Sulfur: healing properties, where it is found and how it is used

Sulfur is the third mineral for abundance in our body: it retains muscle tone, it detoxifies the body and it is important for the treatment of skin and hair. But let’s discover all its healing properties.

Sulfur is a mineral that can be found in all the cells of our body: the third for abundance in our body, after calcium and phosphorus. An indispensable element for cellular life: it provides a detoxified and purifying action, it maintains muscle tone and it is fundamental for the elasticity of cartilages, it also improves the disorders of the cardio-circulatory system and it treats skin and hair. It is acquired almost completely through food and it has important healing functions for our organism. In nature, sulfur is pure in regions characterized by active volcanoes or sulphurous springs and it appears in solid form as a yellow crystalline: in the periodic table it is indicated with an S with atomic number 16.

But let’s discover all the healing properties of sulfur and how we can take it for our well-being.

Healing properties and benefits of sulfur

Sulfur is an essential element for our body, where we find it present in two amino acids: cysteine and methionine, but also in many proteins and in some vitamins including biotin and thiamin. This mineral is fundamental in the construction of connective tissue, important for the formation of cartilages, hairs, nails, hair. A good part of the sulfur that is found in our body is present in the muscles, in the skin and in the bones. But let's discover all its properties.

Sulfur protects the joints and helps maintain muscle tone: sulfur is one of the main components of the bone tissue that form a protective gel for ligaments, bones and skin. Sulfur promotes the maintenance of muscle tone and gives elasticity to the skeletal system, thus preventing arthritis, pains in the bones and problems with muscles and tendons.

Sulfur purifies the body and works as an anti-allergic: sulfur is also essential to detoxify and purify the body from heavy metals, free radicals and toxins, also helping the liver to metabolize fats. This mineral is also called "anti-allergic salt" as it is useful for preventing or treating allergies, especially in children and older people. It also takes care of the problems of the respiratory system and disinfects the blood.

Sulfur promotes the activity of enzymes: sulfur is essential for a correct enzymatic activity: if there are not the right quantities of sulfur in the body, in fact, the enzymes do not work in a regular way and this leads to health problems. Then, without active enzymes, metabolic processes can not function properly.

Sulfur is beneficial for skin and hair: sulfur is also useful for our beauty: thanks to keratin, composed of sulfur, our hair is shinier and softer and we have stronger nails. On the skin, however, this important mineral has an antibacterial action and protects against free radicals: in fact sulfur is recommended in cases of acne, seborrhea, psoriasis, hair loss and alopecia.

Food containing sulfur and daily requirements
Sulfur is present in large quantities in foods of animal origin such as meat, fish, eggs and cheeses, or of vegetable origin such as cabbage, garlic and onion, but it is contained in smaller quantities also in legumes, asparagus and wheat germ. However, this mineral tends to disperse with heat: so it would be better to consume these foods raw, when possible, or steamed.

There is no recommended daily requirement of sulfur: this important element for our body is in fact absorbed through food, thus satisfying the recommended daily dose of about 850 mg.

What happens in case of excess or deficiency?
Excess or sulfur deficiency is extremely rare, but there are some problems that may arise when certain dysfunctions exist. An excess of sulfur may cause calcium loss in the bones, while a deficiency may be the cause of poor skin tone, joint pain and insomnia.