Healthy Eating Minerals

Sulfate Sources and Functions

Sulfate Sources and Functions

All of the nutrient minerals work together to keep you healthy and feeling good. Here is a summary of the role of sulfate, a major mineral, in your good health.

Sulfate Sources and Functions

Sulfur in foods

Sulfate is the form of the element sulfur that is found in foods. The main function of sulfate is to stabilize protein structures, but it is also an element in the B vitamins, biotin and thiamin, as well as a component of the hormone, insulin, which is secreted by the pancreas to control your blood sugar level.

Deficiency unlikely

Unless you are suffering from protein deficiency, it is unlikely that you are deficient in sulfates. Skin, nails and hair have a high sulfur content, since the sulfate is required for the rigidity of the proteins found in these areas of the body.

Fun fact: The smell of rotten eggs that is so unpleasant is caused by the release of sulfur dioxide that is formed from the sulfate found in eggs. Sulfur is sometimes referred to as “brimstone,” and hell is often portrayed as redolent with the smell of sulfur. It is also the most distinctive smell at natural hot springs.

Sulfate Sources and Functions

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