Selenium in soils under climate change, implication for human health

Abstract

Global climate changes can alter the suitable geographical range of different crops, leading to possible changes in cropping pattern and its extent in some regions. For example, temperature changes can interact very closely with changes in availability of water and soil nutrients, and crop growth cycle. The consequences of the biophysical impacts of climate changes will be influenced by the human responses to these impacts. There is a strong link between soils and human health, and these soils per se are controlled by climate changes. The human health is very close to both selenium (Se) element and climate changes. It is estimated that about 37–40 % of the total Se emissions to the atmosphere are due to the anthropogenic activities. Those anthropogenic activities, which are sources of Se, include coal and oil combustion, mining activities, the utilization of rock phosphates as a fertilizer and the application of sewage sludge to agricultural land. It was thought that selenium was a toxicant for a long time due to inadequate analytical data. In the recent past, Se has become very important in environmental biogeochemistry because of its influence on human health. Although Se is an essential nutrient for animals and humans, it is also toxic at high doses. Furthermore, the range between Se deficiency, lower than 40 μg day−1, and toxicity, higher than 400 μg day−1, is narrow. Selenium deficiency has been linked to several human diseases including multiple sclerosis, muscular dystrophy, heart disease, immune system, cancer and reproductive disorders. On the other hand, Se toxicity can lead to hair and nail loss and disruption of the nervous and digestive systems in animals and humans. Despite the obvious connections between Se element and human health under climate changes, there has not been a great amount of research done in this area. So, more and more studies should be carried out to enhance and protect human health. Therefore, this article reviews the biological and economic dimensions of the effects of Se element on human health under climate changes.