Dosing and uses of silicon
Dietary Supplement
5-20 mg/day, maximum 50 mg/day; up to 700 mg taken without apparent harm
Daily diet normally provides enough to meet requirements
Sources of silicon: Oats, rice, and barley; also found in fruits and vegetables
Efficacy: Insufficient data
Pediatric dosage forms and strengths
Safety & efficacy not established
silicon adverse (side) effects
None known; silicon present in neurofibrillary tangles in Alzheimer's disease
Warnings
Contraindications
Hypersensitivity
Pregnancy and lactation
Pregnancy category: N/A
Lactation: N/A
Pregnancy categories
A: Generally acceptable. Controlled studies in pregnant women show no evidence of fetal risk.
B: May be acceptable. Either animal studies show no risk but human studies not available or animal studies showed minor risks and human studies done and showed no risk.
C: Use with caution if benefits outweigh risks. Animal studies show risk and human studies not available or neither animal nor human studies done.
D: Use in LIFE-THREATENING emergencies when no safer drug available. Positive evidence of human fetal risk.
X: Do not use in pregnancy. Risks involved outweigh potential benefits. Safer alternatives exist.
NA: Information not available.
Pharmacology of silicon
Mechanism of action
Implicated in gene transcription of type I collagen gene, a cofactor for prolyl hydroxylase the enzyme involved in collagen synthesis; may be associated with keeping bones and connective tissues healthy
