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Selenium

What Huberman said

Huberman says selenium is important for thyroid hormone to be made and calls Brazil nuts 'the heavyweight champion of foods to get selenium from'. He cites a study showing sufficient selenium can reduce prostate cancer risk, calling it a minor but statistically significant effect.

Doses, as he worded them

  • “The average was about 155 micrograms, the countries I looked at.”[1]

    recommended daily amounts across countries he looked at

  • “six or eight Brazil nuts contain something like 550 micrograms of selenium”[1]

    food source

Quoted, not prescribed. Talk to a doctor or pharmacist first if you take medication, are pregnant or have a health condition.

Cautions he mentions

  • If your vitamin has selenium, make sure you're not overdoing it by also consuming a lot of selenium-rich foods; because levels are so high in Brazil nuts, you could overdo it.[1]
  • Anything related to pregnancy or lactation, especially talk to your doctor.[1]

Safety notes from independent sources

  • Six to eight Brazil nuts contain about 544 micrograms of selenium, above EFSA's adult upper limit of 255 micrograms a day and the US limit of 400 micrograms. Too much selenium over time can cause hair and nail loss. NIH ODS: Selenium
  • Later, larger trials found that selenium supplements did not reduce prostate cancer risk, and the SELECT researchers advised men over 55 not to take selenium above recommended intakes. NIH ODS: Selenium

Where he said it

  1. 1
    “Brazil nuts are the heavyweight champion of foods to get selenium from.”

    How to Control Your Metabolism by Thyroid & Growth Hormone

    Episode · 00:28:09 · 2021

    Watch from 00:28:09Episode page

Related

This page reports what Andrew Huberman has said. It isn’t medical advice and NSDR.co isn’t affiliated with Huberman Lab. Talk to a doctor or pharmacist first if you take medication, are pregnant or have a health condition. Safety information