MOLYBDENUM (Mo)

General - trace mineral; detox mineral;

• Adult body contains about 9 mg;
• History: essentiality for humans established in 1953;

Nutrition

• Sources: best: lentils, liver, peas, cauliflower, brewer’s yeast, wheat germ, spinach; good: kidney, garlic, whole grains, eggs, fish, sunflower seeds; poor: refined foods, foods grown on molybdenum-deficient soils;
• Supplements: molybdenum salts, amino acid chelates, multi-mineral, multi-mineral-vitamin formulations;
• Absorbed readily from stomach & upper small intestine; 25 to 80% of ingested molybdenum is absorbed;
• Antagonized by: removed from foods during refining;
• Storage: mainly in liver & kidneys; adrenal glands, bones & skin;
• Excretion: through kidneys; rapidly turned over;
• Metabolism: works with fluoride; high copper intake increases molybdenum excretion; high sulphates increase molybdenum excretion;
• Interactions: high molybdenum results in high urinary losses of copper; tungsten is antagonist to molybdenum metabolism;

• As co-factor of an enzyme (xanthine oxidase), molybdenum is involved in mobilizing iron from liver storage to oxidize aldehydes;
• Helps to remove nitrogen waste from the body through the formation of uric acid (purine metabolism); uric acid is a powerful anti-oxidant; molybdenum appears to play role in control of aging;
• Detoxifies one class of food preservatives (sulphating agents) by means of molybdenumcontaining enzyme (sulphite oxidase); sulphites can cause nausea, diarrhoea, acute asthma, coma & death in sensitive individuals; bisulphite destroys vitamin B-1;
• Involved in fat metabolism & energy production through molybdenum-activated enzyme (aldehyde oxidase);
• Catalyzes reactions that transfer an oxygen atom from water to various compounds; simultaneous exchange reactions: give up 2 electrons at one end of molecule + cause 2 protons to be given up at other end of molecule;
• Powerful agent for reducing copper levels;
• Protects against cancer of the stomach and oesophagus; protects (rats) against chemical carcinogens;
• May decrease incidence of tooth decay by promoting retention of fluoride;
• Increases muscle tone;

• Measurement: micrograms;
• Optimum: (SONA) average ranges not yet established;
• Individual optimum needs to be determined for each individual case;
• Minimum: (DRI) 45 μg/day; (50 μg/day during pregnancy.
• Less than RDA: not yet known;
• Deficiency of molybdenum from inadequate intake, genetic condition, high copper, high sulphur;
• Symptoms may include: increased susceptibility to dental caries; inadequate uric acid production; impaired sexual functioning, especially in older men; maybe gout; cancer of oesophagus (due to nitrosamine formation);
• Intolerance to sulphur-containing amino acids, resulting in fast heartbeat, increased breathing rate, visual problems & coma;
• (Animals) elevated mortality in mother & offspring; elevated copper levels in liver & brain; defective sulphur (cysteine) metabolism;
• Toxicity: molybdenum is relatively non-toxic; unusually high intake required to produce symptoms;
• May cause diarrhoea, depressed growth, anaemia (failure of red blood cells to mature); symptoms identical to those of copper deficiency;
• Very high intake (10 - 15 mg/day, which is very difficult to achieve) may alter uric acid metabolism, producing gout;

Therapy with molybdenum

• Relieve molybdenum deficiency;
• Balance & ameliorate the toxicity of excess copper;
• May play part in preventing anaemia;
• May prevent dental caries;
• May prevent oesophageal cancer;
• May be helpful in male impotence in later years;