A vegetarian diet is thought to be better for the prevention and treatment of lifestyle related diseases. However, selenium and zinc are abundant in animal products, so it is necessary to assess the nutritional status of vegetarians with respect to these substances. We evaluated the serum levels of selenium and zinc in 45 women who were on a 45 day vegetarian diet and 61 women who were normal diet (normal diet group). As a result, the intake of selenium was lower in the vegetarian group (29.8 ± 30.2μg) than in the normal diet group (125.9 ± 41.9μg). Zinc intake was also lower in the vegetarian group (6.2 ± 2.2 mg) than in the normal diet group (7.9 ± 1.8 mg). In addition, serum levels of selenium and zinc were lower in the vegetarian group than in the normal diet group. Furthermore, a lower intake of selenium was related to a lower serum level, and reduced intake of zinc from animal products was related to a lower zinc level. These results suggest that reduced selenium and zinc intake due to a vegetarian diet may potentially have adverse effects.
