Zinc is the beauty mineral. But you should not only eat foods with zinc regularly to do something good for your skin and hair. Zinc also strengthens the immune system. We show you the best sources of zinc.

Zinc is essential for life – and yet most of us don’t really think about zinc as a nutrient. After all, everyone talks about iron deficiency and how important vitamin C or A are for the body. Zinc, however, is an extremely important trace element that the body cannot produce itself – but absolutely needs. We therefore need to supply it regularly through zinc-containing foods.

How much zinc per day is healthy?

Depending on your diet, it is surprisingly easy to get enough zinc. An adult woman needs about 7-10 mg of zinc a day (pregnant and breastfeeding women need more), men about 11-16 mg, these reference values were published by the Nutrition Society.

Those who pay attention to a balanced and varied diet eat enough zinc-containing foodAd to cover this requirement. Zinc can be found in meat or cheese, for example. But vegetarians and vegans can also cover their zinc needs with oatmeal, whole wheat grains, nuts or seeds. However, the body can utilise zinc from animal foods better.

Good to know :
Certain food components cause increased zinc absorption in the intestine. These include vitamin C and proteins from animal foods. Vegetarians in particular can increase their zinc intake by cleverly combining their foods. Our tip: simply add a squeeze of lemon juice to your food, or combine zinc-containing foods of plant origin with animal protein such as eggs, yoghurt, etc.

Good reasons to eat foods containing zinc

Zinc performs small miracles in the body. For one thing, it ensures that skin and hair look beautiful – something many women and men wish for. In addition, zinc is a valuable helper in warding off germs because it strengthens the immune system. So anyone who frequently suffers from colds should make sure to take not only the classic portion of vitamin C, but also zinc. Zinc is also involved in numerous metabolic processes.

Typical symptoms of zinc deficiency are: Lack of drive, weight loss, lack of concentration or increased susceptibility to diseases. Hair loss or skin problems can also indicate a zinc deficiency.

Foods containing zinc: List of the best sources of zinc

Oysters contain the most zinc

When it comes to zinc-containing foods, oysters are by far the absolute front-runner. A 100 g portion of oysters contains 22 mg of zinc! Other seafood can’t even come close to keeping up: 100 g of scallops only contain around 2 mg of zinc and crabs just 2.2 mg per 100 g.

Zinc in food: Cereals and pulses

Most people eat wheat as flour, which is processed into bread or pasta. In this form, however, it contains very little zinc. As wheat germ or even wheat bran, things look quite different.

• 100 g wheat germ: 8.6 mg zinc
• 100 g wheat bran: 9 mg zinc

In everyday life, wild rice is a great side dish for all kinds of dishes. This is worthwhile because wild rice provides an impressive 6 mg of zinc per 100 g.

If you eat a portion of oatmeal for breakfast every day, you are doing your body a real favour. The breakfast cereals not only contain a lot of iron and protein, but also have a high zinc content. 100 g of oatmeal contains 4 mg of zinc. The other cereals can’t keep up with that.

Among the legumes, soybeans are in first place as far as zinc content is concerned:

• 100 g soybeans: 4.2 mg zinc
• 100 g lentils: 3.4 mg zinc

Did you know? Legumes like lentils not only contain a lot of zinc, but also plenty of iron! So they should be a regular part of your diet.

Here you can find zinc-containing beauty products for skin & hair

Zinc in food: Meat and liver

When it comes to zinc-rich foods, meat is generally a good source. Veal and beef are particularly rich in zinc, with up to 4.8 mg of zinc per 100 g. Roast rump steak provides the most zinc, 5.9 mg per 100 g.

If you like to eat liver, you should go ahead and eat it if this delicacy is on the menu and you want to do something for your immune system. Liver is a very good source of zinc:

• 100 g calf’s liver: 6.1 mg zinc
• 100 g lamb liver: 3.9 mg zinc
• 100 g beef liver: 4.8 mg zinc
• 100 g chicken liver: 3.2 mg zinc

• 100 g leg of lamb: 3.7 mg zinc
• 100 g medium-fat pork: 2.3 mg zinc
• 100 g chicken wings: 1.3 mg zinc

Seeds and nuts contain zinc

Seeds and kernels not only provide a lot of magnesium, they also contain quite a bit of zinc. The front-runners are pumpkin and sunflower seeds, and among the seeds, sesame and poppy seeds.

• 100 g pumpkin seeds: 6.1 mg zinc
• 100 g sunflower seeds: 5.7 mg zinc
• 100 g pine nuts: 4.2 mg zinc
• 100 g poppy seeds: 8 mg zinc
• 100 g sesame seeds: 7.7 mg zinc
• 100 g chia seeds: 4.6 mg zinc

Ednuts, walnuts or cashews: With the huge variety of nuts, Brazil nuts get a little lost. But we should eat them more often, because they contain a lot of zinc. 100 g contain 4 mg of zinc. However, the pecan nut, which is so popular in the USA, is the front-runner with around 5.3 mg of zinc per 100 g. The other types of nuts contain a little more zinc.

The other nut varieties contain somewhat less zinc:

• 100 g cashews: 2.1 mg zinc
• 100 g peanuts: 2.8 mg zinc
• 100 g hazelnuts: 1.9 mg zinc
• 100 g walnuts: 2.7 mg zinc
• 100 g almonds: 2.2 mg zinc

Mmh… Cheese contains a lot of zinc!

Fancy a cheese sandwich? Bring it on! Cheese belongs to the group of foods containing zinc. However, the amount of zinc varies greatly from variety to variety. Hard and blue cheeses have a significantly higher zinc content than fresh cheeses, for example.

• 100 g Parmesan (45 % fat): 5.8 mg zinc
• 100 g blue cheese (50 % fat): 5 mg zinc
• 100 g Allgäu hard cheese: 4.1 mg zinc
• 100 g butter cheese (30 % fat): 4.7 mg zinc
• 100 g Emmental cheese: 5.8 mg zinc
• 100 g Gouda: 4.2 mg zinc