A new study published in the Journal of Trace Elements on Medicine and Biology evaluated the association between selenium levels and skin diseases.

This was a systematic review and meta-analysis that searched public databases to identify all relevant studies, with the aim of comparing selenium levels between different groups.

Overall, 27 studies were identified with a total of 1 315 patients and 7181 healthy controls. The results showed no significant difference in selenium levels in patients with vitiligo, alopecia areata or eczema, compared to controls. Meanwhile, a lower selenium level was found in patients with psoriasis; acne vulgaris; chloric acne and atopic dermatitis (AD). On the other hand, patients with severe symptoms had a higher selenium level than mild patients in psoriasis, however, no difference was found in vitiligo and alopecia areata.

The findings indicated that selenium levels were associated with several skin diseases and disease severity, and high selenium levels tended to be a protective factor in certain skin diseases.

Source: Journal of Trace Elements on Medicine and Biology. 2020 May 20;62:126548. doi: 10.1016/j.jtemb.2020.126548.