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Selenium

Selenium is an essential trace mineral with a narrow therapeutic window — required in microgram quantities for ~25 selenoproteins (glutathione peroxidases, thyroid deiodinases, thioredoxin reductas…

Aliases (3)
SELENIUM · SELENOMETHIONINE · SODIUM SELENITE
TYPICAL DOSE
OR 1 Brazil nut/day
ROUTE
—
CYCLE
—
STORAGE
—

Overview

What is Selenium?

MORNING---

•1000mg fish oil (300mg EPA, 200mg DHA)

•100mg caffeine

•1x naturebell methylated B-complex

•1x sports research D3 K2

•2.5g psyllium fiber

•25mg bromantane oral recently (going to cycle)

•500mg ALCAR sometimes

•750mg L-Citrulline

---NOON---

•1g L-Tyrosine

•750mg L-Citrulline

•2.5g psyllium fiber

•100mg caffeine

•occasionally 250mg citicoline or 400mg alpha-GPC

---EVENING---

•2000-3000mg Agmatine Sulfate

•200-600mg L-Theanine

•1500mg L-Citrulline

•2000mg Magnesium L-Threonate

•1000mg Fish Oil again

•500mg L-Methionine

•2.5g Psyllium Fiber M-W-F:

---MORNING---

•30mg vyvanse (60mg on fridays)

---NOON---

•occasionally 20-40mg 1,3-DMAA

•an extra 750 L-Citrulline

---EVENING---

•500mg NAC

•50mg Zinc

•Swanson ACES (vitamins A, C, E, and selen"

D3, K2, Zinc, Selenium, NAC cycled, Garlic, Ginger, CoQ10+PPQ, Spirulina, Magnesium, Dynamine and more.

I try to cycle most things and have been trying different dosages and combinations, just to get out of the fatigue.

I do walk and hike and yoga and sometimes lift weights. I also try to stay away from overly processed foods and the corn syrups and such lol."

As far as one substance…I don’t think it’s ever just one. It takes a multitude of things. Aniracetam with Alpha GPC is pretty good, though. But then you have Creatine, TMG, Glycine, Green Tea, Dietary Fiber, Probiotics. So many things…it’s never just one substance and that’s all unless your diet is just amazing."

I do recommend the high dose b1.  Alcohol can damage the gut barrier and gut transporters of many  nutrients, especially B1

B1 and Magnesium are needed to metabolize glucose/ fructose/ alcohol/ carbs etc.

Beri beri is the B1 deficiency and your symptoms of ME/CFS are likely beri beri of the brain.

Taking high dose fat soluble B1 as allithiamine / ttfd requires cofactors of the special forms of magenisum to pass the BBB.  Potassium is needed as well.

Hormonesmatter website has good info on this and also the potential high dose b1 TTFD paradox reaction where symptoms get worse before better.

Basically TTFD is released in the cell using the cells glutathione stores.

The glutathione will become depleted from this action.

 Active B2 R5P, NADPH, Selenium are needed "

Lipoic acid gets converted to DHLA, a dithiol (2x SH) chelator of mercury (Hg). It has the ability to move mercury across the typically protective blood brain barrier in mice, and presumably in humans too.

https://web.archive.org/web/20130622031859/http:/lpi.oregonstate.edu/infocenter/othernuts/la/lastructure.html

Andy Cutler, PhD Chemistry, author on the subject of heavy metal detox is interesting on this subject. This is from a post he wrote in a discussion about the study of inorganic mercury and lipoic acid in mice by Gregus, et al.

*> It also says that when the ALA was given 1-24 hours after the mercury was given that the "

  • sourceThread: "r/NooTopics" permalink: "https://www.reddit.com/r/NooTopics/comments/1r34fl4/supplements_for_7oh_off_days/o53rrn5/" score: 2 createdAt: "2026-02-13T03:43:59Z" authorHandle: "fa9336d9" isOriginalPoster: false isPostBody: false postTitle: null wordCount: 252 excerpt: "Such an underrated supplement/herbal extract. I admittedly have a kratom addiction/dependence and it’s known to potentiate the effects and help with interdose withdrawal but I feel a noticeable mood lift and energy boost from high dose thymoquinone on its own.

The typical effective dose for me is 50-90mg on an empty stomach or with a tiny bit of fat, I use a potent version of actual black seed oil these days but I’ve had similar results with powdered extract capsules and soft gels.

I don’t want to jinx it but nowadays I only catch a cold or virus once or twice a year max. I live in a college town and there’s constant illnesses floating around. It’s very likely that my stack written below is doing a lot of the heavy lifting:

Two servings of black seed oil/thymoquinone daily.

taurine ("

  • sourceThread: "r/NooTopics" permalink: "https://www.reddit.com/r/NooTopics/comments/1omiexr/sulforaphane_microplastics_detox_protocol/nv2isp3/" score: 2 createdAt: "2025-12-20T18:28:15Z" authorHandle: "29b98662" isOriginalPoster: false isPostBody: false postTitle: null wordCount: 35 excerpt: "selenium can \indirectly\ activate Nrf2, but it’s not a direct Nrf2 agonist like sulforaphane and, in general, only works in situations of stress or deficiency, while sulforaphane directly activates Nrf2 despite other conditions or factors."
  • sourceThread: "r/NooTopics" permalink: "https://www.reddit.com/r/NooTopics/comments/1opy4il/your_favorite_antioxidants/nni7g03/" score: 2 createdAt: "2025-11-06T23:17:03Z" authorHandle: "2f8af48a" isOriginalPoster: false isPostBody: false postTitle: null wordCount: 99 excerpt: "Don't speak without looking shit up man. You're just wrong. Sulphoraphane is indeed based but astaxanthin also enhances endogenous antioxidant defenses. it's like the primary mechanism.

Other antioxidants, similarly, often work this way. eg quercetin, MSM, selenium yeast, etc.

Vitamin C and E suck dick though. They're more along the lines of just being scavengers (dangerous, unselective). And NAC is good sometimes but as a daily driver probably not. It's got toxicity concerns that other options don't suffer from. If you do take it, adding glycine is a good move (glycine becomes rate-limited in glutathione synthesis with adequate cysteine)."

it has the molybdenium and selenium that make Glycine and Nac work its magic."

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35975308/

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0BBSJNYC3/

either way, 1200mg a day is a huge dose already and 2400 is nutty."

If using selenium, why not add iodine? They work together well. (Your chat GPT will love this stack! 😉)"

My very elderly parents and I have been taking at least 100mcg--typically closer to 200mcg--daily for 15-20 years.

Selenium binds with heavy metals quite well. While bound to Se the HMs are not tearing up the coating of your brain cells leaving the neurotangles of Alzheimer's as seen in this short clip from the U of Calgary.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BtFsy0rQsak&t=108s

Se probably should be taken by most people on synthroid T4 meds because Se is vital for conversion of T4 to the more active T3. T3 is a bit of an antidepressant and depression is linked with heavy metal toxicity. So no brainer to take Se if one struggles with depression.

Se works with" discordAnecdotes:

  • sourceServer: "Spidikor's Lair" sourceChannel: "general-discussion" permalink: "https://discord.com/channels/1449991115213242504/1449991118593986633/1501171182278410362" timestamp: "2026-05-05T06:38:20.267-04:00" authorHandle: "bf4e3dc4" authorIsBot: false wordCount: 13 reactionCount: 1 excerpt: "I'm not rly worried when eating skipjack tuna. Selenium probably attenuates the effect" attribution: sources:
    • name: "dopamine.club" role: "community aggregate stats, dose distribution, stack synergies, AI-seeded interactions" url: "https://dopamine.club/substances/selenium/"
    • name: "reddit" role: "paragraph-level community anecdotes" url: "https://reddit.com" text: "Aggregated from creator-curated and community sources. Verify dose, sourcing, and safety before use."

=== community-data-block:end ===

MORNING---

•1000mg fish oil (300mg EPA, 200mg DHA)

•100mg caffeine

•1x naturebell methylated B-complex

•1x sports research D3 K2

•2.5g psyllium fiber

•25mg bromantane oral recently (going to cycle)

•500mg ALCAR sometimes

•750mg L-Citrulline

---NOON---

•1g L-Tyrosine

•750mg L-Citrulline

•2.5g psyllium fiber

•100mg caffeine

•occasionally 250mg citicoline or 400mg alpha-GPC

---EVENING---

•2000-3000mg Agmatine Sulfate

•200-600mg L-Theanine

•1500mg L-Citrulline

•2000mg Magnesium L-Threonate

•1000mg Fish Oil again

•500mg L-Methionine

•2.5g Psyllium Fiber M-W-F:

---MORNING---

•30mg vyvanse (60mg on fridays)

---NOON---

•occasionally 20-40mg 1,3-DMAA

•an extra 750 L-Citrulline

---EVENING---

•500mg NAC

•50mg Zinc

•Swanson ACES (vitamins A, C, E, and selen"

D3, K2, Zinc, Selenium, NAC cycled, Garlic, Ginger, CoQ10+PPQ, Spirulina, Magnesium, Dynamine and more.

I try to cycle most things and have been trying different dosages and combinations, just to get out of the fatigue.

I do walk and hike and yoga and sometimes lift weights. I also try to stay away from overly processed foods and the corn syrups and such lol."

As far as one substance…I don’t think it’s ever just one. It takes a multitude of things. Aniracetam with Alpha GPC is pretty good, though. But then you have Creatine, TMG, Glycine, Green Tea, Dietary Fiber, Probiotics. So many things…it’s never just one substance and that’s all unless your diet is just amazing."

I do recommend the high dose b1.  Alcohol can damage the gut barrier and gut transporters of many  nutrients, especially B1

B1 and Magnesium are needed to metabolize glucose/ fructose/ alcohol/ carbs etc.

Beri beri is the B1 deficiency and your symptoms of ME/CFS are likely beri beri of the brain.

Taking high dose fat soluble B1 as allithiamine / ttfd requires cofactors of the special forms of magenisum to pass the BBB.  Potassium is needed as well.

Hormonesmatter website has good info on this and also the potential high dose b1 TTFD paradox reaction where symptoms get worse before better.

Basically TTFD is released in the cell using the cells glutathione stores.

The glutathione will become depleted from this action.

 Active B2 R5P, NADPH, Selenium are needed "

Lipoic acid gets converted to DHLA, a dithiol (2x SH) chelator of mercury (Hg). It has the ability to move mercury across the typically protective blood brain barrier in mice, and presumably in humans too.

https://web.archive.org/web/20130622031859/http:/lpi.oregonstate.edu/infocenter/othernuts/la/lastructure.html

Andy Cutler, PhD Chemistry, author on the subject of heavy metal detox is interesting on this subject. This is from a post he wrote in a discussion about the study of inorganic mercury and lipoic acid in mice by Gregus, et al.

*> It also says that when the ALA was given 1-24 hours after the mercury was given that the "

  • sourceThread: "r/NooTopics" permalink: "https://www.reddit.com/r/NooTopics/comments/1r34fl4/supplements_for_7oh_off_days/o53rrn5/" score: 2 createdAt: "2026-02-13T03:43:59Z" authorHandle: "fa9336d9" isOriginalPoster: false isPostBody: false postTitle: null wordCount: 252 excerpt: "Such an underrated supplement/herbal extract. I admittedly have a kratom addiction/dependence and it’s known to potentiate the effects and help with interdose withdrawal but I feel a noticeable mood lift and energy boost from high dose thymoquinone on its own.

The typical effective dose for me is 50-90mg on an empty stomach or with a tiny bit of fat, I use a potent version of actual black seed oil these days but I’ve had similar results with powdered extract capsules and soft gels.

I don’t want to jinx it but nowadays I only catch a cold or virus once or twice a year max. I live in a college town and there’s constant illnesses floating around. It’s very likely that my stack written below is doing a lot of the heavy lifting:

Two servings of black seed oil/thymoquinone daily.

taurine ("

  • sourceThread: "r/NooTopics" permalink: "https://www.reddit.com/r/NooTopics/comments/1omiexr/sulforaphane_microplastics_detox_protocol/nv2isp3/" score: 2 createdAt: "2025-12-20T18:28:15Z" authorHandle: "29b98662" isOriginalPoster: false isPostBody: false postTitle: null wordCount: 35 excerpt: "selenium can \indirectly\ activate Nrf2, but it’s not a direct Nrf2 agonist like sulforaphane and, in general, only works in situations of stress or deficiency, while sulforaphane directly activates Nrf2 despite other conditions or factors."
  • sourceThread: "r/NooTopics" permalink: "https://www.reddit.com/r/NooTopics/comments/1opy4il/your_favorite_antioxidants/nni7g03/" score: 2 createdAt: "2025-11-06T23:17:03Z" authorHandle: "2f8af48a" isOriginalPoster: false isPostBody: false postTitle: null wordCount: 99 excerpt: "Don't speak without looking shit up man. You're just wrong. Sulphoraphane is indeed based but astaxanthin also enhances endogenous antioxidant defenses. it's like the primary mechanism.

Other antioxidants, similarly, often work this way. eg quercetin, MSM, selenium yeast, etc.

Vitamin C and E suck dick though. They're more along the lines of just being scavengers (dangerous, unselective). And NAC is good sometimes but as a daily driver probably not. It's got toxicity concerns that other options don't suffer from. If you do take it, adding glycine is a good move (glycine becomes rate-limited in glutathione synthesis with adequate cysteine)."

it has the molybdenium and selenium that make Glycine and Nac work its magic."

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35975308/

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0BBSJNYC3/

either way, 1200mg a day is a huge dose already and 2400 is nutty."

If using selenium, why not add iodine? They work together well. (Your chat GPT will love this stack! 😉)"

My very elderly parents and I have been taking at least 100mcg--typically closer to 200mcg--daily for 15-20 years.

Selenium binds with heavy metals quite well. While bound to Se the HMs are not tearing up the coating of your brain cells leaving the neurotangles of Alzheimer's as seen in this short clip from the U of Calgary.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BtFsy0rQsak&t=108s

Se probably should be taken by most people on synthroid T4 meds because Se is vital for conversion of T4 to the more active T3. T3 is a bit of an antidepressant and depression is linked with heavy metal toxicity. So no brainer to take Se if one struggles with depression.

Se works with" discordAnecdotes:

  • sourceServer: "Spidikor's Lair" sourceChannel: "general-discussion" permalink: "https://discord.com/channels/1449991115213242504/1449991118593986633/1501171182278410362" timestamp: "2026-05-05T06:38:20.267-04:00" authorHandle: "bf4e3dc4" authorIsBot: false wordCount: 13 reactionCount: 1 excerpt: "I'm not rly worried when eating skipjack tuna. Selenium probably attenuates the effect" attribution: sources:
    • name: "dopamine.club" role: "community aggregate stats, dose distribution, stack synergies, AI-seeded interactions" url: "https://dopamine.club/substances/selenium/"
    • name: "reddit" role: "paragraph-level community anecdotes" url: "https://reddit.com" text: "Aggregated from creator-curated and community sources. Verify dose, sourcing, and safety before use."

=== community-data-block:end ===

Selenium

Pharmacokinetics

—·—
PeakHalf-life
Approximate curve — visual aid only, not data-precise PK

Research Protocols

Disclaimer: These are commonly discussed research protocols and not medical advice.

Goal:High-dose vitamin C (>500 mg) at the same time as selenite/selenate
Dose:—
Frequency:—
Solo:—
Cycle:—

Peptide Interactions

Iodine.
Synergistic

Co-cofactor for thyroid hormone synthesis (iodine builds T4, selenium activates T4→T3). The two together are the canonical "thyroid support" pairing. Caution…

Vitamin E.
Synergistic

Both are membrane antioxidants — selenium-dependent GPx4 reduces lipid peroxides that vitamin E (α-tocopherol) helps prevent forming. Mild biochemical synerg…

Zinc + selenium
Synergistic

(dopamine.club's #1 stacking partner, 317 co-mentions). Both trace minerals, both essential, both immune-relevant. No specific pharmacological synergy beyond…

NAC / glutathione precursors
Synergistic

(#6, 154 co-mentions). GPx requires reduced glutathione as substrate — selenium without adequate GSH is a partial implementation. NAC provides cysteine for G…

Copper.
Synergistic

Selenoprotein P binds copper; selenium and copper homeostasis are interlinked. Most adults are copper-replete. The dopamine.club #7 partner (copper, 153 co-m…

High-dose vitamin C
Avoid

at same time as selenite/selenate (reduces selenium to unabsorbable form). Selenomethionine unaffected. Workaround: separate by ≥2 hours, or use selenomethio…

Statin / chemotherapy contexts:
Avoid

Selenium can interfere with chemo-induced ROS-mediated cytotoxicity (theoretical concern); discuss with oncologist. Some selenium chemotherapy-co-administrat…

Anticoagulants:
Avoid

Mild theoretical antiplatelet effect at high doses; clinically minor at therapeutic intakes.

What to Expect

  • Week 1
    Tolerability and dose-response.
  • Week 2-4
    Early effect window.
  • Week 4-8
    Peak benefit assessment.
  • Week 8+
    Cycle decision point.

Side Effects & Safety

When to Stop

  • None at "felt" level in most users. The dopamine.club aggregate side-effect counts (fatigue, brain-fog, insomnia, anxiety, headache, GI upset, 17-36 mentions each across 583 reports) are mostly non-specific nocebo / co-supplement signal at this dose.
  • Subclinical / early selenosis signals:
  • Mild garlic-odor breath
  • White transverse banding on nails (mees lines)
  • Slight hair shedding
  • T2D risk signal (SELECT, Stranges 2007, Vinceti 2018 meta-analysis): roughly 1.5× HR for incident T2D in supplemented selenium-replete adults vs. placebo. Effect appears stronger in those with already-high baseline selenium.
  • Possible prostate cancer aggressiveness in already-replete men — SELECT subgroup analysis raised concern about high-grade prostate cancer in men with already-adequate baseline; not definitively established but supports the "don't supplement if replete" rule.
  • Garlic-odor breath (dimethyl selenide exhalation)
  • Hair loss / brittle nails / nail thickening + transverse banding (hallmark)
  • Dermatitis, skin rash
  • Peripheral neuropathy (paresthesias, motor weakness, areflexia in severe cases)
  • GI symptoms (nausea, vomiting, diarrhea)
  • Hepatic dysfunction (transaminitis) in severe cases
  • Neuropsychiatric (irritability, lassitude)
  • Reversible on discontinuation — but slowly, over 3-6 months (long half-life of stored protein-bound Se).
  • Brief case-report cluster, 2008: a mislabeled liquid supplement contained 200× the labeled selenium dose; 201 cases reported, including hair loss, nail damage, peripheral neuropathy, fatigue. Reversible.
  • 2024 case reports of Brazil-nut megadosing (10+ nuts/day) producing selenosis with hair loss + GI symptoms.
  • Lethal dose: ~1-5 g acute (deliberate poisoning territory). Industrial / agricultural exposure context.
  • First 8-12 weeks of supplementation — onset of GI tolerance issues if going to occur (uncommon).
  • First 3 months — first reassessment of TPO-Ab response (Hashimoto's use case).
  • 6-12 months — first check for selenosis signs (nails, breath, hair) if chronically dosing ≥200 mcg/day.
  • Annually — serum selenium check if chronically supplementing or eating ≥1 Brazil nut/day.
  • T2D / pre-diabetes — relative contraindication; consider not supplementing.
  • Kidney disease — selenium accumulates with reduced renal clearance; halve dose or discontinue.
  • Pregnancy — RDA 60 mcg/day; do not exceed 200 mcg/day during pregnancy. Selenium crosses placenta and is required for fetal development; deficiency raises pre-eclampsia risk, but excess is also harmful.
  • Already eating Brazil nuts regularly — do not stack with capsules.

References

Lippman 2009. SELECT trial — selenium + vitamin E and prostate cancer (PMID 19066370, JAMA)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov · 2009

closed prostate-cancer hypothesis

View Study

Huwiler 2024. Selenium in Hashimoto's: SR/MA of 35 RCTs (PMID 38243784, Thyroid)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov · 2024

strongest pooled evidence

View Study

Gärtner 2002. Selenium in autoimmune thyroiditis decreases TPO-Ab (PMID 11932302, JCEM)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov · 2002

foundational RCT

View Study

Marcocci 2011. Selenium and mild Graves' orbitopathy (PMID 21591944, NEJM)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov · 2011

EUGOGO protocol basis

View Study

Rayman 2012. Selenium and human health (PMID 22381456, Lancet)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov · 2012

canonical narrative review, U-shaped curve

View Study
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Cross-referenced from Selenium
Iodine
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MEDIUM
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Essential mineral / divalent cation cofactor for >300 enzymes / NMDA voltage-dependent gatekeeper / Ca²⁺ antagonist
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