**Acknowledgements**

**Age Male Female Pregnancy Lactation**

14–18 years 400 mcg 400 mcg 400 mcg 400 mcg 19\* years 400 mcg 400 mcg 400 mcg 400 mcg

**Age Male Female Pregnancy Lactation**

14–18 years 55 mcg 55 mcg 60 mcg 70 mcg 19–50 years 55 mcg 55 mcg 60 mcg 70 mcg

This chapter addressed the main issues referring to the mineral element selenium, its history of discovery, its presence in the soil-plant system and its main functions in mammals and humans, always based on recent scientific findings that can guide students, teachers and researchers in their studies. Also assessed were the mechanisms of absorption, transportation and assimilation of selenium in organic compounds, as well as its biofortifying and toxic effect in plants. Moreover, its essentiality in mammals has been addressed in order to emphasize its importance in food and human health due to its function in the human metabolism. It was therefore sought to present the importance of this nutrient in the plant-human system, and therefore provide information for future studies seeking to clarify other functional aspects of

Birth to 6 months 45 mcg\* 45 mcg\* 7–12 months 60 mcg\* 60 mcg\* 1–3 years 90 mcg 90 mcg 4–8 years 150 mcg 150 mcg 9–13 years 280 mcg 280 mcg

232 Superfood and Functional Food - An Overview of Their Processing and Utilization

**Table 1.** Recommended dietary allowances for selenium.

Birth to 6 months 15 mcg\* 15 mcg\* 7–12 months 20 mcg\* 20 mcg\* 1–3 years 20 mcg 20 mcg 4–8 years 30 mcg 30 mcg 9–13 years 40 mcg 40 mcg

51+ years 55 mcg 55 mcg

**6. Conclusions and future perspectives**

**Table 2.** Tolerable upper intake levels for selenium.

\*Breast milk, formula, and food should be the only sources of selenium for infants.

Source: [79]. \*Adequate Intake (AI).

Source: [79].

selenium in plants.

To the Plant Nutrition Study Group (GenPlant) of the Universidade Estadual Paulista (UN-ESP), Campus Jaboticabal—São Paulo—Brazil, led by Professor Renato de Mello Prado, to UNESP for providing the new doctor scholarship to post-doctoral fellow Flávio José Rodrigues Cruz.
