione peroxidase and in parts regulates its activity. The decrease of glutathione can upregulate lipid peroxidation, and can result in a loss of selenium. Selenium can be released from the glutathione peroxidation molecule by loss of integrity caused by fish oil supplementation. As expected, a decline or decrease in cognitive functions is seen in the elderly with selenium deficiency. These observations led a team of researchers to suggest supplementing selenium when taking fish oils, they stated;
We hypothesise the enrichment of erythrocyte and platelet membranes with polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), following fish oil intake, can generate increased amounts of lipid peroxides and thus allosterically activate GSH-Px: with time this is harmful for the integrity of the enzyme molecule and Se release may result. We suggest that the Se status of individuals given PUFAs is assessed before and during intake; Se supplements should only be given when serum and/or erythrocyte Se are reduced”
Selenium and glutathione peroxidase variations induced by polyunsaturated fatty acids oral supplementation in humans. Clin Chim Acta. 1992
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