Zinc
Many foods are high in Zinc, such as salmon, seafood-shrimps, beef, yellow cheese, spinach, mushrooms, cocoa, pumpkin seeds, garlic, bean and almonds.
Element Name: Zinc
Atomic Number: 30
Atomic Mass: 65.38
Atomic Symbol: Zn
Melting Point: 419.53° C
Boiling Point: 907° C
Basics:
Zinc was first recognized as a metal in 1746 by Andreas Marggraf, a German chemist. It is a bluish-white transition metal that is often seen in its +2 oxidation state. Zinc has five naturally occurring stable isotopes, and multiple radioactive isotopes. It is relatively brittle but becomes more malleable as temperature increases.
Interesting Stuff:
Zinc was known and used a long time before being officially discovered. For instance, the Romans were using Zinc for military armor and imperial coins. Zinc was also refined in large scale in India between 1100 and 1500 and in the 1500s by China. Zinc is highly concentrated in the retina and aids in bringing vitamin A to the eye, which in turn creates a melanin coating around the eye to protect it. Zinc has many important uses in the human body also strengthens our immune system as it is needed to make immune cells which fight infections and viruses. In addition to that, it is also required for the function of over 300 enzymes in our body, aiding in DNA synthesis as well as cellular division.
Sources:
Zinc is mostly obtained by mining sulfidic ore deposits like sphalerite. Smithsonite and hemimorphite are another type of ores that are also a Zinc source. China, Australia, and Peru represent the major mining locations of Zinc along with a couple of US states like Idaho, Missouri, and New York. Apart from being an important transition metal, Zinc as mentioned above, also plays a crucial role on our health and can be consumed by eating cashews, chickpeas, Greek yogurt, or even oysters.
Industrial Uses:
Zinc is used along with Copper to make Brass bullet casings. Zinc oxide is used in creams and lotions like sunscreens to prevent burns and other damages to the skin caused by UV light. Zinc-air batteries are another type of batteries which are sold to the public that function by allowing some oxygen to enter the battery and react with electrodes made of Zinc to produce electricity. Zinc is also often consumed as supplements like gluconate or citrate as they prevent or resolve Zinc deficiency in our bodies. Finally, it is also used to galvanize Iron and other metals to stop them from rusting. This is extremely important and is commonly used for car bodywork, street lampposts, safety barriers, and suspension bridges, which are all made of galvanized steel.
Works Cited
Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (2013). Fun facts about Zinc. https://assets.thermofisher.com/TFS-Assets/CAD/posters/Infographic-Zinc.pdf?icid=CAD_blog_metals_2017Dec#:~:text=Zinc%20is%20currently%20the%204th,animals%20and%20humans%20contain%20zinc.
American Galvanizers Association. (2019, October 25). Facts about Zinc. https://galvanizeit.org/hot-dip-galvanizing/what-is-zinc/facts-about-zinc
Zinc – Element information, properties and uses | Periodic Table. (n.d.). https://periodic-table.rsc.org/element/30/zinc
Zinc. (n.d.). https://www.utoledo.edu/nsm/ic/elements/zinc.html
Clinic, C. (2025, October 20). How zinc benefits your body — and how much you need each day. Cleveland Clinic. https://health.clevelandclinic.org/zinc
Luan, R., Ding, D., Xue, Q., Li, H., Wang, Y., & Yang, J. (2022). Protective role of zinc in the pathogenesis of respiratory diseases. European Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 77(4), 427–435. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41430-022-01191-6
Office of Dietary Supplements – Zinc. (n.d.). https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/Zinc-HealthProfessional/
Rd, N. R. M. (2020, May 6). 9 Zinc-Rich foods that make it easy to get your daily dose. Runner’s World. https://www.runnersworld.com/nutrition-weight-loss/g32160056/zinc-rich-foods/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=mgu_ga_rnw_d_bm_prog_org_us_g32160056&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=19671521659&gbraid=0AAAAAC8UxKS33OxL5UFuj82XotE3Byw7o&gclid=Cj0KCQjw94bTBhDQARIsAN3vv0z2CoOhvqmt2cYWDK_Jeu72YDXCugd82_MTk3jRJWWwv9TpZ3uO5PkaAhiUEALw_wcB