MAIN Health Vitamins & Minerals Molybdenum

Pronounced mah-LIB-da-num, it's the trace element essential to human and plant life in metabolizing nucleic acids (RNA, DNA) and today is found in most commercial multivitamin formulas.

Molybdenum, which goes by Mo on the periodic table, is essential for the enzymes sulphite oxidase, xanthine oxidase, and aldehyde oxidase. Molybdenum deficiency is extremely rare, which means that current research has not provided a great deal of health information on it.

There is, however, a tiny region in northern China called Linxian which has very low quality soil that is lacking in a number of essential minerals, including molybdenum. The poor quality of the soil means that many mineral dietary needs are not met, and the people living there suffer from a number of deficiencies, one of which is molybdenum deficiency.

The symptoms of molybdenum deficiency in this small region of China are mainly cancer related. People living in the Linxian region experience a rate of stomach cancer and oesophagus cancer which is a shocking one hundred times higher than it is in the United States. A five year study was conducted to see if molybdenum supplements could correct the high cancer rate, but there wasn't any significant change. Researchers believe, however, that natural molybdenum from food sources might be more effective in helping the people of Linxian and all those with molybdenum deficiency.

There are also several rare genetic conditions which can create a molybdenum deficiency, in which case the health benefits of molybdenum supplementation are vitally important.
There are many foods that contain high amounts of molybdenum. The best foods are the legumes, which include such things as peas, lentils, and beans. What is important to remember about molybdenum though is that it originates in the soil, so the amount of molybdenum in food is determined largely by where the food is grown, not by what the food is.

More information about molybdenum around the Web:

Learn more about the benefits of molybdenum, how it works, along with natural sources of molybdenum in the foods we eat...

Molybdenum, Linus Pauling Institute's Micronutrient Information Center - Information on molybdenum as an essential trace element, associations with chronic diseases, interactions with other nutrients, adequate intake levels, food sources and supplements, and a link to related references.

Molybdenum - A complete description plus information on its benefits, how it works, indications and usage, interactions, dosage by life stage and bibliography from PDRhealth.

Metals in Health and Disease - Molybdenum - Its functions in the body as a component of three main enzymes, with information on toxicity, symptoms of deficiency, food sources and therapeutic uses.

The Merck Manual - Molybdenum - Reports from studies on causes of deficiency and toxicity, with good food sources and recommended daily allowances.

Nutrition Fact Sheet : Molybdenum - Brief overview with recommended uptake levels and daily requirements by life stage, dietary sources, and a list of foods by serving size and amounts of molybdenum in milligrams.

also in Vitamins & Minerals --> Calcium | Chromium | Copper

Magnesium | Manganese | Nickel | Phosphorus

Potassium | Selenium | Silicon | Sodium chloride

Sulphur | Tin | Vanadium | Zinc