I encourage you to educate yourself about iodine deficiency as waiting for public health officials to act is like waiting for Godot. I have written numerous articles and books about the epidemic of iodine deficiency. In adults, iodine deficiency can be linked to the epidemic rise in cancers of the glandular tissues-including the thyroid, ovary, uterus, prostate, breast and pancreas.įolks, I have been sounding the iodine-deficiency alarm for nearly two decades. Iodine deficiency during pregnancy can cause permanently lowered IQ in children along with a host of neurologic and endocrine problems including mental retardation, autism, ADHD and thyroid problems. The most vulnerable population for iodine deficiency are women of child-bearing age.
Every cell in the body needs and requires iodine to function optimally. Iodine is an essential element that we cannot live without. …a majority of the articles reviewed demonstrate emergent iodine deficiency in this population of women of reproductive age, indicating alarm for a public health concern needing immediate attention.” The authors state, “Despite the USA being considered iodine sufficient for the general population, the US dietary iodine intakes have decreased drastically since the 1970s, with iodine deficiency reemerging in vulnerable groups such as women of reproductive age. Researchers from Texas Women’s University just released a 2019 article titled, “A Review of Iodine Status of Women of Reproductive Age in the USA.” (1) The authors summarized the studies that assessed iodine status of women of reproductive age in the USA. He states in his book that over 96 of nearly 5,000 patients have tested positively for iodine deficiency. Bromide is also found in many commonly used consumer items as a fire retardant. Brownstein believes that these recommendations are much, much too low and recommends iodine intake based on weight at 0.11 mg per pound, per day, so a 50-pound child should get 5.5 mg (milligrams) of iodine daily. Our water supply has been contaminated with fluoride and our food supply has been adulterated with bromine in the form of brominated flour and vegetable oils. These toxic elements competitively inhibit iodine in the body. However, the iodine deficiency epidemic was increasing because of our increasing exposures to toxic halides fluoride and bromide. Declining mineral levels in our soil coupled with more pollution in the oceans made a perfect storm for iodine deficiency. Iodine deficiency was still present because our food supply was (and still is) woefully inadequate in iodine. When I began testing my patient’s iodine levels I found the vast majority-over 97%–were iodine deficient and most were severely iodine deficient.Īt that time, I asked myself, “How and why could this be happening?” As I researched more and more about iodine the answers became clear. When I started researching iodine in the late 1990s, I was shocked to discover that iodine deficiency was still occurring across the United States. In fact, I have been writing about iodine and its importance to health for nearly 15 years. It took me a short time into my holistic practice of medicine to realize that what I was taught about iodine was incorrect. When physiologic doses of iodine/iodide were added to their regimen, many of these patients showed dramatic improvement in their condition.In medical school, I was taught that iodine deficiency was a thing of the past. After testing over 4,000 patients, over 95% of those tested showed deficiency on laboratory testing for inorganic iodine.
Although I expected lowered body iodine levels, I was not ready for the magnitude of the results. This article will review the consequences of iodine deficiency.įour years ago, I began testing my patients with the Iodine Loading Test (FFP Labs, 8).
Iodine deficiency is occurring at near epidemic rates. With the advent of iodized salt, iodine deficiency was thought to be a thing of the past. When I started using the correct form and amount of iodine, I started to see clinical results. Some patients did improve, but many did not notice any appreciable improvement. Although I suspected iodine deficiency in many of my patients, my initial uses of potassium iodide gave suboptimal results. Michigan, my home state, resides in the Goiter Belt of the United States, where the soil is deficient in iodine. I began my interest in iodine over 12 years ago. Brownstein's famous iodine book: the 2009 4th edition with 259 pages.