Earlier this week, both the UK Guardian and Reuters had stories about a study which confirmed that beer is a very rich source of silicon. It was done by Charlie Bamforth, among others, at the Department of Food Science & Technology at U.C. Davis, and the study, Silicon in Beer and Brewing, “found beer is a rich source of silicon and may help prevent osteoporosis, as dietary silicon is a key ingredient for increasing bone mineral density.”

From the Reuters article:

“We have examined a wide range of beer styles for their silicon content and have also studied the impact of raw materials and the brewing process on the quantities of silicon that enter wort and beer,” researcher Charles Bamforth said in a statement.

The study, [to be] published in the Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture, found the beers’ silicon content ranged from 6.4 milligrams per liter to 56.5 mg per liter. The average person’s silicon intake each day is between 20 and 50 mgs.

They found pale ales showed the highest silicon content while non-alcoholic beers, light lagers and wheat beers had the least silicon.

“Beers containing high levels of malted barley and hops are richest in silicon,” said Bamforth.

Add silicon to the long list of ways in which the moderate consumption of beer is good for you.