This blog brings us to our seventh and final substance in our series of major essential minerals, in which we have already covered calcium, chloride, magnesium, phosphorous, potassium, and sodium. This time we focus on sulfur, which is the third most abundant mineral in your body, earning its status as a “major essential mineral.” That’s because of its abundance in our bodies as well as its prominent role in activating enzymes requisite to the performance of bodily tasks that are, as the headline to this blog suggests, “vital” to our overall well-being.
Many of you might never had thought of sulfur – which also is an element found on the periodic table (as “S,” element number 16) – as inside your body serving a healthful purpose, an essential one at that. What makes sulfur seem out of place relative to our bodies is that it is mined primarily as a source for producing sulfuric acid. It’s also used in creating various industrial-like chemicals, for refining petroleum, and as a constituent in fertilizers, pigments, detergents, vulcanized rubber, gunpowder, matches, and pesticides, as well as other uses.
So we’re telling you that sulfur is inside us, aiding and abetting our bodily health? Really? Yes, really.
In terms of your body and health considerations, sulfur can be found in some amino acids that are instrumental in the production of proteins. Among the most prominent among these amino acids are methionine and cysteine, which can provide strength and flexibility to tissues present as components of your skin, hair, and nails.
Sulfur is also present in natural remedies such as glucosamine, chondroitin sulfate and methylsulfonylmethane (the latter better known as MSM), all of which are known for alleviating joint pain and inflammation. These latter traits might have something to do with the fact that collagen, which is a protein that supports tendons, cartilage, bone, and connective tissue, in part depends on MSM (and therefore sulfur) for its manufacture.
Sulfur’s Versatility in Human Health is Impressive
What we have described above about sulfur doesn’t tell the whole story of its adaptability in providing positive health outcomes. As they say in those old TV informercials pitching novelty kitchen items, “Wait, there’s more!” It’s interesting to note that sulfur is pretty much all around us, including being a part of the soil from which much life-sustaining foods sprout. In a similar “organic” manner, the human body also uses sulfur to support other key bodily apparatuses, such as building and repairing DNA and protecting our cells against damage from outside agencies, perhaps to include toxins. Furthermore, this essential mineral also works to manufacture and recycle glutathione, which is an antioxidant that reduces unwanted inflammation and fends off oxidative stress that chases after our cells.
Other possible health functions provided by sulfur-laced supplements include acting as a detoxifying agent for your liver, neutralizing free radicals that produce that oxidative stress we mentioned relative to chronic diseases, and bolstering our metabolism in a positive manner by helping to turn food into energy.
Granted, sulfur doesn’t often play a “leading role” in headlining supplements all its own, but its versatility in playing a supporting role in so many important parts of our health makes it a handy natural remedy to keep around. Hence, the worthiness of its scientific classification as an essential major mineral.
If you haven’t tried using any supplements yet that include sulfur, you are advised to discuss their usage with your personal physician or other licensed healthcare professional to make sure such supplements are suitable for you.