Silicon in Foods: Content and Bioavailability

Abstract

The silicon content of various foodstuffs marketed in Belgium was measured by a validated graphite furnace absorption spectrometric method. Dietary intake has been identified as the major source of silicon. However, data on its bioavailability remain scarce and insufficient. In vitro methods can provide an indication of bioavailability in case of lacking in vivo data. Bioavailability of silicon from different foodstuffs was estimated using an in vitro continuous flow gastroduodenal simulation method. The major food sources of silicon were unrefined grains, cereal products and root vegetables. The availabilities of silicon from, meat, milk and beers were high, whereas low availability was observed for seafood and cereal products. Plotting the availability data versus the total elemental silicon content of the foods revealed an exponential inverse relationship. The inverse relationship between silicon content and silicon availability was found in all foods, with the exception of various silicon containing drinks. Nevertheless, food categories classified as major silicon sources in the diet still appear to provide the highest absolute amounts of available silicon per 100 g of food including breakfast cereals, bread and baking products, and beers.

Silicon biofortification of leafy vegetables and its bioaccessibility in the edible parts

“…On average, the percentage of bioaccessibility for Si in the six species examined was 43 ± 14%, with no differences between Si 100 and Si 0 ; while the levels of silicic acid found in samples of digestion liquids, after the process of in vitro digestion, changed in relation to the digested species. This different bioaccessibility of Si related to the digested matrix, is also reported by other authors . This variability in bioaccessibility was also shown for other mineral elements of plant origin as reported by Bhavyashree et al and Luo et al , and could be attributable to anti‐nutritional factors such as phytate.…”

Instant food products as a source of silicon

“…However the percentage of ''bioavailable'' silicon correlated significantly inversely r = À0.52 (p = 0.0085, Spearman rank correlation test) as we calculated on the basis of results presented in this article. A similar negative correlation has also been shown in the in vitro study of silicon bioavailability using a model of the digestive tract (Robberecht, Van Dyck, Bosscher, & Van Cauwenbergh, 2008).…”

Chocolate and Cocoa Products as A Source of Essential Elements in Nutrition

“…Silicon is also enriched in brans of cereals [23], but its availability seems to be rather low. High uptake rates are achieved from beer and from soups [34]. The availability of silicon from plantbased food is thought to be at 1-2 %, but as high as 40-70% from infant formula and milk.…”