We all have hourglass figures;   

Your sand just settles in different places.   

 Octavia Spencer      

 Silicon (Si) is the eighth most common element in the world, and the second most common element in soil (oxygen is first).  The majority of naturally occurring Si is present in highly stable minerals as silica and silicates--think sand. These minerals are highly stable, resistant to dissolving into chemical forms that could be absorbed by the gastrointestinal tract, in other words, not bio-available.  Si is beneficial in many ways to the life cycle of plants and is an essential component in their cell walls supporting structural integrity of plant growth.  Turns out it’s an important component in our skeleton and connective tissue as well.   There’s no official recommended daily allowance for silicon, but the figure 25 mg/day has been thrown out recently as a good guess.  Here are suggestions to reach that goal. 

 Si food content is highest in whole grains, vegetables, and....beer.  So what’s good for breakfast?  A standard serving of oatmeal is ½ cup of oats with a silica content of 10 mg.  For lunch?  Nothing more satisfying, or perhaps disappointing, than sitting down to a cup’s worth of steamed green beans, another 10 mg.  If you’re a fan of India Pale Ale, rejoice at happy hour because a can of IPA delivers 18 mg.  These suggestions are based on information from various web-sites found when searching for “foods high in sililca.”  As noted above, however, that which resides in plants and beer (which is made from plants) is not necessarily bio-available.   

 Researchers in the UK, well-apprised of the Si content of various substances, set out to examine just how much is really absorbed through the GI tract in fasting, healthy test subjects.  A number of high Si-containing substances were tested, including 1) OSA or ortho-silicic acid found in small amounts in soil and naturally in water , 2) monomethyl silanetriol or MMST available as a supplement called LivingSilica, 3) bananas, 4) green beans, 5) choline stabilized OSA (CH-OSA) which also comes as a supplement called Biosil,  and 6) alcohol-free beer.  Absorption, based on testing urinary excretion of Si post-ingestion, was highest for MMST and alcohol free beer (64%) followed by green beans (44 %), OSA (43 %), ChOSA (17 %), and bananas (4%).    

 Si not only is incorporated into bone matrix but also contributes to collagen formation which promotes teeth, strong nails, thick hair, and skin that does not so easily give way to gravity as the years go by.  Brittle fingernails and receding gums are two clues to bone loss.  Aging is a risk factor for decreasing bone density as is a personal history of fracture, a history of osteoporosis or fractures in one’s mother, smoking, and low body weight.  Besides eating vegetables, grains, and maybe drinking beer--but not too much please--if you have signs or test results indicating a loss of bone, you might consider taking a Si supplement.  I personally take MMST, available via Amazon, and I splurge on a third of can of IPA at night.