Role of vanadium in nutrition: metabolism, essentiality and dietary considerations

Vanadium is a pervasive element of biological systems, being widely distributed across the food supply. Food refining and processing appear to increase vanadium content. At higher intakes, it accumulates in body tissues such as liver, kidney and bone. Essentiality of the nutrient has been established in lower life forms but the significance and extent of vanadium's role in humans has been overshadowed by the absence of deficiency symptoms in man. While the pharmacological properties of vanadium have stimulated much interest, knowledge of basic metabolic processes regulating vanadium remains incomplete. Ultimate determination of essentiality for humans will depend on greater understanding of the fundamental biochemical roles of vanadium.