Selenium distribution in the local environment of selected villages of the Keshan Disease belt, Zhangjiakou District, Hebei Province, Peopleʹs Republic of China

The distribution of Se in cultivated topsoils, grains, human hair and drinking water has been studied in 15 villages from a Keshan disease area of the Peopleʹs Republic of China, villages being classified into 3 groups according to the Keshan disease incidence in the local population. In grain, hair and water the total Se follows expected trends; i.e. the highest concentrations are found in the villages where there is no incidence of Keshan disease. However, the soils from the high-incidence Keshan disease villages have the highest total Se content, an apparent contradiction, as Keshan disease is a response to a Se deficient environment. Soil analyses suggest that the organic content of the soils is a major factor in controlling the availability of Se and it is the high-incidence Keshan disease villages that have the most organic-rich soils. Although higher in total Se, the organic-rich soils have little bioavailable Se resulting in a Se deficient food chain. Soil pH is also seen to be a related factor in restricting the availability of Se and all the grain samples collected on soils with a pH <7.6 had a total Se content of less than 10% of the total soil Se. In an environment that can be classified as Se deficient small changes in the soil organic content and pH can have a critical affect on the Keshan disease status of a village.