[Latent antioxidant deficiency in the East German population--causes and clinical significance. II]

The hitherto yielded results of the research groups for arteriosclerosis and trace elements of the Medical Clinic of Leipzig University were summarized and valuated. The most important results were than in 800 healthy persons of three counties of the GDR who were examined depending on sex and age a serum selenium deficiency with regional differences was stated and this deficiency could be increased by an antiatherogenic mode of nutrition (n = 94, p less than 0.001). A consecutive depletion of vitamin E out of normal values was to be explained as a reference of an insufficient status of antioxidants. Analyses on nearly 1,000 foodstuffs and sorts of coffee, tea, tobacco, alcohol, etc. showed as cause a high-degree depletion of vegetable foodstuffs in selenium. The established daily minimum uptake of selenium of 12 to 15 micrograms by cooked foods was covered by above all cholesterol-rich animal foodstuffs and was further lowered by their withdrawal. In a double blind study first results of a supplementation of sodium selenite referred to a favourable influence on the immune status. After explanation of the reasons which may lead to an additional insufficiency of antioxidants was postulated that the protection from activated oxygen species is indicated both for the primary prevention of autoimmunigenic, atherogenic and cancerogenic diseases and for the curative medicine by a supplementation of selenium.