Serum sample levels of selenium and copper in healthy volunteers living in Rio de Janeiro city

The objective of this study was to analyze the serum sample levels of selenium and copper in healthy volunteers living in the city Rio de Janeiro. Thirty individuals were submitted for nutritional assessment, electrocardiogram, echocardiogram, and serum selenium and copper analysis through hydride generation and flame atomic absorption spectrometry, respectively. The accuracy and precision of these methods were evaluated using certified reference materials. None of the studied individuals was undernourished; 53% were overweight and 13.3% were slightly obese. The mean serum selenium level was 73.18±9.9 μg/l (56.50–94.50 μg/l). Among women it was 76.28±8.7 μg/l and in men 72.23±10.24 μg/l (P=0.35). Among non-white individuals the mean was 73.12±12.57 μg/l and in the white individuals it was 73.20±9.11 μg/l (P=0.98). The mean serum level of copper was 1.09±0.39 mg/l (0.56–1.80 mg/l). The mean found in women was 0.99±0.22 mg/l and in the men 1.13±0.43 mg/l (P=0.42). In non-white individuals it was 1.36±0.48 mg/l and in white individuals was 1.00±0.31 mg/l (P=0.02). The authors concluded that selenium and copper serum levels observed in this study were similar to those found in other cities.