American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol 42, 688-693, Copyright © 1985 by The American Society for Clinical Nutrition, Inc

ORIGINAL RESEARCH COMMUNICATIONS

The absorption of zinc from a standardized meal in alcoholics and in normal volunteers

WW Dinsmore, ME Callender, D McMaster and AH Love

The mean serum zinc in 30 normal volunteers was 12.8 mumol/l (SE +/- 0.3) and in 30 alcoholic subjects was 10.7 mumol/l (SE +/- 0.6) (p less than 0.005). Postprandial changes in serum zinc were studied in these volunteers and alcoholics who were divided into three groups. After a standardized meal with no added zinc there was a sustained postprandial fall in serum zinc in 10 normal volunteers (23%) and in 10 alcoholic subjects (19%). After a standardized meal supplemented with 25 mg zinc there was a similar rise in postprandial serum zinc concentration in 10 alcoholic subjects and 10 normal volunteers. After a standardized meal supplemented with 50 mg zinc there were lower serum zinc concentrations in 10 alcoholic subjects when compared with 10 normal volunteers. These lower postprandial serum zinc concentrations in alcoholics may suggest a reduced absorptive capacity for zinc in alcoholics.

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