Essential Nutrients - Minerals

Essential Nutrients

• Minerals support bodily growth and maintenance.
• They're categorized based on required quantity: macro (large amounts) and micro (small amounts).
• Macro minerals are measured in percent or grams per kilogram
• Micro minerals are measured in milligram per kilograms or parts per million

Important Minerals

• Major elements include calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, sodium, potassium, chloride, and sulfur.
• Trace elements include iron, iodine, copper, manganese, zinc, molybdenum, selenium, and fluoride.
• Chromium, nickel, bromine, lithium, and barium are necessary, but functions are not known.
• Rubidium, silver, gold, and bismuth are found in tissues but are nonessential contaminants.
• Avoid toxic minerals: aluminium, lead, cadmium and mercury.

Calcium (Ca++)

• The human body contains 1 to 1.5 kg of calcium.
• 99% resides in bones, and 1% in extracellular fluid.
• Milk concentrates calcium in lactating animals.
• Calcium is vital for blood clotting, muscle contraction, enzyme reactions, hormone signaling, glucose metabolism, neurotransmitter release, and membrane integrity.
• It also regulates blood's acid-base balance, hormone secretion, and cell division.

Calcium Sources

• Milk is a good source of calcium with about 100 mg/100 ml in cow's milk.
• Eggs, fish, and vegetables provide medium amounts of calcium.
• Cereals, like wheat and rice, contain only small amounts of calcium.

Daily Calcium Needs

• Adults require 500 mg per day, while children need about 1200 mg per day.
• During pregnancy and lactation, the requirement increases to 1500 mg per day.
• Increased calcium (1500 mg/day) with vitamin D (20 micrograms/day) helps prevent osteoporosis after age 50.

Calcium Absorption

• Calcitriol boosts calcium absorption.
• Absorption happens in the duodenum's first and second parts
• Calcium absorption needs energy and occurs against a concentration gradient, requiring a carrier protein and calcium-dependent ATPase.
• Of 500 mg of oral calcium, 400 mg is excreted in stool, and 100 mg through urine.

Factors Influencing Calcium Absorption

• Vitamin D (Calcitriol) boosts the synthesis of calbindin, a calcium carrier protein.
• Parathyroid hormone enhances calcium transport in intestinal cells.
• Acidity and amino acids like lysine and arginine promote calcium absorption.
• Phytic acid in cereals hinders absorption, but fermentation and cooking can reduce its effect.
• Oxalates in leafy vegetables form insoluble calcium oxalates, reducing absorption.
• Malabsorption syndromes prevent fatty acid absorption, leading to insoluble calcium salts.
• High phosphate content causes calcium precipitation as calcium phosphate; an optimal calcium to phosphorus ratio is 1:2 to 2:1.

Calcium Functions

• Calmodulin, a 17,000 Dalton protein, regulates calcium binding and enzyme activation.
• Calmodulin binds with 4 calcium ions, activating enzymes and regulatory kinases.
• Calcium activates enzymes directly, such as pancreatic lipase, coagulation enzymes, and rennin for milk clotting.
• Calcium mediates muscle fiber excitation and contraction.
• Calcium released from the sarcoplasmic reticulum activates ATPase, enhancing actin and myosin action
• This facilitates excitation-contraction coupling with troponin C triggering muscle contraction.
• Calsequestrin is the active calcium-binding transport system.
• Calcium decreases neuromuscular irritability, and deficiency leads to tetany.
• Calcium is needed for nerve impulse transmission from presynaptic to postsynaptic regions.
• Calcium mediates the secretion of hormones like insulin, parathyroid hormone, calcitonin, and vasopressin.
• Calcium and cyclic AMP act as second messengers for various hormones, including glucagon, involving G proteins and inositol triphosphate.
• Calcium reduces capillary permeability and is used clinically to alleviate allergic exudates.
• Calcium is factor IV in the blood coagulation cascade, chelating gamma-carboxy glutamate residues in prothrombin for thrombin formation.
• Increased Ca++ prolongs systole, so intravenous calcium should be given slowly to avoid cardiac arrest
• Bones use the bulk of calcium for bone and teeth formation, acting as a calcium reservoir.
• Osteoblasts facilitate bone deposition, while osteoclasts cause demineralization.

Calcium Deficiency Symptoms by Animal

• Poultry deficiencies result in reduced growth rates, appetite failure, improper bone formation, bone deformity, reduced hatchability, increased embryonic mortality (18th-21st days), thin-shelled eggs, and stopped egg production.
• Pig deficiencies lead to reduced growth, failed appetite, osteomalacia, hind leg paralysis, rough skin coat, impaired reproduction, muscle cramps, and tetany.
• Rabbits show similar deficiency symptoms to pigs.
• Fish deficiencies include poor growth, feed efficiency, reduced bone ash, skeletal abnormalities, and high mortality.
• Humans deficiencies cause rickets, osteomalacia, osteoporosis, and tetany.

Calcium Sources by Animal

• Poultry, pig, rabbit, and fish sources: oyster and periwinkle shell, bonemeal, limestone, dicalcium phosphate, and defluorinated rock phosphate.
• Fishmeal and meat and bone meal are good sources for animal feed.
• Bonemeal and dicalcium phosphate in fish diets primarily supply phosphate.
• Human nutrition: Milk and milk products are excellent sources of calcium and phosphorus
• Other foods provide poorer amounts of calcium; eggs are low in calcium but rich in phosphorus.
• Cereals and plant vegetative parts have limited calcium, with legumes being richer than non-leguminous plants.

Phosphorus

• Total body phosphate is approximately 1 kg, with 80% found in bones and teeth, and 10% in muscles.
• Phosphate primarily exists as an intracellular ion found in all cells.
• The daily phosphorus requirement is about 500 mg.
• Milk provides approximately 100 mg/dl of phosphates and is a great source, cereals, nuts, and meat are moderate sources.
• Calcitriol increases phosphate absorption.
• Normal serum phosphate level is 3-4 mg/dl for adults and 5-6 mg/dl for children.
• Fasting levels are higher, and postprandial levels decrease due to phosphate utilization for metabolism.
• Monovalent and divalent phosphate ions ratio in plasma is 1:9 in alkalosis, 1:4 at pH 7.4, and 100:1 at pH 4.5 in urine.
• Phosphorus and calcium have an inverse relationship; excess of either results in kidney excretion of the other.
• The kidney regulates excretion, with a renal threshold of 2 mg/dl and excretion of 500 mg/day.
• Urinary phosphate excretion depends on muscle mass, renal function, and age.
• Parathyroid hormone influences blood phosphate levels as it controls calcium.
• PTH increases calcium and phosphate release from bone, reducing calcium loss in urine, while increasing phosphate loss in urine
• Phosphorus is a key constituent of nucleic acids and phospholipids needed for organic compound synthesis and vital for the body's enzyme systems.
• Phosphorus, calcium, and magnesium contributes to egg production, carbohydrate, lipid, amino acid metabolism, muscle contraction, blood coagulation, and growth

Signs of Phosphorus Deficiency

• Symptoms mirror calcium deficiency; rare in humans.
• Fish may exhibit cranial deformity, increased visceral fat, and enlarged spongy vertebrae.
• Bone meal, dicalcium phosphate, curaco island phosphate, defluorinated rock phosphate, fish meal, and meat and bone meal are sources.
• Human foods rich in calcium also provide phosphorus

Magnesium (Mg++)

• It is the fourth most abundant cation in the body
• One-third of skeletal magnesium is exchangeable with serum.
• Oral magnesium doses can cause diarrhea
• Intravenous magnesium causes CNS depression because it's an intracellular cation.
• The body contains approximately 25 g of magnesium, 60% of which is complexed with calcium in bone.
• Magnesium requirements are 400 mg/day for men and 300 mg/day for women.
• Doses above 600 mg may cause diarrhea, with increased needs during lactation.
• Cereals, beans, leafy vegetables, and fish are major sources.
• Magnesium activates ATP-requiring enzymes like alkaline phosphatase, hexokinase, and adenyl cyclase.
• Magnesium reduces neuromuscular irritability
• in magnesium deficiency, insulin-dependent glucose uptake is reduced, while magnesium supplementation improves glucose tolerance.

Magnesium Deficiency

• Magnesium deficiency causes neuromuscular hyperirritability and cardiac arrhythmias.
• Symptoms are similar to calcium deficiency, but relieved only with magnesium
• Acute symptomatic deficiency is treated with parenteral magnesium; oral therapy can cause diarrhea
• Hypermagnesemia is uncommon, caused by excessive oral, rectal, or parenteral intake.
• Magnesium intoxication leads to neuromuscular system depression, lethargy, hypotension, respiratory depression, bradycardia, and weak tendon reflexes.
• Hypermagnesemia limits PTH secretion, decreasing serum calcium levels.

Causes of Hypermagnesemia

• Excess intake orally or parenterally
• Renal failure
• Hyperparathyroidism
• Oxalate poisoning
• Rickets
• Multiple myeloma
• Dehydration
• Drugs: Aminoglycosides Antacids Calcitriol Tacrolimus

Hypomagnesemia

• Hypomagnesemia is commonly seen in hospital patients.
• It occurs when serum magnesium levels drop below 1.7 mg/dl.
• Vomiting, nasogastric suction, diarrhea, liver cirrhosis, protein-calorie malnutrition and diuretic therapy can cause this.
• Urinary loss can occur in alcoholism, when taking osmotic and loop diruetics and with amino-gycosides.
• Note: Serum magnesium levels may not always reflect body content, and urinary magnesium excretion clarifies renal and gastrointestinal losses.

Causes of Hypomagnesemia

• Increased urinary loss (Tubular necrosis)
• Hyperaldosteronism, volume expansion
• Familial hypomagnesemia
• Increased intestinal loss Diarrhea, laxatives, ulcerative colitis Nasogastric suction, vomiting
• Liver cirrhosis
• Malabsorption
• Protein calorie malnutrition
• Hypoparathyroidism
• Toxemia of pregnancy
• Drugs: Thiazide diuretics Aminoglycosides Cisplatin Amphotericin Cyclosporin Haloperidol Alcohol.

Sodium, Chloride, and Potassium

• Sodium, chloride, and potassium are the main inorganic ions in body fluids and soft tissues.
• Sodium is the primary extracellular fluid cation, while potassium is the main intracellular fluid cation.
• Sodium is found in fluids outside cells like blood, lymph
• Potassium is mainly inside cells.
• They balance acid-base levels and osmotic pressure.
• Sodium is linked to muscle contraction, nervous system functionality, and eye function.
• Potassium is involved in muscle and nerve excitability and carbohydrate metabolism.
• Sodium and Potassium support the transport of nutrients.
• Chloride is a constituent of HCL (in the gastric juice) required for proper digestion of food.

Deficiency Manifestations

• Poultry deficiencies show reduced appetite and egg quantity/quality, increased cannibalism, muscular dystrophy, lung infection, adrenal hypertrophy, and changes in eye structure.
• Pig deficiencies show reduced appetite, poor hair growth, and depraved appetite.
• Human potassium deficiency leads to heart lesions and tubular degeneration, anorexia, nausea, mild cramps, raised pulse rate, low blood pressure, weakness, mental confusion, muscular paralysis, and marked drop in plasma potassium.

Sources

• Natural feed ingredients and foods are poor sources of sodium and chloride.
• Sodium chloride or common salt is a cheap source of sodium and chloride.
• Meeting sodium chloride requirements can be achieved with diets of 0.30-0.35% for chickens, ducks, and guinea fowls, and 0.30-0.50% for turkeys, rabbits, and pigs.
• Natural human foods are good sources of potassium content.
• Processed foods like bread, sausages, bacon, canned beans, and tomato ketchup contain sodium.

Sulfur

• Amino acids cysteine and methionine are a source of sulfates.
• Proteins are about 1% sulfur by weight.
• Though available in food, inorganic sulfates of Na+, K+, and Mg++ are not utilized.

Functions

• Important constituents of body proteins are sulfur-containing amino acids.
• The disulfide bridges maintain polypeptide units together, like insulin and immunoglobulins.
• Cartilage and bone contain chondroitin sulfates
• Hair and nails contain keratin, which is rich in sulfur.
• Glutathione is an example where enzymes and peptides contain an -SH group at the active site.
• Thiamine, biotin, pantothenic acid, and lipoic acid co-enzymes contain sulfur.
• Glycosaminoglycans or phenols can only be detoxified using phosphoadenosine phosphosulfate (PAPS) with Sulfate
• Sulfates function in the detoxification e.g the production of indoxyl sulphate.

Micro-Elements

• Trace or micro-minerals functions in small doses in some catalytic roles
• These minerals may also function as components or activators of enzymes and hormones
• Trace minerals play a part in energy utilization, haemoglobin generation and many other basic physiological processes.

Manganese

• Enzyme cofactor includes kinase, esterase, mutase, peptidase, decarboxylase, superoxide dismutase, and phosphotransferase.
• Important for protein, carbohydrate, and fat utilization
• Important for chondroitin sulfate synthesis, a mucopolysaccharide component in the organic matrix of bone.
• It is important in proteioglycan and glycoproteins’ synthesis.
• Needed to prevent bone malformation and develop sexual maturity.
• High phosphorus and calcium levels worsen manganese shortage.

Deficiencies by Animal

• Poultry deficiencies cause perosis (hock joint enlargement/flattening)
• Other signs include ataxia, retarded growth, inability to maintain adult body weight, lower egg production/hatchability, and decreased egg shell quality.
• Swine deficiencies result in impaired reproduction, late sexual maturity, piglets born lame, increased fat deposition, and reduced milk production.
• Rabbits may experience extensive bone malformations, late sexual maturity, irregular ovulation, and weak kits.
• Fish suffer from reduced growth, short bodies, skeletal abnormalities, and low egg hatchability.
• No deficiency has been reported for man because food includes enough manganese.
• Whole cereals and legumes are sources

Zinc

• It is a component of more than 70 enzyme systems (carbonic anhydrase, alcohol dehydrogenase, lactic dehydrogenase, and glutamic dehydrogenase) and regulates many metabolic processes.
• Its a constituent of insulin, regulates blood sugar.
• Zinc plays an important role in growth, skin health, hair health, and fertility.
• The choroids of the eye and the prostrate contain the largest levels of concentration of zinc in the body
• Semen, skin, and bone also contain amounts of the element and its involved in prostaglandin metabolism.

Deficiency Manifestations

• Poultry deficiencies cause perosis in young chicks.
• Other signs may include hyperkeratosis, foot pad dermatitis, retarded growth, poor feather development, and reduced egg production and hatchability.
• Swine deficiencies result in reduced appetite, poor growth, rough hair, lameness, stiffness, weakened bones, and diarrhea.
• Human deficiencies are rare but can cause skin lesions, hypogonadism, growth failure, and decreased smell and taste.

Sources

• Good sources of zinc are legumes, whole grains, bran, meat, and oysters.
• Fish meal and milk are fair sources.
• Animal diets include zinc oxide and zinc carbonate.
• Human diets use zinc supplements (zinc sulfate) when levels drop (12–17 umol/L)

Iodine

• It is a major constituent of the thyroid hormones, thyroxine, and triiodothyronine.
• Hormone regulation of basal metabolic rate is required.
• Over 50% of the iodine in the body in the thyroid gland.
• Thyroid secretions determines the level of metabolism in most cells.
• Deficit secretion of thyroid hormones results in low body metabolism.

Deficiency Manifestations by Animal

• Poultry deficiencies result in goiter.
• Poor growth, egg production/size, decreased egg hatchability, and embyronic thyroid enlargement are additional symptoms.
• Pig deficiencies include goitre, stunted growth, lethargy, hairless pigs births and reproductive failure.
• Fish deficiency causes thyroid enlargement.
• Human deficiencies cause goitre (in adults)
• Cretinism (dwarfism, imbecility, deaf mutism, spasticity/ataxia) may occur in the young.
• Adults have myxederma (edematous appearance, retardation mental functions).
• Seafood (e.g., fishmeal) is rich in iodine.
• Cereals, vegetables, fruits, meat, and feed vary in iodine content.
• It is also found in natural mineral waters, in sedimentary rock phosphates and large nitrite deposites. Sea weeds have iodine content.

Iron (Fe)

• Total body iron content is 3 to 5 gm, with 75% in blood and the remainder in bone marrow, liver and muscles.
• Almost all cells have iron, blood contains 14.5 g of Hb per 100 ml, and about 75% of total iron is in hemoglobin, 5% in myoglobin, and 15% in ferritin.
• The daily allowance of iron for adults is 20 mg, while 1-2 mg is absorbed.
• Western countries require less where the diet does not contain inhibitory substances
• Children (13-15 years) requires between 20-30 mg/day
• Pregnant women requires 40 mg/day where there is transfer of calcium and iron from mother to fetus during pregnancy. Mother’s food must contain surplus quantities of iron and calcium.
• Iron intake is negligible for children below three months because milk contains negligible quantities of the same. Children depend on the iron received during pregnancy. When babies are premature, they are at risk of deficiency.

Sources

• 20 mg Iron/ 100g of Leafy vegetables are in good sources
• 10 mg Iron/ 100g of Pulses and 5 mg Irom/ 100g of cereals have lesser quantities of iron
• Indian diet consists of cereals containing moderate amounts of required bulks

Deficiency Manifestations

• Poultry iron deficiency leads to nutritional anemia as in copper deficiency.
• There are decreases in haemoglobin content and red blood cell size, and loss of feathers.
• Normal pigmentation is inhibited for red feathered chickens
• Pig deficiencies include nutritional anemia, stunted growth, rough hair coat, wrinkled skin, reduced resistance to disease, lethargy, transparent skin, breathing heavily, and poor vigour.
• Human deficiencies cause nutritional anemia and premature births

Copper

• Copper plays a vital role in oxidation-reduction systems.
• Useful for melanin production (polyphenol oxidase) and ascorbic acid oxidase in oxidation reactions.
• As an active component, other enzymes are cytochrome oxidase, amine oxidase, and dopamine hydroxylase.
• Required for catecholamine (brain/adrenal gland) production
• Involved in iron metabolism and heme synethsis and synthesizes epinephrine and nor-epinephrine
• Rupture of the aorta, subcutaneous and internal haemorrhage, severe leg weakness, bone abnormalities, pigmentation of feathers in coloured birds are reduced, and anemia also results from a copper deficiency.
• Hyprochromic anaemia, susceptibility to parasitic infection, impaired reproduction, lameness, stiffened bones structure, cardiac and vascular disorders and depigmentation
• Copper deficiencies are rare in fish, which is widely distributed in feedstuffs and water environments
• Milk is deficient of copper, and humans will rarely get copper deficiencies
• Infant may suffer from copper deficiencies, and anemia has been reported in preterm babies.
• The Menkes Syndrome is a rare genetic disorder where people have a failure to absorb copper, and leads to progressive mental retardation, failure to keratinize hair, low plasma levels, and hypothermia.
• Copper sulphate, copper oxide, copper carbonate are the usual copper sources
• Liver, fish, and green vegetables are a good source of copper in a human's diet, whereas meat and bread are a poor source.

Cobalt

• A key part of vitamin B12 and a Glycyl, aginase, glycine dipeptidase, and phospho gulcomates.
• It roles in the haemoglobin formation and red blood cells has been suggested.
• Used for rumen microflora for cobolt and the synthesis of vitamin B12 in ruminant nutrition.
• Cobalt Deficiencies cause anemia even with iron and copper, foods of animal Origin are god sources