Nutrition  

Zinc  
I am wondering now if there is a difference between zinc the metal and zinc the mineral.

It is one and the same.  Ever since I took a class on "Trace Element
Geochemistry and Health" in undergraduate school, I've been fascinated by
how our bodies (and, of course, our pets' bodies) use minerals.  Zinc the
friend vs. zinc the foe is all in the dosage.

Zinc is classified as a "micronutrient", something that is necessary, but in
very small amounts, for optimal body function.  Zinc is a component of
several key compounds that are necessary to maintain our blood, muscle,
nervous, and immune systems.  Ditto for birds.

The zinc we ingest naturally is found organically bound in the food we eat.
The plants and animals we eat get the zinc initially from the soil.  The
zinc only becomes available to us when our own bodies break down the food
during digestion.

One of the problems of getting too much zinc, as in the form of ingested
metal pieces from wire or what-have-you, is that our bodies want to use it.
That's sort of like getting clobbered with millions of atoms all at once,
rather than dozens at a time that we're used to through our food.

The zinc atom is similar in size and atomic properties to iron, calcium,
manganese, copper, cobalt, nickel, and chromium.  Therefore, any one of
these atoms (= minerals) could occupy the spot (site) in a hemoglobin
molecule, but iron does the job best. And so it is with other critical body
compounds -- these minerals can freely substitute for one another, even
though in each compound there is only one of these minerals that does the
best possible job for our health.  Flood the system with zinc, for example,
and zinc will beat out other atoms to attach to sites that it really has no
business in, thus impairing bodily function.  Ditto for copper and the
others.

In a system as delicately balanced as a human or avian body, too little of a
good thing is as bad as too much.  If a body has too little of any essential
micronutrient, then another mineral will have to find its way to a compound,
again rendering that compound less effective.  All minerals need to be in
particular proportions to one another so that each compound gets just enough
of its proper mineral.  For example, we (humans) need 10 times more zinc
daily than we do copper, otherwise we'll have the wrong minerals attaching
to the wrong sites again.  We need twice as much calcium as magnesium, and
so on, for optimal body functioning.

The key word here is BALANCE.  Just enough of this, just enough of that.

This treatise isn't going to win me any scientific awards, but I hope it was
helpful to some of you.

Cheers,

Sue vG

Colloidal metals: aluminum

I am curious to hear some feedback concerning the differences between
natural plant derived minerals and metallic derived minerals. Following is
an interesting article from a lab in Oregon. I am very interested in your
thoughts on this matter.

Parrots: More Than Pets, Friends For Life

Chris Biro
ESENCE Website: http://www.thepiratesparrot.com
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Aluminum (Al) is the third most abundant element in the earth's
crust, after oxygen and silicon. An element that makes up about
1/3 of earth's crust. It is very common in plants and is found
in most food we eat. There have been many studies connecting
disease with metallic aluminum, even a possible connection with
Alzheimer's disease. For that very reason, over the last 20
years many persons have avoided aluminum cookware and products
with metallic aluminum. But they eat lettuce, potatoes, wheat,
and tomatoes that contain plant-derived colloidal aluminum on a
daily basis.

Don't feel bad if you have been confused about products with
plant-derived colloidal aluminum in them. Even leading
nutritional doctors and leaders of countries such as Finland
did not know the difference. Finland is now in the process of
changing their federal law because it was unlawful to consume
more than 2 mg of aluminum daily. They made no distinction
between metallic aluminum and plant-derived colloidal aluminum.
When they became aware that the plant-derived colloidal form
was not harmful, and that their law would make it illegal to
eat more than just a sliver of a banana, they took steps to
change it.

Aluminum is contained in many foods, as well as many other
products. A paper published in 1990 by the Harvard Medical
School counters the "scientific studies" that have mistakenly
attacked aluminum. (Note: They're now attributing Alzheimer's
to some sort of "plaque accumulation", and have ceased naming
aluminum.) The following is an excerpt quoted from this Harvard
Medical Newsletter.

"Dr. McLachlan believes that the controversy over aluminum
derives in part from the inability of one laboratory to
reproduce the results found in another. Some of this he
attributes to the difficulty of the analytic methods needed to
detect aluminum accurately. You have to look at the form in
which the aluminum is being delivered. Does this mean that some
aluminum compounds are dangerous and others are not? We know
very little about that, says Dr. Perl."

Here are some results from the ATL Agronomy Handbook, under the
section "Plant Analysis Guide Nutrient Sufficiency Ranges.) PPM
and Mg/L (parts per million and milligrams per liter) are
considered equal since there are 994,000 mg in one liter.

Aluminum: 

Plant Food in PPM:

Asparagus 90
Oil Palm 98
Bananas 97
Peas 45
Beans 165
Peanuts 75
Brussels Sprouts 65
Peppers 75
Celery 190
Pineapple 100
Coffee 97
Potatoes 100
Corn 140
Root Crops 140
Cucumbers 90
Small Grains 135
Soybeans 75
Leaf Crops 50
Tomatoes 90
Melons 65
Wheat 140
Mint 140
Head Crops (lettuce) 90
 

from:
C & M Laboratories Int'l, Inc.
338 Ramsey Ave.
Grants Pass, OR 97527