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ARS Home » Plains Area » Grand Forks, North Dakota » Grand Forks Human Nutrition Research Center » Dietary Prevention of Obesity-related Disease Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #265726

Title: Growing evidence for human health benefits of boron

Author
item Nielsen, Forrest - Frosty
item MEACHAM, SUSAN - UNIVERSITY OF NEVADA

Submitted to: Evidence-based Complementary and Alternative Medicine
Publication Type: Review Article
Publication Acceptance Date: 5/1/2011
Publication Date: 5/9/2011
Citation: Nielsen, F.H., Meacham, S. 2011. Growing evidence for human health benefits of boron. Evidence-based Complementary and Alternative Medicine. 16(3) 169-180.

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: Growing evidence from numerous laboratories using a variety of experimental models shows that boron is a bioactive beneficial, perhaps essential, element for humans. Reported beneficial actions of boron include arthritis alleviation or risk reduction; bone growth and maintenance; central nervous system function; cancer risk reduction; hormone facilitation; and immune response, inflammation and oxidative stress modulation. The diverse effects of boron indicate that it is influencing the formation and/or activity of an entity that is involved in many biochemical processes. Formation of boroesters with the ribose moiety of compounds involved in numerous reactions, such as S-adenosylmethionine and oxidized nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+) might be the reason for boron bioactivity. Both animal and human data suggest that boron intakes should be >1.0 mg/day. Many people consume less than this amount. Thus, a low boron intake should be considered a health concern, which diets rich in fruits, vegetables, nuts and pulses can prevent.