Minerals Part VIII: Vanadium, Tin and Nickel
For the sake of completeness, we would also like to turn our attention to completely unknown minerals. Everyone has heard of substances like potassium, iodine or iron and can classify them in terms of their meaning. With elements such as vanadium, tin or nickel, the situation is probably different. The following explanations are intended to provide clarification and show the relevant meaning for the body.
Not much time, but you don’t want to miss anything?
An overview of tin, nickel and vanadium:
- We consume 15 to 30 micrograms of vanadium daily. In the context of occupational medicine, vanadium causes health problems due to high exposures
- Excessive amounts of vanadium cause skin lesions, mucous membrane irritation, cramps or even gastrointestinal problems.
- Based on current knowledge, the body does not necessarily need vanadium. There are only approaches according to which vanadium seems to be important for growth and thyroid function.
- Everyone takes in about 3 to 4 milligrams of tin daily. The heavy metal is mainly found in canned foods.
- Tin is controversial as an essential mineral, but it could affect our growth and the hormone gastrin. Excessive doses can cause intestinal problems
- We consume about 150 to 700 micrograms of nickel daily. The element is found mainly in plant food sources. Only 1–10% is absorbed in the small intestine.
- Nickel, like vanadium and tin, is controversial in its essential effect.
Vanadium is difficult to determine
When one thinks of minerals, one associates them with building blocks important for the body and its biological system. But vanadium is one of those that can contribute to physical damage. It is estimated that each of us ingests 15 to 30 micrograms of it daily. Vanadium is found in some foods, but cannot be reliably determined in them. As a result, there are always strong fluctuations in measurements, which can be attributed to difficult analytical methods, among other things.
Vanadium is used especially in industry. Since this substance has a toxic effect in high quantities, individual limit values are specified here with regard to exposure. In particular, the absorption of vanadium via the lungs is to be classified as harmful.
Symptoms such as cramps and gastrointestinal complaints
If the exposure to vanadium or the consumption of vanadium exceeds certain limits, some symptoms occur as a consequence. Besides skin changes and irritation of the mucous membranes, cramps and gastrointestinal complaints result, especially in the case of consumption in the milligram range. In some experiments, the inhibition of certain enzymes could also be proven. Furthermore, vanadium in high amounts causes a reduction of cholesterol and fatty acid synthesis. In the case of acute intoxication with vanadium, those affected are treated symptomatically. After days to weeks, the consequences of the poisoning usually subside without further damage.
Vanadium as an essential mineral is controversial
To date, there is no consensus on whether vanadium is essential for the human body, because no enzyme is known to be dependent on vanadium. However, some experiments suggest that vanadium could be important for bone growth. Beyond that, no deficiency symptoms are known in humans. Only in animals did too little vanadium affect growth and thyroid function.
Tin accumulation mainly in food cans
The element tin is found in many foods. However, canned foods contain a significantly higher amount of tin. The reason for this is that tin often dissolves in the can and passes into the food. On average, we consume three to four milligrams of tin daily. But as with vanadium, there is debate about the importance of this element for our bodies. Justifiably, some do not recognise tin as an essential nutrient for the body, as there is a lack of arguments for this.
Doubtful importance of tin
When it became known that tin promoted the growth of rats, experts occasionally pointed out the importance of tin. On the whole, however, the arguments are few and far between. Apart from the rat experiment, only a regulatory effect on the hormone gastrin is under discussion. On the other hand, there are many more known toxic effects of tin. Especially when the element is taken in high quantities, reversible intestinal disorders can occur. Like vanadium, tin plays a fundamental role in industry in this context.
Plant foods in particular contain nickel
The element nickel is found in large quantities in plant products. It is also found in animal products, albeit in much smaller quantities. In the small intestine, however, only 1 to 10% of the nickel ingested is transported into the blood. Similar to the other two elements, nickel cannot be proven to be involved in a selected enzyme process. Consequently, nickel is not currently considered essential.
Daily estimated dose of nickel clearly too high
A hypothetically necessary daily amount of zinc of 50 micrograms is derived from animal experiments. In total, however, we consume far more, on average 150 to 700 micrograms per day. This is one reason, among others, why there are no recorded cases of nickel deficiency to date.
Potential functions of nickel are being discussed
Nevertheless, research into the functions of nickel for our bodies is being carried out diligently. It is possible that nickel helps to stabilise our DNA. In addition, it seems that there is a functional connection to vitamin B12. In animal experiments it could be shown that when there is a deficiency of nickel, the utilisation of iron proved to be problematic. Consequently, there is a risk of various deficiency symptoms, such as lowered haematocrit and a reduced erythrocyte count.
Text sources:
(1) Nutrition in Prevention and Therapy, 2nd edition, 2003.
(2) Biesalski et al., Pocket Atlas of Nutrition, 8th edition, 2020
(3) Elmadfa and Leitzmann, Nutrition of Humans, 6th edition, 2019.
Image sources:
