The Importance of Iodine
Sure, you’ve been to the doctor, and they recommend taking a multivitamin and maybe some extra vitamin D3. But have you ever been educated on the importance of iodine? Iodine is a mineral. Your body needs it but cannot make it. We acquire iodine through our diet by eating things like fish, dairy products and iodized salt or by supplementation.
The thyroid gland needs iodine to help produce hormones. The thyroid controls your metabolism and regulates the entire body: brain function, digestion, muscles, bones, reproduction. When there is not enough iodine, there is not enough T4 (thyroid hormone) being produced, which then causes the pituitary gland to compensate and make too much TSH (another hormone) causing the thyroid gland to enlarge to what is known as a goiter. Low thyroid hormones can cause a woman to stop ovulating leading to infertility. Iodine deficiency can lead to an autoimmune disorder of the thyroid and is thought to increase the chance of not only thyroid cancer but also prostate, breast, endometrial, and ovarian cancers.
Iodine is especially important during pregnancy
Low Iodine can lead to high blood pressure for mom. As a result, it is essential for the central nervous system and extreme lack of iodine can lead to mental retardation and stunted mental and physical growth for the baby. We recommend following both The American Academy of Pediatrics and American Thyroid Association guidelines to supplement iodine if you plan on becoming pregnant, and throughout your pregnancy and while breastfeeding as iodine is passed through the breastmilk to the baby. Pregnant and lactating women need twice the amount of iodine compared to any other female. Giving an iodine supplement to children who are mildly deficient improves their ability to reason and overall cognitive function.
We recommend supplementing with Thyroid Warrior made by Biowarrior. Put three drops of iodine with three drops of Selenium made by BodyBio and mix with 4-6 ounces of water (adult does). You want to take this on an empty stomach so take it right away in the morning. Then wait 20 minutes before you eat or drink anything else to allow your stomach to absorb the minerals.
We leave the heavy lifting of blood panels and official diagnosis of any thyroid problem to your medical doctor, but if you have any questions about whether an Iodine supplement is right for you, please call us for an appointment so we can discuss further!
Below are some fun iodine facts!
- The first iodized table salt was sold in Michigan in 1924 – iodized salt alleviated the goiter problem in the United States
- Photography was the first commercial use for iodine – used for producing imagine on thin sheets of metal
- Even animal can develop goiters due to a deficiency – dogs, cattle, goats, birds and fish are the most common
- Iodine deficiency affects about 2 billion people worldwide and is the leading preventable cause of mental disability in developing areas of the world
- Seawater is the largest reservoir of iodine
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