ABSTRACT
Staple grain is one of the major sources of daily Selenium (Se) intake of rural residents in China. In this chapter, the authors conduct a survey on residents’ staple food consumption characteristics and assessed daily Se intake from staple food of residents in four Kaschin-Beck disease (KBD)-endemic counties of Lhasa, Tibet. Se concentrations were measured in the samples by hydride generation-atomic fluorescence spectrometry. For quality control, accuracy was guaranteed by using certified reference materials. The increased intake of exogenous rice and flour with high Se contents had a positive significance for enhancing Se intake of local residents in Lhasa KBD endemic area. However, the consumption amount of local low Se staple foods was relatively high, especially in elder group. Average daily Se intake of surveyed residents was 8.30 µg from staple foods in KBD endemic area in Lhasa. There is insufficient information available on the residents’ daily Se intake in the KBD-affected area of Tibet.
