Zinc rich foods
Zinc is an essential trace mineral that is found in almost every cell. There are 2–4 grams of zinc in the human body. It is a part of more than 100 enzymes.
Zinc is important for a healthy immune system, healthy skin, wound healing, taste, and smell, DNA synthesis, and function, and normal growth and development during pregnancy, childhood, and adolescence.
In the brain, zinc plays a key role in the normal functioning of the brain and central nervous system. The body has no zinc storage. More on zinc here.
The recommended intake is 8 mg/day for women and 11 mg/day for men. The Tolerable Upper Intake is 40 mg/day.
Below is a list of foods having the highest content of zinc in milligrams (mg) per 100 grams of the food. The list also includes the number of kilocalories (kcal) and the zinc content in milligrams (mg) per kcal, and the list is sorted with respect to the latter with the highest values at the top.
As you can see there are many foods having a high zinc content per kcal. So if you are lacking in zinc, you could easily correct the deficiency by eating some of these foods. Rather small amounts should be sufficient in most cases.
The list is made using ECstep’s Personal Nutrition Data Program and includes more than 100 of the zinc richest foods. Commercial brand products are not included in this list.
