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From: IanW on 24 Mar 2006 10:12
I've got white spots on most of my fingernails and thought that was supposed
to be a zinc issue, however despite supplementing 25mg of zinc a day they
don't seem to be going.. is there anything else that can cause them?


From: Max C. on 24 Mar 2006 11:15
A question and a comment:

Question - How long have you been taking the zinc? The white spots you
already have won't go away. That's the way they grew. The white spots
have to grow out and be clipped off.

Comment - are you taking a chelated zinc supplement? When taking
mineral supplements, you'll get the most benefit from minerals that
have been chelated to an organic compound. Our bodies are simply not
designed to process isolated minerals. Sure you'll get *some* benefit
from a pure zinc supplement, but not as much as a chelated supplement.

Max.

From: Knack on 24 Mar 2006 20:15
I agree with Max on all points. Definitely avoid the cheap oxide and sulfate
formulations. However some chelated complexes of zinc (and other minerals)
are better absorbed than others. Here's a rundown of all the commonly
formulated chelate groups: citrate, gluconate, EDTA, picolinate, sebacate,
ascorbate, aspartate, methionate, and glycinate. The last 3 (amino acids)
are the most bioavailable.

Also, whereas a cheap zinc supplement is best taken between meals, a premium
(amino acid chelated) one is probably best taken with meals.

Are you on a severely calorie restricted diet? Those dieters are usually
the ones that don't get enough dietary zinc.

If you can tolerate some more carbs, then quinoa (available in health food
stores) is supposedly one of the richest sources of plant based zinc.
However, I don't know how biovailable its zinc is. Being a whole "grain" it
may contain lot of phytic acid or phytate; either of which may inhibit zinc
absorption. Nutritional yeast, mustard, turkey, and crab are other naturally
rich sources of zinc.

The following info is from a controversial source (I'm not saying the info
is true or false. Just putting it out there.)
http://www.acu-cell.com/znk.html
"Zinc Synergists : Magnesium, chromium, cobalt, Vitamin B2, Vit E
Zinc Antagonists / Inhibitors : Iron, calcium, phosphorus, selenium, sodium,
nickel, tin, copper, Vitamin A, Vitamin B1, Vitamin C, niacin, niacinamide,
folic acid, choline, lecithin, alcohol
Zinc Sources : Oysters, soybeans, wheat germ, seeds, nuts, lamb, beef,
chicken, eggs, herring, milk, yeast"

A primer on zinc nutrition. Be sure to read the section 'Factors Related to
Zinc Deficiency'
http://www.healthy.net/scr/Article.asp?Id=2071

Copper-zinc balance. The ratio of copper to zinc is clinically more
important than the concentration of either of these trace metals.
http://www.drkaslow.com/html/zinc-copper_imbalances.html

Additional info
http://www.pdrhealth.com/drug_info/nmdrugprofiles/nutsupdrugs/zin_0281.shtml
http://www.diet-and-health.net/Nutrients/Zinc.html
http://www.northmemorial.com/healthencyclopedia/content/1958.asp




From: Max C. on 25 Mar 2006 10:40
> Here's a rundown of all the commonly
> formulated chelate groups: citrate, gluconate, EDTA, picolinate, sebacate,
> ascorbate, aspartate, methionate, and glycinate. The last 3 (amino acids)
> are the most bioavailable.

Wow, I had no idea there were that many common chelate groups. I
suppose I *have* heard of all of them at one time or another, I've just
never seen them all listed together like that.

Thanks for the info, Knack.

Max.

From: IanW on 25 Mar 2006 12:34

"Knack" <zymatik(a)NOSPAMyahoo.com> wrote in message
news:TQ0Vf.7900$Bj7.1950(a)newsread2.news.pas.earthlink.net...
>I agree with Max on all points. Definitely avoid the cheap oxide and
>sulfate formulations. However some chelated complexes of zinc (and other
>minerals) are better absorbed than others. Here's a rundown of all the
>commonly formulated chelate groups: citrate, gluconate, EDTA, picolinate,
>sebacate, ascorbate, aspartate, methionate, and glycinate. The last 3
>(amino acids) are the most bioavailable.
>
> Also, whereas a cheap zinc supplement is best taken between meals, a
> premium (amino acid chelated) one is probably best taken with meals.
>
> Are you on a severely calorie restricted diet? Those dieters are usually
> the ones that don't get enough dietary zinc.

No. I eat a fairly healthy diet too - mostly organic food including salads,
soups, fresh meat & fish (twice a week - salmon or king prawns anyway),
fruit & veg.. not much processed stuff.. and chicken, lamb are the main
meats I eat.. plus I eat tofu twice a week too, and they are all on that
acucell list below. However, I have CFS so that might screw up absorption,
and a pretty stressy person in general.

> If you can tolerate some more carbs, then quinoa (available in health food
> stores) is supposedly one of the richest sources of plant based zinc.
> However, I don't know how biovailable its zinc is. Being a whole "grain"
> it may contain lot of phytic acid or phytate; either of which may inhibit
> zinc absorption. Nutritional yeast, mustard, turkey, and crab are other
> naturally rich sources of zinc.
>
> The following info is from a controversial source (I'm not saying the info
> is true or false. Just putting it out there.)
> http://www.acu-cell.com/znk.html
> "Zinc Synergists : Magnesium, chromium, cobalt, Vitamin B2, Vit E
> Zinc Antagonists / Inhibitors : Iron, calcium, phosphorus, selenium,
> sodium, nickel, tin, copper, Vitamin A, Vitamin B1, Vitamin C, niacin,
> niacinamide, folic acid, choline, lecithin, alcohol
> Zinc Sources : Oysters, soybeans, wheat germ, seeds, nuts, lamb, beef,
> chicken, eggs, herring, milk, yeast"
>
> A primer on zinc nutrition. Be sure to read the section 'Factors Related
> to Zinc Deficiency'
> http://www.healthy.net/scr/Article.asp?Id=2071

That's a really good article (as is that pdrhealth one below) - I didn't
know zinc had all those uses! The supplement I use is the chelated zinc
gluconate 25mg, and Max - I've taken it on and off for months but probably
only an average of 1 tab every 3 days..

I wonder if I should try upping to 25 mg twice a day, along with a couple of
mg of copper. I suppose a couple of months of that should see if the white
spots clear up.

Thanks for all the info, and to Max aswell :)




> Copper-zinc balance. The ratio of copper to zinc is clinically more
> important than the concentration of either of these trace metals.
> http://www.drkaslow.com/html/zinc-copper_imbalances.html
>
> Additional info
> http://www.pdrhealth.com/drug_info/nmdrugprofiles/nutsupdrugs/zin_0281.shtml
> http://www.diet-and-health.net/Nutrients/Zinc.html
> http://www.northmemorial.com/healthencyclopedia/content/1958.asp
>
>
>
>


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