Zinc is an essential bio-element that plays a fundamental role in a wide range of biochemical processes; this metal functions as a co-factor of multiple enzymes, it is a major component of various proteins and the modulator of the mammalian immune and nervous system. With zinc playing such a crucial role in normal biological and physiological functions, a deficiency of this mineral would be expected to result in a number of adverse physiological consequences. Symptoms resulting from zinc deficiency include infections, hypogonadism, weight loss, emotional disturbance, dermatitis, alopecia, delayed wound healing, etc. Many symptoms of zinc deficiency result from poor diet consumption, lack of zinc in food crops grown in zinc depleted soils, dependence on processed foods, but often the most severe symptoms result from other factors including excessive alcohol use, liver diseases, malabsorption syndromes, renal disease, and sickle cell disease.

The problem of zinc deficiency has been known for more than 40 years and a solution is still outstanding. In our days when many people are moving around the world with various missions, it is necessary to study the influence of natural geological factors on the possible zinc deficiency of population. On the ground of pilot investigation of zinc abundance in blood serum of patients with liver diseases (hepatitis and liver cirrhosis) and biological media of people with alopecia it was demonstrated that there are some marks of zinc deficiency in Lithuanian people. The causes of this conditioned zinc deficiency are largely explained in terms of excessive alcohol consumption and living in zinc depleted environment. The zinc deficient status can be considered as the cause of emotional disorder (mostly depression) inducing the suicide.