Zinc vs Selenium for Perimenopause: Which Supplement Helps More?
Comparing zinc and selenium supplements for perimenopause. Covers thyroid support, hair loss, immune function, skin health, dosing limits, and food sources vs pills.
Trace Minerals With a Big Role in Hormonal Health
Zinc and selenium are trace minerals: the body needs them in small amounts but cannot function without them. Both play roles in thyroid hormone metabolism, immune function, antioxidant defence, and tissue repair. During perimenopause, when hormonal shifts affect multiple body systems simultaneously, deficiencies in either mineral can worsen symptoms that might otherwise be moderated. Hair thinning, immune vulnerability, fatigue, and skin changes are all influenced by zinc and selenium status. However, the two minerals have different primary functions, different safe dosing ranges, and different risk profiles for over-supplementation. This comparison helps you understand what each does and whether you need one, the other, or neither.
Thyroid Support: Both Minerals Are Involved
The thyroid is one area where both zinc and selenium play significant roles. Selenium is essential for the enzymes (deiodinases) that convert the inactive thyroid hormone T4 into the active form T3. Low selenium impairs this conversion and can produce symptoms of hypothyroidism even when thyroid hormone production is normal. Zinc is required for thyroid hormone receptor binding and for the synthesis of thyroid-stimulating hormone. Deficiency in either mineral can therefore contribute to thyroid dysfunction or worsen an existing condition. Given how commonly hypothyroidism and perimenopause overlap in women over 40, and given how similar their symptoms are, ensuring adequate intake of both minerals is a reasonable baseline.
Hair Loss and Hair Thinning
Hair thinning during perimenopause is driven by multiple factors: falling estrogen, rising androgen relative to estrogen, nutritional gaps, and sometimes thyroid dysfunction. Zinc plays a direct role in hair follicle function, cell division, and protein synthesis required for hair growth. Low zinc is a recognised cause of hair shedding. Selenium deficiency can also contribute to hair loss, though the relationship is less direct and more commonly mediated through thyroid function. Importantly, excess selenium also causes hair loss, making it one of the minerals where over-supplementing can create the exact problem you are trying to solve. Both minerals are best obtained primarily through food, with supplementation reserved for confirmed or likely deficiency.
Immune Function and Skin Health
Zinc has a well-established role in immune function: it supports the production and activity of immune cells, promotes wound healing, and acts as a cofactor for hundreds of enzymes involved in cellular repair. It also contributes to skin integrity and the regulation of skin oil production, which is why zinc is used in treatments for acne and wound healing. Selenium acts primarily as an antioxidant via the enzyme glutathione peroxidase, reducing oxidative stress and supporting immune cell activity. During the inflammatory changes that can accompany perimenopause, selenium's antioxidant role may be relevant. However, the evidence for selenium supplementation improving immune function in women who are not deficient is limited.
Dosing Limits and Toxicity Risk
This is the area where caution is most warranted. The tolerable upper intake level for zinc is 40mg per day for adults. Many over-the-counter zinc supplements contain 25 to 50mg per tablet. Chronic excess zinc interferes with copper absorption and can cause immune suppression, nausea, and reduced HDL cholesterol. More is not better. For selenium, the tolerable upper intake level is just 400 micrograms per day, and many high-dose supplements approach this. Selenosis from chronic over-supplementation causes hair loss, nail brittleness, garlic breath, neurological symptoms, and in severe cases, kidney and cardiac damage. Many people already get adequate selenium from food, particularly if they eat Brazil nuts (a single nut contains around 70 to 90 micrograms). Avoid combining multiple supplements containing selenium without checking total intake.
Food Sources vs Supplementation
Before reaching for supplements, consider whether dietary sources can cover your needs. Zinc is found in red meat, shellfish (particularly oysters, which are very high), legumes, nuts, seeds, and dairy. Vegetarians and vegans are at higher risk of zinc deficiency because phytates in plant foods reduce absorption. Selenium content in food depends heavily on the soil in which food is grown. UK and European soils tend to be low in selenium, which means dietary intake through plant foods is often lower in these regions. Brazil nuts, tuna, sardines, eggs, and organ meats are reliable selenium sources. A standard blood test can check zinc and selenium levels if you suspect deficiency, and supplementing based on a confirmed result is more targeted than routine supplementation.
Putting It Together for Perimenopause
For most perimenopausal women, the priority is to ensure adequate baseline intake through a varied diet, with supplementation added only when there is a specific reason to suspect deficiency. If you have hair thinning, fatigue, and symptoms suggesting thyroid issues, asking your GP for thyroid function and nutrient blood tests is more precise than supplementing speculatively. If you choose to supplement, zinc at 10 to 25mg elemental per day and selenium at 50 to 200 micrograms per day are reasonable ranges that stay well below toxicity thresholds. Do not take both minerals at the same time of day: zinc and selenium can compete for absorption. And read labels on multivitamins carefully: many already contain both, which means adding separate supplements creates unintended doubling. Tracking your symptom patterns over time makes it easier to assess whether any supplement change is making a real difference.
Related reading
Get your personalized daily plan
Track symptoms, match workouts to your day type, and build a routine that adapts with you through every phase of perimenopause.