Iodine is a key player in the body’s mineral system. Trying to maintain health without a good iodine level is a bit like trying to play raquetball without a ball — impossible.
Iodine, despite its importance is a very misunderstood mineral. This is a big deal because iodine is a mineral that most people should take as a supplement if they want to reach a state of optimal health.
Iodine Sufficiency Versus Goiter Prevention
Probably the most important thing to understand about Iodine is that it is a whole body nutrient. To be truly healthy, we need enough for the whole body, not just enough to keep from having goiter.
Iodine is involved in immune health, detoxification, the health of the breasts and uterus, cancer prevention (especially the female cancers, but virtually all cancers), overall immune function, and of course, thyroid function (1). It is also essential for a healthy nervous system. Even independently of the importance of iodine for brain function mediated through the thyroid, it is important for good mental function through its effects in the nervous system. Iodine also supports the functioning of the heart through the actions of thyroid hormone. Recently it has been found to help in restoring heart function after a heart attack (2).
A little History
About a hundred years ago, iodine deficiency was considered a serious public health threat. At the time, as much as 30% of some US populations suffered from goiter, especially in the Midwest. A goiter is a swelling of the thyroid gland that occurs due to deficiency of iodine.
The problem was so bad that parts of the Midwest were referred to as “the goiter belt.” The Midwest is particularly affected with iodine deficiency because it is an inland region. Inland and mountainous areas tend to have low iodine content in the soil therefore foods grown in those areas tend to have low iodine content. Naturally, in those areas less fish and seafood and seaweed is consumed as well. This has changed of course in the last 50 years or so because in the modern era we eat foods from all over the world, and we may consume sushi and seaweed regularly even in Idaho….but back then, of course, diets were dictated by region. Beyond even these factors, the air near the seashore actually contains iodine, so people in coastal areas typically received much higher iodine intake, just by breathing.
Iodization of Salt
The iodization of salt was initiated in the 1920’s, and iodized salt has been used widely ever since. While it did reduce the incidence of goiter significantly, it did not solve the problem of iodine deficiency. In fact, the problem of iodine deficiency continues and is arguably even worse now than ever.
This may sound like a bold claim — that iodine deficiency is worse now than ever. Let me explain.
Why Iodine Deficiency Is A More Serious Problem Now
In the early 1900’s it was common practice for people to use Lugol’s solution to supply their body’s need for iodine. Lugol’s is a liquid iodine-rich solution composed of 5% elemental iodine and 10% potassium iodide. Lugol’s solution is named after Jean Lugol, a French physician who created the iodine solution in the early 1800’s as a way to treat Tuberculosis. Subsequently, Lugol’s solution has been used widely as an antiseptic and treatment for thyrotoxicosis, food poisoning and other disorders. It has other uses as well and is one of the medications listed on the World Health Organization’s list of essential medicines.
Also in the early 1900’s, the field of modern medicine, run by medical-school-trained physicians, was beginning to take over the health care of the nation. Most of the populace, before this time, relied on wisdom and practices passed down from generation to generation as well as advice from various non-medical practitioners commonly in practice at that time.
People were were encouraged, and you might say, propagandized, to give up their use of Lugol’s in favor of the use of iodized salt. The amount of iodine intake from Lugol’s use was around 12.5 to 37.5 mg (milligrams) per day, whereas the amount supplied by a typical intake of iodized is 50 to 100 times less.
The use of iodized salt, while preventing the widespread problem of goiter, simply erased a sign that a sufficient dose of iodine was needed for that particular person, and it created the illusion that the problem of iodine sufficiency was solved.
Deficiency versus Whole Body Sufficiency
The amount of iodine in a teaspoon of iodized salt is 250 mcg (micrograms). This is more than the 150 micrograms per day of iodine that the World Health Organization and other public health agencies claim prevents deficiency. If your only source of iodine was iodized salt, presumably, then, you would need to consume a little more than half a teaspoon of salt per day to meet the 150 microgram dose deemed sufficient.
The governmental agencies base their recommendations on the amount needed to prevent the occurrence of goiter, as if the only consequence of low iodine intake and low iodine stores is goiter. However, the tiny amount supplied by iodized salt is not enough to supply the whole body. Even if it were, according to some experts, the bioavailability of iodine from iodized salt is quite low – around 10% — so the true intake of iodine obtained from iodized salt is very minimal.
Consequences of Low Iodine Levels
Depending on just how iodine deficient a person is, their resulting health problems may be mild to severe and may affect virtually any system in the body.
In extreme cases, the result can be mental retardation. The connection between iodine deficiency and mental deficiency has been known for centuries, and in fact the World Health Organization admits that iodine deficiency is the largest single cause of mental retardation; yet this connection seems to be often forgotten. In the most severe cases of children born to iodine deficient mothers, the child may not only have mental deficiency but also dwarfism.
In milder cases of iodine deficiency, commonly the problems range from mental deficiencies which are milder than retardation, particularly poor memory, as well as, very commonly, reproductive system disorders. These occur particularly in women but also men. So for example, fibrocystic breast disease, ovarian cysts, uterine fibroids and breast cancer are all associated with iodine deficiency and all can in fact be treated with iodine therapy. Prostate cancer and testicular cancers are also associated with iodine deficiency.
Iodine is important for apoptosis or programmed cell death. This is how our immune systems protect us from aberrent cells which can become cancers if allowed to proliferate. It is also involved in protection of the body from viruses, as cells infected with viruses will self-destruct as part of the healing process.
A variety of thyroid disorders including Hashimoto’s hypothyroidism, Grave’s disease (the most common cause of hyperthyroidism), and goiter are caused by iodine deficiency. Thyroid cancers and nodules on the thyroid also may occur as a result of iodine deficiency.
Fatigue naturally will occur with low iodine status, not just because of low thyroid function but for other reasons also. Good thyroid function is necessary for a fully functioning immune system, and furthermore, white blood cells require adequate amounts of iodine to function properly. The requirement of white blood cells for iodine is so great that the body will literally take apart thyroid hormone in order to supply iodine to the white cells if it has no other source.
Iodine needs increase during pregnancy and lactation and deficiency of iodine in a woman can result in miscarriage, stillbirth or reduced IQ in offspring.
Diabetics have been found to require less insulin when iodine is supplemented in adequate amounts.
Detoxification of the body is a process requiring adequate iodine levels. Without enough iodine, both heavy metals and other halides (the chemical group to which iodine belongs) can build up in the body.
Antibiotic, Antifungal and Antiviral Properties of Iodine
Iodine is one of the oldest substances used as an antibiotic. It is effective in killing candida, other fungi, and most other microbes as well as viruses. Iodine helps to clear out excess mucous, and contributes to the health of mucous membranes, which then helps prevent the entry of pathogens into the body. For these reasons, iodine can be an adjunct in helping overcome sinus and lung diseases and infections, asthma, lung cancer and intestinal illnesses.
Iodine deficiency may be a major cause of overweight, an absolute epidemic of our times. And if we combine its role in prevention of this condition with that of its reported impacts on diabetes, the benefits of replenishing iodine stores for many people could be absolutely life changing.
How to Address Deficiency
By now you are likely convinced that you want to be sure you are not iodine deficient. There are two approaches to take; the serious approach — get your iodine sufficiency measured, and get on a plan for remedying any deficiency that may show, or, the casual approach — just increase iodine intake through foods or cautious supplementation and keep an eye on how that increase seems to affect overall health.
Testing For Iodine Sufficiency
If you do any serious supplementation of iodine it is best to test your levels so that you can be safe with your supplementation plan. Please see the article called, “Testing For Iodine Sufficiency In The Body,” which discusses this important step.
Increasing Iodine Intake
So what can you do to increase iodine intake? Many healthy foods are good sources of iodine, fortunately, so getting more from food isn’t difficult. However, it is important to understand that someone who has been deficient in this nutrient lifelong, is unlikely to fix a deficiency with food alone. This is one reason why testing may be the best course of action; it can be difficult to know whether you have a mild deficiency, severe deficiency or no deficiency at all, without testing.
My suggestion is that adding iodine rich foods or some gentle supplementation with seaweed is a great idea when there is no actual illness impacting a person. In cases where there are immune problems, asthma, reproductive disorders, intestinal disease and other more serious concerns, it is best to test. For more information about testing for iodine sufficiency in the body, please see my article Testing For Iodine Sufficiency In the Body.
Iodine Rich Foods
Of course, the top of the list of foods rich in iodine are the seaweeds and seafoods — ie fish and shellfish — of all kinds. These are not the only good sources however; some dairy foods and land based foods are good sources also.
Good land based sources of iodine are yogurt and some cheeses, for example, ricotta cheese. Typical amounts of iodine are from 50 to 120 mcg of iodine per 8 ounce serving of yogurt, or 30 mcg of iodine in a 4 oz serving of ricotta cheese. One egg yolk has around 8 mcg of iodine. Most land based meats have less per serving than a single egg yolk.
As you can see, land based foods like yogurt and cheese and eggs have rather small, but still significant amounts of iodine. Anyone who really needs to increase iodine sources most likely will need to add fish and seaweed to their diet.
There are a few concerns to be aware of when you increase sea sourced foods in your diet. One is that the range of concentrations of iodine in different seaweeds is great. Lower iodine varieties have a hundred or so times less iodine than those with higher iodine content varieties. Also, fish and seafood is much lower in iodine than seaweeds, as a rule, so, the amount of fish you need to consume to obtain several milligrams of iodine is vastly more than the amount of seaweed needed to obtain several milligrams of iodine. Therefore, to increase iodine consumption considerably, through food alone, you will succeed more easily through eating seaweed.
For seaweeds, as a rule, kelp, bladderwrack and kombu (a type of kelp) have much higher levels than for example, laver and nori. Some species are very high in iodine. Nori contains about 1,600 mcg of iodine per 100 grams, while kelp typically has around 200,000 mcg or, 20 mg of iodine per 100 grams. An easy way to add seaweed to your diet is to sprinkle dried kelp or nori flakes on food, or add a bit to a soup or a stirfry.
A similar rule applies to iodine in fish and seafood. Naturally, ocean fish contain more iodine than freshwater fish, but this has more to do with the food these fish eat than the water that they are swimming in. The highest iodine content fish are haddock, anchovy, cod and sardines. Haddock is one fish with exceptionally high iodine levels — ranging from 80 to 900 micrograms per 100 gram serving, with the average level being around 425 mcg per 100 grams. Atlantic cod, pollack and mackerel also have good amounts of iodine but nowhere near as much as haddock. Salmon is relatively low in iodine at about 90 mcg per 100 grams.
Shellfish is often a good deal higher in iodine than fish. Clams and oysters have around 60-80 mcg of iodine per 100 grams. Some types of lobster have 3-4 times this amount.
Keep in mind the need to restrict consumption of seafood due to its potential as a source of heavy metals. See the discussion of this topic in the article titled “Healing Diet Guidelines.”
Supplementation
Usually the best way to supplement iodine to the diet, when there is no serious thyroid disorder that needs to be monitored more closely, is to add capsules of kelp to the daily supplement regime. This can help to provide not only iodine but also trace minerals that are very much needed.
The main concerns with supplementing kelp are to use the correct amount for the individual and to choose a product that is sourced carefully because some sources can contain excessive amounts of heavy metals.
The brands of kelp that I have recommended the most are Oregon’s Wild Harvest, Naturespirit Herbs and Endomet. Oregon’s Wild Harvest checks batches for heavy metal toxins, as does Endomet. Naturespirit Herbs is a family owned company that hand harvests seaweed off the coast of Oregon in a pristine area where toxicity is unlikely to be a serious concern. I have used Naturespirit Herbs kelp and 6 mix seaweed combinations for over a decade and feel that the quality is excellent. I have also used and enjoyed their dried Bull Kelp fronds, which are tasty.
Most people should start with only one capsule of kelp per day. I am referring to a 500 mg capsule which in most cases will contain around 400 mcg of iodine. This amount can gradually be raised as high as 3 capsules per day in some cases, when a person needs a higher amount. This should be done slowly. Any difficulty sleeping, heart palpitations, irritability, or other unusual symptoms may be a sign that the amount needs to be reduced.
While in some people’s cases, the amount of iodine that needs to be supplemented is a good deal higher than that described above, if you are attempting supplementation on your own and not testing first, it is usually best to keep the supplementation at or below about 1.5 mg per day, equivalent to 1500 mcg per day. This is roughly 10 times the supposed recommended daily amount of 150 mcg /day.
References:
1 Miller, D. Extrathyroidal Benefits of Iodine. J Amer Phys and Surg. 2006; 11 (4)
2 Iwato A, Morrison M, Roth MB, Iodide Protects Heart Tissue from Reperfusion Injury. PLoS ONE 9 (11): e 112458 doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0112458