Selenium, Zinc, Phosphorous

[eatyourbroccoli]

Im terribly low in all of these, and would rather attempt to alter my diet before buying supplements. What foods provide an ample amount of these minerals?

I cant eat nuts.

Thank you in advance for any help you guys can offer.

[Brianna]

Phosphorus:
Asparagus
Beabs
Broccoli
Corn
Garlic
Leafy greens
Parsnips
Seaweeds
Whole grains

Selenium:
Alfalfa leaves
Asparagus
Beets
Broccoli
Burdock root
Cabbages
Carrots
Cayenne
Celery
Chamomile
Chickweed
Fennel seeds
Fenugreek seeds
Garlic
Ginseng
Hawthorn berries
Honey
Horsetail
Leafy greens
Onions
Parsley
Peppermint
Seaweed
Sprouts
Squash
Tomatoes
Whole grains
Yarrow
Yellow dock

Zinc:
Alfalfa sprouts
Almonds
Beabs
Bee pollen
Burdock root
Cayenne
Chamomile
Corn
Dandelion greens
Garlic
Fennel seeds
Hops
Kelp
Leafy greens
Mushrooms
Nettles
Onions
Parsley
Sage
Whole grains

This is a partial list from Bridgette Mars' book Rawsome!

[herb_gardner]

the best source of selenium is brazil nuts, you only need to eat 2-3 of these nuts a day to get all the selenium you need.

[eatyourbroccoli]

oh brianna youre a doll. thank you thank you.

herb you too! i had no idea about brazil nuts. never have tried them as i steer away from nuts bc my digestion isnt where it should be

thanks guys :)

[herb_gardner]

if you dont handle nuts very well heres 2 things you can do:

1.make a brazil nut milk

2.coat the nuts in raw honey, as if its a good raw honey it is really really high in enzymes which will start to break down and predigest the nuts, thus making them easier on you. which is why people intuitively put honey on their bread, because it predigests it.

[eatyourbroccoli]

wow..awesome :)

thanks!

[Arky]

I'd just like to second the advice to eat brazils for selenium :)

The zinc concerns, I also understand. I'm not totally convinced by the algae industry, but Gillian McKeith swears algae was responsible for rectifying her zinc deficiency, even though she was consuming good quantities of pumpkin seeds etc. Make of that what you will.

While I appreciate your concerns about phosphorous, personally, I'd be far more concerned about adequate sodium (alkaline) intake than adequate phosphorous (acid) intake. The nuts and seeds raw-foodists eat should easily take care of phosphorous needs.

Sodium is the alkaline mineral most people are deficient in, and the one the body looks to first to buffer acids. I would suggest you make a concerted effort to consume celery regularly, either in the whole state or juiced. The knock-on effects of sodium deficiency are...many and varied. Read books by Bernard Jensen and Richard Anderson for more on this (you'll be very thankful you did!).


J.

[JMD]

I agree with the natural sodium we can get from celery--esp. int he juiced form. I do that daily in my green drink.

My concern is that I am deathly allergic TO ALL nuts--like Epi-pen carrying allergic. How can I get some of these nutrients if I cannot eat nuts or nut milks etc. I always hear how great brazil nuts are....

JMD

[Brianna]

If you can't eat nuts, sprouts are a good way to make sure you are getting all the minerals you need. Eat a wide variety of sprouts and fruits and veggies and you should be fine.

[JMD]

Thanks Brianna.

[Arky]

At the risk of ruffling a few feathers (I know it's not popular with some raw-foodists), I will nonetheless point out that, extravagant claims aside, wheatgrass does, apparently, have the ability to absorb 90+ minerals. Now I'm not getting into all the claims and counterclaims about various other properties of the stuff, but if you are looking to increase your mineral intake and need to stay clear of nuts, then I can think of two excellent ways of doing this:

1) grow your own wheatgrass, for juicing, and make sure you use OceanGrown solution (or seawater from your local beach if you can find an unpolluted area..). This will ensure that your wheatgrass has a seriously-powerful mineral punch, with a vast array of trace elements along with the more common ones.

2) regularly consume kelp, dulse and other sea vegetables. Many people (myself included) find these unpallatable in their natural form. If you feel the same way, you can either buy them in a dehydrated form, ground up so as to make them easy to sprinkle on other foods, or you can do what I do and add them (in their natural, rehydrated, state) to smoothies - remarkably, if you don't add too much, you'd barely know the stuff was there at all. Boy oh boy does it make my hair grow stronger and thicker (in the few remaining places where my scalp grows any hair, that is! :D). If you want thicker hair growth, then MSM or flax, plus sea vegetables is the way to go, believe me! You'll be getting sulphur from the MSM or flax and minerals-aplenty from the sea vegetables, along with their thyroid-stimulating iodine content.

Even if you do both of the above, though, stick with the regular sodium boost from celery as well - your body will easily excrete any sodium it doesn't need and it often needs much more than one generally imagines :) (note that I am talking about organic sodium, not the toxic non-organic rubbish your body cannot use, commonly found in seasalt etc. You must get your minerals from plant sources if you are to achieve excellent health - don't let anyone tell you otherwise!! ;)

Oh, one more thing: coconut juice is claimed to be a good source of trace minerals/electrolytes, though at what concentration, I have no idea.


J.

[Sunshine9]

How do you know you are low? Fit day, a blood test...?

For a confirmed DEFICIENCY I would personally take supplements. Usually you can take one for a certain period of time, and then use food sources for maintenance. It is more difficult to reverse a deficiency in minerals with food alone, specifically those three because the highest sources are all nuts. Brazil nuts for selenium, and pumpkin, poppy, cashews for zinc. Zinc is the trickiest, and even Gabriel says this is the most diffiuclt nutrient for raw vegans to maintain.

Maybe try nut milks, I digest those significantly better than nuts whole. Obviously green juices are a rich source of many nutrients too, though I don't think the three you're looking for. If you really want to veer away from supplements, perhaps finding the right superfoods would work for you. I'm not sure which ones, but it would probably be worth looking into.