First off, thanks Danyele, I spent the last 20 minutes learning about selenium - never would have done that othewise
I imagine you've done some reading up on this too, to be asking the question. The following are two links to info on this supplement for those who haven't had that benefit:
Supplementwatch.com on Selenium
Wholehealthmd.com on Selenium
Selenium is a powerful anti oxidant and immune system booster that works in tandem with other anti oxidants in your system to combat free radicals - it has been shown to be particularly efficient in lowering cancer risks, in helping deal with the inflamation of lupus (an auto-immune disease), in helping supress eruptions of shingles and cold sores and in preventing heart attack and stroke.
The most concentrated food source for selenium is the Brazil nut; a single one contains 120 mcg, (which is about twice the RDA). Seafood in general, as well as poultry and meat, are also good sources. So are grains, especially oats and brown rice.
DRI (Dietary Reference Intake) for adults for selenium is 55-70mcg a day and is usually provided for in your daily diet - I checked this out on Fitday.com (under the reports tab) and I average 100mcg a day eating LC. Most multi vitamins will have 20mcg. Supplementing with selenium is suggested at a dose of 100-200mcg with a caution that selenium toxicity can occurr at levels of 900mcg a day.
I can see why you'd ask - a lot of the diseases selenium helps regulate are auto-immune diseases, as is hypothyroidism
I'd suggest checking your multivitamin and checking with
www.fitday.com to see what your daily intake of selenium is and then look to supplementing with it. I know that's what I'm going to do
Nat