Zinc is a vital micronutrient involved in many cellular processes: For example, in learning and memory processes, it plays a role that is not yet understood. By using nanoelectrochemical measurements, Swedish researchers have made progress toward understanding by demonstrating that zinc influences the release of messenger molecules. As reported in the journal Angewandte Chemie, zinc changes the number of messenger molecules stored in vesicles and the dynamics of their release from the cell.
When signals are transmitted by synapses, messenger molecules (neurotransmitters) are released from storage chambers (synaptic vesicles) into the synaptic cleft, where they are "recognized" by neighboring nerve cells. This release is based on exocytosis: The vesicle docks at the cell membrane, opens at the point of contact, releases part of its contents to the outside, closes, and separates from the plasma membrane so it can be refilled.
Treatment with zinc results in more messenger molecules being released.
(Score: 3, Interesting) by Azuma Hazuki on Wednesday March 22 2017, @03:59PM (8 children)
Having added a Zn-citrate supplement to my regimen about 2 months ago I definitely feel more centered, more alive, and have a better sense of smell and taste. One other strange effect is that it makes me really horny sometimes, which I don't understand at all. I'm told that men need zinc the way we need iron, that if a man ejaculates he loses a lot of zinc, and given that both sexes' anatomy starts from the same bits in utero, maybe this explains it?
I am "that girl" your mother warned you about...
(Score: 4, Funny) by LoRdTAW on Wednesday March 22 2017, @04:47PM (1 child)
Explains the near metallic like stiffness of my socks. Also my terrible short term memory.
(Score: 2) by DeathMonkey on Wednesday March 22 2017, @05:42PM
On the plus side: you don't need to worry about them rusting, anymore.
(Score: 2) by VLM on Wednesday March 22 2017, @05:28PM
I've heard some interesting treatments for the "Zinc Flu" when a metalworker gets a mild zinc overdose from welding galvanized stuff or whatever, but I've never heard that treatment. Guys enjoy that activity, quite a bit in fact, so if that were a way to effectively lower blood zinc levels I think every welder would make jokes about it. Ah was welding galvanized yesterday so I was up all night and my arm and things are all sore to save me from zinc fever oh woe is me, no just not hearing that.
The old wives tale about drinking milk seems popular to intentionally lose zinc. That is a story every welder out there believes and most insist it works. Personally I think anything that kinda calms the stomach thus calming the person would probably work just as well. IF its true, THEN drinking huge quantities of milk (like a quart a day) might cause a loss of zinc in healthy non-overdosed welder peoples, something to think about.
AFAIK the kidneys remove an unregulated vaguely constant amount from the blood continuously and gender doesn't matter. There is no human anatomy feedback mechanism that I know of, at least not like how we regulate water output dynamically or the rather impressive pH buffering system we have in our blood. Assuming healthy kidneys, a given blood concentration results in a fixed continuous pee concentration and that's pretty much the end of that story. I wonder if the welders old wives tale about milk boils down to drink a liter of milk or anything (beer?) and pee out the zinc. Welders like beer, generally speaking, but the old wives tale is specifically milk oriented.
Supposedly two billion people are somewhat zinc deficient. Possibly fixing a slight deficiency might put a guy who feels better in a good mood leading to more action, like the effect of a glass of wine or how an aspirin can fix a headache leading to more action. Aspirin isn't directly an aphrodisiac but indirectly anything reducing pain or ill feelings can be helpful.
Its an extremely tough sell to come up with a reason for zinc in sex. Near impossible. I'll try anyway. Topically applied, zinc can protect against sunburn and I can imagine women getting sunburned down there would be highly annoying in those millions of years before clothing was invented, so I could see a super weak argument, although not walking around on hands standing on head would keep the fun parts in the shade out of the sun just as well. I can imagine some prehistoric argument "Not tonight Ug, I'm tired" "Ugs wife not want sunburn, right?" "Oh whatever Ug make it quick" Some zinc compounds help with dandruff and shaving down there being a recent-ish invention (on an evolutionary scale) I guess not having dandruff down there might result in more pair bonding activities with a mate? On the other hand a lot of dandruff comes from excessively powerfull modern detergents applied possibly too often to be safe at that strength, so dandruff might be a kinda modern invention. As for other... activities, there are some zinc compounds in mouthwashes to prevent bad breath and most guys greatly enjoy that topical application process while presumably better breath would help with other pair bonding activities. The things women do for dental health... Combining all the arguments its a mighty tough sell from an evolution standpoint for guys to output a lot of zinc. I'm not really seeing it as an example of evolutionary fitness where women injected with more zinc have more and healthier babies that grow to reproduce. At most, I'd guess high zinc output would be a mere side effect of some other evolutionary goal. If guys output a lot of zinc, which seems unlikely, from an evolutionary standpoint I think it would be totally by accident.
See how much fun we can have not arguing about politics? Have a nice and pleasant day.
(Score: 2) by c0lo on Wednesday March 22 2017, @09:40PM
Don't call them messenger molecules but angelic molecules.
Every time I eat the rind of a battery, God shows to me at night.
(just stay away from rechargeables, it makes one dull).
(grin)
Point: why would releasing higher amount of neurotransmitters be necessary related to learning and not with any brain activity, including delusion or hallucinations?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
(Score: 1) by Ethanol-fueled on Thursday March 23 2017, @12:13AM (1 child)
Zinc makes you horny because it provides raw materials for your nut.
(Score: 2) by Azuma Hazuki on Thursday March 23 2017, @01:05AM
Uhh...I don't "nut." I'm kind of missing the required anatomy for that.
I am "that girl" your mother warned you about...
(Score: 2) by legont on Thursday March 23 2017, @12:25AM (1 child)
No wonder oysters are so good for it.
Oysters: Serving Size (100 grams), Zinc (16-182 milligrams), 199 calories.
"Wealth is the relentless enemy of understanding" - John Kenneth Galbraith.
(Score: 2) by Azuma Hazuki on Thursday March 23 2017, @01:04AM
I dunno...as Nanny Ogg observed, the process of making more oysters happens a long way away from the oysters, so they're not exactly full of beans
I am "that girl" your mother warned you about...
(Score: 4, Funny) by In hydraulis on Wednesday March 22 2017, @06:05PM
A World Without Zinc [youtube.com]
(Score: 1) by piss_drinker on Wednesday March 22 2017, @06:11PM (2 children)
Phosphatidylserine might be an interesting topic to research, in this area. Its in a lot of different sea food and white beans. I believe the body produces its own as also. I have wondering how deficient people are of it. It seems like it would play a large roll in mental clarity and hormone production. Haven't tested it myself thought.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday March 22 2017, @08:15PM (1 child)
piss_drinker (6536) said "Phosphatidylserine... Haven't tested it myself ". I wouldn't be so sure:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4345020/ [nih.gov]
(Score: 1) by piss_drinker on Thursday March 23 2017, @05:51PM
That was an interesting article about kidney stones. A good comparison between men's and women's different urine content levels, in contrast to who had stones and who didn't. It might help explain why men have a greater chance of getting stones (7% more chance during lifetime).
It was interesting that women had more phosphatidylserine than men when they observed that control.
I am curious what it was you thought about the impact of the phosphatidylserine content mentioned there.
Maybe your input could help me study this topic further. Thanks for the input. If you get a chance, I wouldn't mind if you described the concern a little more.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday March 22 2017, @08:19PM
10-20 years ago there was a cold cure on the market that was a zinc solution meant to be applied by cotton swab into the nasal membranes. My mother is a sucker for all kinds of alternative medicine and tried this a few times. It seemed to be effective in shortening the time to throw off a cold. However, she also lost her sense of smell almost completely. I think this was a common result, and that product is off the market.
While limited sense of smell means that is is hard for her to enjoy food, there is an upside for us kids -- when we visit Mom for dinner, the food is a lot spicier than it used to be -- she adds more hot spices so that she can small/taste something.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday March 22 2017, @10:39PM (1 child)
26 Foods High in Zinc [bembu.com]
Spoiler: Dark chocolate, red meat, seafood, seeds, mushrooms, frijoles.
Specific numbers in the article.
(It would have been nice if they had listed them in descending order of zinc value.)
-- OriginalOwner_ [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 1) by Ethanol-fueled on Thursday March 23 2017, @12:21AM
Not surprising to see that Oysters at a highly-variable 16-182 milligrams still beat the fuck out of all challengers. Plus they are tasty and an awesome refreshing snack when you can get your grubby hands on them.
I can easily eat half a dozen, but one time after a surf session I ate a whole dozen. My body felt uncomfortable but later sweating in the sun I started smelling like musk, as if cologne rather than stink was oozing out of my pores.
In supplement form (50 mg a pill) though, it causes extreme stomach discomfort and when taken on an empty stomach with strong coffee I have even vomited uncontrollably a couple times. Even with a full meal zinc supplements can cause mild to moderate discomfort.
(Score: 2) by SlimmPickens on Saturday March 25 2017, @07:12PM
Discovering zinc has been an absolute revelation for me. I don't have time to reference all this, but here goes.
Zinc has other important roles. The zinc finger proteins have diverse and important roles. The rate of neurogenesis in the hippocampus is affected by low zinc levels, affecting memory in another way to that mentioned in TFA. It is also a cofactor for glutathione, an extremely important peptide with powerful antioxidant, detoxification and metal chellating capabilities produced by almost every living cell. A protein called metallothionein that is antioxidant, a metal chellator and in the gut controls microflora also is zinc rich.
For many with a zinc deficiency metalothionein is the reason. Antiobiotics and perhaps wheat disrupt gut microflora, that leads to low zinc absorbtion which in turn leads to less metallothionein creating a vicious cycle.
Typically low zinc levels will not be detected in blood tests because the body uses metallothionein a reserve. Signs of being low on zinc:
- big pores
- acne
- slow healing wounds
- yeast on the tounge and throat
- poorly functioning memory