Glaxo Pulls Poligrip from Shelves Over Zinc Concerns

Usually you come here to find out how you can improve your body’s function.  And usually, that involves increasing your intake of certain vitamins and minerals.

Well leave it to GlaxoSmithKline, the pharmaceutical drug maker that’s had a steady stream of negative publicity lately, to teach consumers why dosing with too much of a certain mineral can be just as dangerous as too little of a certain mineral.

Because of an increasing number of complaints regarding their Poligrip denture cream causing neurological damage and blood problems, GlaxoSmithKline is phasing out the product that senior citizens have used for decades.

The reason?  Poligrip contains zinc.

Now, zinc in and of itself is not a bad thing.  To the contrary, zinc is essential for any number of important functions, including the function of a healthy prostate and the reproductive system’s function.  Zinc promotes wound healing as well.  And if you want your body to absorb key nutrients like vitamin E, zinc is something your body simply cannot do without.

The problem, though, is that a lot of foods contain zinc.  That’s a good thing normally, but not for people who are already sufficient in zinc and use Poligrip denture cream on top of their zinc-rich diet.

Health experts say the recommended levels for zinc supplementation is between eight and 11 milligrams, depending on gender and activity level.

How much zinc does Poligrip denture cream contain?  Try 38 milligrams per ounce!

Now, in GlaxoSmithKline’s defense, it doesn’t take much cream for dentures to become adhesive.  In other words, a lot of people were using the cream rather indiscriminately and loading up their dentures with cream, some going through an entire tube in a week’s time.  One tube is supposed to last between eight and 10 weeks.

But where Glaxo fell down on the job is in adequately informing their consumers that excessive zinc can pose a health risk.  Researchers from the University of Texas Southwestern confirmed this in 2008 when results of testing found that excessive amounts of zinc emptied the body of copper.  Among many other functions, copper is an essential mineral for proper immune system function, but similar to zinc, copper consumed in excess can lead to health complications (More than 10 milligrams of copper daily is toxic.

The phasing out of Poligrip’s denture cream with zinc has other denture cream makers on notice, like Proctor and Gamble’s Fixodent.  Fixodent’s cream, however, has half the amount of zinc that Poligrip has (i.e. ounce for ounce).  Proctor and Gamble don’t plan on phasing out their zinc-infused denture cream.

The 75 lawsuits against Glaxo alleging health damages are mainly related to nerve damage.

In the meantime, if you think you may be getting too much zinc and use denture cream, Vitanetonline offers a safe alternative that’s zinc-free.

Let this serve as a lesson to everyone that supplements with zinc.  Pay attention to your diet; you may be getting all the zinc you need from the foods you eat. Some of the richest food sources for zinc are crimini mushrooms (e.g. five ounces=1.5 milligrams), lean beef (four ounces of venison=3.1 milligrams) and spinach (one cup=1.4 milligrams).

Sources
whfoods.com
newsmaxhealth.com
voices.washingtonpost.com
lenntech.com