Re: High selenium??? Dr. McCandless....or?

January 9, 2006

: I sent you privately a very good and very long article on selenium, which

says what I say - it is extremely unusual to have too much selenium (unless your

kids are eating lots of Brazil nuts (120mcg per nut!). It lists other foods

that can be high in this mineral, which you probably already know. You would

think the lab who gives these tests would know if they get a lot of high values

of selenium in all the autistic kids they must assess, and almost everyone gives

their kids at least 200mcg per day. I would call Dr. Hanaway at Great

Smokies and tell him I asked you to call to see if he can help you with this.

You are not getting too much unless your kids' guts are very far along in

healing so absorption is good, which is not the case for most of our kids. As

guts heal, (as Ann says) our kids need less and less amounts of nutrients. Dr.

Pangborn says that when absorption is good, that kids the ages of your kids

should not need more than 40mcgs a day with a pretty

normal diet (I give many of my kids 300-400mcg a day of various kinds of

selenium fpr varying periods based on RBC minerals and hair analyses) including

selenomethionine and I don't believe I have ever gotten such elevated levels;

mostly the levels are low. However, I use Doctor's Data for RBC minerals,

acknowledged by most of the DAN! docs I know as being the best and having the

best equipment for this test, and I usually do not recommend the Metametrix

Custom Mix, as they were unwilling to remove copper or make other adjustments I

wanted for some kids. Dr. Boyd Haley recommended that selenium NOT be given on

days of chelation, as it is supposed to keep the mercury tied up so it is

non-toxic to the body and when we chelate we want the mercury to be available

for removal, which was new information to me just a few months ago. So giving

it all the time might slow down mercury excretion, but I still just can't

understand why levels would be high.

The most important question: How are your kids doing? Are they showing any

toxic symptoms, loss of appetite, lethargy, etc? I doubt very seriously if they

have too much selenium. Dr. JM

Hirzel wrote:

Hello Dr. McCandless and All,

I'm confused about my children's recent test results for RBC minerals.

I have been chelating my daughter, age 13, and son, age 17, for the

last year and a half (oral DMPS and ALA a la Cutler). I'm ashamed to

say, this is the first RBC test we've had in all that time. All along

I've been supplementing them with a Custom vitamin/mineral mix from

Metabolic Maintenance based on ION profiles we had done. The

supplement contains only 200 mcg of selenium, which looks about

standard for good multis.

The Great Smokies Elemental Analysis of Packed Erythrocytes showed all

minerals in the normal range, EXCEPT for selenium. Both are

registering very high--- in the red – with at 0.85 (ref range

..25-.76). Meera is 1.02 (same reference range).

We live in Michigan, which is a notoriously low selenium state, and

their diets are not extraordinary for selenium containing foods.

I emailed Metabolic Maintenance, and below is the answer I got. I

don't really understand what she is trying to say. Is she saying very

high levels of selenium is okay in erythrocytes?? I haven't asked

further questions of her, since I'm not sure I'd be able to trust the

answer.

" Our selenium is an amino acid form in the custom Vitamin Mineral

(L-selenomethionine). Current evidence favors selenomethionine as

being better absorbed and more bioavailable compared to other forms of

selenium. Extra dietary supplementation of selenium at the dosage of

200 micrograms per day is generally considered safe and adequate for

an adult of average weight subsisting on the typical American diet.

Because selenomethionine is incorporated primarily into the proteins

of the skeletal muscles, erythrocytes, pancreas, liver, stomach,

kidneys and gastrointestinal mucosa, in place of methionine, makes me

believe that is why the selenium was elevated in the lab test as it

was measured in the erythrocytes. Once selenommethione is incorporated

in tissues, it can serve as a vehicle for selenium storage. Selenium

is synthesized into specific selenoproteins such as gluthathione

peroxidase and selenoprotein P; important antioxidant enzymes that can

help prevent cellular damage from free radicals. Other selenoproteins

help regulate thyroid function and play a pivitol role in the immune

system. I hope this gives you some insight but check with your doctor

as well. "

Unfortunately, my doctor is not much help. (Willing but lacks a lot

of the necessary knowledge.)

I have stopped the supplement and chelation until I figure this out.

If anyone has ever seen something like this before, or if you can give

me any insight into what I should do, I'd be very grateful!

Warm regards,

HIrzel

Many frequently asked questions and answers can be found at

<http://forums.autism-rxguidebook.com/default.aspx>

January 9, 2006

Dr McCandless,

Dr Haley's comments about not giving Selenium during chelation days really

caught my attention. I thought Selenium would help sweep Hg if given 6-10

hrs after DMPS, but hearing this I will now stay away from Selenium during

chelation days. You never know, something that seems so insignificant could

really change excretion results.

L

PS Brazil nuts are 120 mcg per nut!!!! I'll just buy a box of nuts instead

of Selenium pills

Re: High selenium??? Dr. McCandless....or?

: I sent you privately a very good and very long article on selenium,

which says what I say - it is extremely unusual to have too much selenium

(unless your kids are eating lots of Brazil nuts (120mcg per nut!). It

lists other foods that can be high in this mineral, which you probably

already know. You would think the lab who gives these tests would know if

they get a lot of high values of selenium in all the autistic kids they must

assess, and almost everyone gives their kids at least 200mcg per day. I

would call Dr. Hanaway at Great Smokies and tell him I asked you to

call to see if he can help you with this. You are not getting too much

unless your kids' guts are very far along in healing so absorption is good,

which is not the case for most of our kids. As guts heal, (as Ann says) our

kids need less and less amounts of nutrients. Dr. Pangborn says that when

absorption is good, that kids the ages of your kids should not need more

than 40mcgs a day with a pretty

normal diet (I give many of my kids 300-400mcg a day of various kinds of

selenium fpr varying periods based on RBC minerals and hair analyses)

including selenomethionine and I don't believe I have ever gotten such

elevated levels; mostly the levels are low. However, I use Doctor's Data

for RBC minerals, acknowledged by most of the DAN! docs I know as being the

best and having the best equipment for this test, and I usually do not

recommend the Metametrix Custom Mix, as they were unwilling to remove copper

or make other adjustments I wanted for some kids. Dr. Boyd Haley

recommended that selenium NOT be given on days of chelation, as it is

supposed to keep the mercury tied up so it is non-toxic to the body and when

we chelate we want the mercury to be available for removal, which was new

information to me just a few months ago. So giving it all the time might

slow down mercury excretion, but I still just can't understand why levels

would be high.

The most important question: How are your kids doing? Are they showing

any toxic symptoms, loss of appetite, lethargy, etc? I doubt very seriously

if they have too much selenium. Dr. JM