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High-Dose Selenium Significantly Improves My Fatigue and Brain Fog

Does selenium 400 mcg daily help your CFS? Have an active enterovirus infection, tested at ARUP Lab?

  • Selenium HELPED. My ARUP Lab tests showed I HAVE an active enterovirus infection

    Votes: 4 6.7%
  • Selenium HELPED. My ARUP Lab tests showed I DO NOT HAVE an active enterovirus infection

    Votes: 3 5.0%
  • Selenium DID NOT HELP. My ARUP Lab tests showed I HAVE an active enterovirus infection

    Votes: 1 1.7%
  • Selenium DID NOT HELP. My ARUP Lab tests showed I DO NOT HAVE an active enterovirus infection

    Votes: 1 1.7%
  • Selenium MADE ME FEEL WORSE (or made me feel too mentally "wired" and over-stimulated)

    Votes: 7 11.7%
  • Selenium HELPED. I have not been tested for enterovirus at ARUP Lab

    Votes: 27 45.0%
  • Selenium DID NOT HELP. I have not been tested for enterovirus at ARUP Lab

    Votes: 17 28.3%

  • Total voters
    60
Messages
21
Location
Sweden
@mabelark
Good to hear your are benefiting from selenium.

I found the following comment online, which is interesting:


The methylselenocysteine form of selenium seems to be generally available, see here.

Might be worth trying this if you have headaches from the selenomethionine form of selenium.

Thank you, Hip. I will give the Methyl L-Selenocysteine form a try. I am looking forward to it arriving. Will try to find my selenomethionine tolerence level in the mean time, starting with 300 mcg.
 

end

Messages
263
Is there a general consensus on which form to take???

@Hip has linked on another thread to this study: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/m/pubmed/11878751/

Which outlines SelenITE is the effective form for anticoxsackie b5 activity. They further outline that the Selenate and Selenomethionine were not effective at all!

"We studied the antiviral effects of three selenium compounds on Coxsackie virus B5 replication: five microM selenite reduced viral replication, whilst 10 microM selenate and selenomethionine did not exhibit any antiviral activity."

An organic mineral is always better in my book. But given this study, I am not sure which to buy
 

Hip

Senior Member
Messages
17,824
Is there a general consensus on which form to take???

@Hip has linked on another thread to this study: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/m/pubmed/11878751/

Which outlines SelenITE is the effective form for anticoxsackie b5 activity. They further outline that the Selenate and Selenomethionine were not effective at all!

"We studied the antiviral effects of three selenium compounds on Coxsackie virus B5 replication: five microM selenite reduced viral replication, whilst 10 microM selenate and selenomethionine did not exhibit any antiviral activity."

An organic mineral is always better in my book. But given this study, I am not sure which to buy

If you know you had coxsackievirus B5, certainly the sodium selenITE form of selenium would be good to try.

However, any form of selenium has potent antiviral effects against enteroviruses: if you look at the links to studies provided in the first post of this thread, you will see many studies which show selenium deficiency causes significantly increased virulence of coxsackievirus B3.

So I think the main antiviral benefits of taking selenium result from obliterating any selenium deficiency in the body, thus ensuring your body effectively fights these coxsackieviruses.
 

NK17

Senior Member
Messages
592
This is very interesting, the antiviral properties of selenium!

I've been taking Solgar selenomethionine with zinc for some months now.

I was taking the selonomethionine for better thyroid function and the zinc to help heal the gut lining and boost the immune system, all this while on a GFCF diet.

Since I've high IgG to some of the coxsackieviruses (have to check if the b5 included) I guess I should stick to this?
 

outdamnspot

Senior Member
Messages
924
I wish I could tolerate Selenium -- it was good for energy -- but I felt quite aggravated on it. It seemed almost noradrenergic.
 

adreno

PR activist
Messages
4,841
I wish I could tolerate Selenium -- it was good for energy -- but I felt quite aggravated on it. It seemed almost noradrenergic.
Right, me too. It probably is noradrenergic through increased thyroid function. RS (months ago) seriously kickstarted my thyroid function, and at the moment I don't tolerate anything that increases it any further.
 

outdamnspot

Senior Member
Messages
924
Right, me too. It probably is noradrenergic through increased thyroid function. RS (months ago) seriously kickstarted my thyroid function, and at the moment I don't tolerate anything that increases it any further.

Interesting. I didn't know that increased function was a benefit of the starch .. though I did find that it generally seemed to amplify a lot of other things I was trying.

Are you still taking the starch? I just posted another thread asking about Sodium Butyrate, because the starch was dropping my blood sugar too low.
 

adreno

PR activist
Messages
4,841
Interesting. I didn't know that increased function was a benefit of the starch .. though I did find that it generally seemed to amplify a lot of other things I was trying.

Are you still taking the starch? I just posted another thread asking about Sodium Butyrate, because the starch was dropping my blood sugar too low.
No, but I'm experimenting with other fibers. Butyrate might have some adverse effects in high (supplemental) doses, YMMV.
 

Ninan

Senior Member
Messages
523
I never tried selenium before. I took 400 mcg (and the 50 in my multivitamin) 4-5 hours ago and I seem to have more energy than yesterday. Kind of wired. Guess it could just be a coincidence.
 

TigerLilea

Senior Member
Messages
1,147
Location
Vancouver, British Columbia
All the best,
Justy

@Hip sorry to point out that some of your sources are from Wikipedia, which is not a reliable source.

I'm glad that someone pointed this out. Wikipedia is a very poor source for accurate information, especially when it concerns people's health. PubMed or the NIH are much more reliable sources for accurate and safe information. :thumbsup:
 

knackers323

Senior Member
Messages
1,625
I am noticing a pretty big improvement a few hours after taking big doses of selenium. 700mcg.

It seems to be the more the better. I'm aware of the toxicity concerns.

I wonder why this is helping?
 

end

Messages
263
I am noticing a pretty big improvement a few hours after taking big doses of selenium. 700mcg.

It seems to be the more the better. I'm aware of the toxicity concerns.

I wonder why this is helping?

I guess that's one of those "million dollar questions" :)

I remember reading along the lines of - Selenium coating implanted devices have been shown to completely inhibit biofilm formation. Se also plays a role in GSH production and function. And like @Hip has pointed out on this or another similar thread Se also plays a role in limiting Coxackie B infections. I think Se has multifaceted benefits like many natural compounds out there
 
Messages
516
Works for rats: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9307047

The effect of selenium on the central dopaminergic system: a microdialysis study.

Abstract
The effects of Selenium (Se) on central dopaminergic function were examined in male Sprague-Dawley rats. In this experiment, animals were implanted with microdialysis probes and dialysates were analyzed for dopamine (DA), 3,4-dihydroxyphenylacetic acid (DOPAC) and homovanillic acid (HVA). After reaching baseline values, sodium selenite was either injected intraperitoneally (i.p.) or directly infused into the striatum (ST) or nucleus accumbens (NA). Se administration of 3.0 mg/kg (i.p.) significantly increased (70%) DA overflow in the ST. Meanwhile direct Se perfusion (10 mM) also caused a significant elevation of synaptic DA concentrations in the ST and NA. Levels of DOPAC and HVA were minimally affected in all studies. In order to test for the effects of DA receptor activation, animals were pretreated with quinpirole (0.5 mg/kg, s.c.), an hour prior to Se (10 mM) infusion through the probe. It was found that quinpirole pre-treatment reduced Se-induced changes in DA concentrations. It was concluded from the present study that Se's central action might be related to its ability to potentiate DA function.
 

Hip

Senior Member
Messages
17,824
I am noticing a pretty big improvement a few hours after taking big doses of selenium. 700mcg.

I imagine this immediate benefit you are feeling will be something along the lines of the dopaminergic boost that @Tunguska posted above.

In my case, I get no immediate benefits from selenium, but after around 10 days taking it, my ME/CFS is noticeably improved.
 

Jarod

Senior Member
Messages
784
Location
planet earth
FYI:

search yahoo.....: "selenium overdose"

Selenium Overdose is a real phenomenon that has been documented in many areas around the world that have high selenium content in their water and their soil. It has also been documented in people taking large doses of selenium supplements for long periods of time. So, it is important that if you do choose to supplement with selenium that you be aware of selenium overdose symptoms and the appropriate and toxic dosages.

It is interesting that few people are aware of selenium toxicity- even though it is relatively EASY to have a selenium overdose and it occurs relatively frequently; yet it seems that just about EVERYONE is concerned about an Overdose on Vitamin D even though it is extremelyDIFFICULT and there are very few instances of it- and NO instances of it from natural sources.


http://www.easy-immune-health.com/selenium-overdose.html

Effects of a Selenium Overdose
A selenium overdose can occur as the result of a single, large dose or from taking too much of it on a daily basis. Even though it may seem like a harmless mineral, selenium can cause some dangerous side effects, especially if an overdose occurs. Although some of these overdose effects do not appear to be serious, they can be signs of selenium toxicity.

http://aids.emedtv.com/selenium/selenium-overdose.html