Chromium and selenium levels in commercially available enteral nutrition

Chromium and selenium contents of thirty-five commercially available enteral feed were determined by atomic-absorption spectrometry after previous wet ashing. Daily chromium intake, based on a 2,000 kcal (8,368 kJ) diet, was below the proposed safe and adequate intake for 78% of the feedings. Hypocaloric diets especially provided extremely low doses of this element. For selenium nearly 80% of the diets provided intakes below the recommended 50 micrograms/day. Selenium concentration was positively correlated with the protein content (p = 0.007), whilst fat content and selenium concentrations showed a significant negative correlation (p = 0.002). No definite correlation could be found between the selenium and chromium content of the food (p greater than 0.1).