Eric O. Uthus

The mineral nickel has become a very important part of our daily lives. It is a major component of stainless steel, used to make pots, pans and flatware. Coins contain nickel. And it is used in many other ways that affect our daily lives, including nickel-cadmium batteries for such things as cell phones, computers, and cordless tools. Nickel is also used as a catalyst to harden margarine and to make petroleum products.

Because of the toxicity of certain uncommon forms of nickel, and because some people can develop an allergy to the mineral, some regulatory agencies, especially in Europe, want to severely limit or stop the use of nickel in many consumer products. These agencies consider nickel a toxic element only and want to markedly reduce the exposure to nickel including through diet and water.

But consumer products do not add much to our daily intake of nickel. And research findings at the Grand Forks Human Nutrition Research Center suggests that nickel is an essential nutrient. Thus, caution is needed in trying to reduce the dietary intake of nickel to very low amounts.

Animal studies show that nickel is involved in the body's use of folic acid and vitamin B12. Among their many functions, these vitamins help maintain proper amounts of the amino acid homocysteine. Elevated homocysteine and low levels of folic acid and vitamin B12 have been associated with an increased risk of heart disease. Low intakes of folic acid also have been shown to increase the risk of neural tube defects in babies. More research is needed to determine the extent to which nickel plays a role in these disorders. Nonetheless, it seems prudent to consume a diet that contains ample amount of nickel.

Based on animal studies, it looks like people may need about 25 to 35 micrograms of nickel per day. It's difficult to gauge a safe upper limit because of the nickel allergy issue. For allergic people, daily intakes probably should be less than 600 micrograms. Recently reported intakes of nickel range between 60 and 260 micrograms per day. Thus, most diets probably contain adequate and not excessive amounts of the mineral.

Rich sources of nickel include chocolate, nuts, dried peas and beans, and grains. So diets based on animal foods and high in fats may be low in nickel.

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