Abundance of The Chemical Elements - Human Body Elemental Abundance

Human Body Elemental Abundance

Element Proportion (by mass)
Oxygen 65% 65
Carbon 18% 18
Hydrogen 10% 10
Nitrogen 3% 3
Calcium 1.5% 1.5
Phosphorus 1.2% 1.2
Potassium 0.2% 0.2
Sulfur 0.2% 0.2
Chlorine 0.2% 0.2
Sodium 0.1% 0.1
Magnesium 0.05% 0.05
Iron < 0.05%
Cobalt < 0.05%
Copper < 0.05%
Zinc < 0.05%
Iodine < 0.05%
Selenium < 0.01%

By mass, human cells consist of 65–90% water (H2O), and a significant portion of the remainder is composed of carbon-containing organic molecules. Oxygen therefore contributes a majority of a human body's mass, followed by carbon. Almost 99% of the mass of the human body is made up of six elements: oxygen, carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, calcium, and phosphorus. The next 0.75% is made up of the next five elements: potassium, sulfur, chlorine, sodium, and magnesium. Only 17 elements are known for certain to be necessary to human life, with one additional element (fluorine) thought to be helpful for tooth enamel strength. A few more trace elements appear to be necessary to mammals in carefully dust-free conditions. Boron and silicon are notably necessary for plants but have uncertain roles in animals. The elements aluminium and silicon, although very common in the earth's crust, are conspicuously rare in the human body.

Periodic table highlighting nutritional elements

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Nutritional elements in the periodic table
H He
Li Be B C N O F Ne
Na Mg Al Si P S Cl Ar
K Ca Sc Ti V Cr Mn Fe Co Ni Cu Zn Ga Ge As Se Br Kr
Rb Sr Y Zr Nb Mo Tc Ru Rh Pd Ag Cd In Sn Sb Te I Xe
Cs Ba La * Hf Ta W Re Os Ir Pt Au Hg Tl Pb Bi Po At Rn
Fr Ra Ac ** Rf Db Sg Bh Hs Mt Ds Rg Cn Uut Fl Uup Lv Uus Uuo
* Ce Pr Nd Pm Sm Eu Gd Tb Dy Ho Er Tm Yb Lu
** Th Pa U Np Pu Am Cm Bk Cf Es Fm Md No Lr
The four organic basic elements
Quantity elements
Essential trace elements
Suggested function from deprivation effects or active metabolic handling, but no clearly-identified biochemical function in humans

Read more about this topic:  Abundance Of The Chemical Elements

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