Author Topic: Iodine: Why you need it, why you can't live without it  (Read 3648 times)

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Offline Pookie

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Iodine: Why you need it, why you can't live without it
« on: November 01, 2017, 09:41:05 PM »
I finished it this weekend but am re-reading a part of it.  I will say, it's eye-opening.  When we think of how the body uses iodine, we think of the thyroid, but it's actually needed by every cell in the body.  It's especially needed by all of the glands, not just the thyroid but the ovaries, breasts, salivary, prostate, etc.

I hope to write more about what I read, and mention the key points in the book, but one of the things that really stood out is that it actually prevents cancer.  Another thing:  according to this author, Graves disease and Hashimotos disease are caused by lack of iodine, as are many thyroid diseases including hypo- and hyper-thyroidism.  Which of course got me wondering if those kitties that develop hyperthyroidism are actually deficient in iodine.  I've done some searching and hope to post about it another time.

Stay tuned!   :)
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Offline DeeDee

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Re: Iodine: Why you need it, why you can't live without it
« Reply #1 on: November 01, 2017, 10:51:22 PM »
Graves Disease and Hashimotos (I have this one) are autoimmune disorders. Because I was born with FMF, other autoimmune disorders like Sjogren's and Hashimotos are apt to develop and did.

There is a form of hypothyroidism that's caused by lack of iodine (also causes goiter), but it's not Hashimotos.

People with Hashimotos trying that high-iodine treatment can actually cause more damage to their thyroids and then require larger doses of hormone replacement. They'll go through a period of high energy and feeling better as the thyroid is overworked, but then crash as the continuing damage is done. This was the answer I was given when I asked if I needed to take extra iodine after I was first diagnosed with Hashimotos.

"In order to really enjoy a dog, one doesn't merely try to train him to be semihuman. The point of it is to open oneself to the possibility of becoming partly a dog." Edward Hoagland
"Thorns may hurt you, men desert you, sunlight turn to fog; but you're never friendless ever, if you have a dog."

Offline Lola

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Re: Iodine: Why you need it, why you can't live without it
« Reply #2 on: November 02, 2017, 11:16:59 AM »
Two totally different opinions.  Hmmmm
Maybe you both could name your sources? 
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Offline Pookie

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Re: Iodine: Why you need it, why you can't live without it
« Reply #3 on: November 02, 2017, 08:59:58 PM »
Wait!  You're getting ahead of me!  lol

The book was written by David Brownstein, MD, who "is a board-certified family practitioner who utilizes the best of conventional as well as holistic medicine."  He has been in practice for 20 years and was mentored by the late Dr. Guy Abraham, who studied iodine for over 15 years (I think, the book doesn't say specifically) and who also developed the 24-hour iodine loading test.  The book I read is the 5th (and most recent) edition.

I knew DeeDee would mention the Hashi's, and I was going to cover that later, but since it's been brought up . . . Dr. Brownstein (I'm just going to say "Dr. B" going forward) writes that these thyroid diseases are caused by iodine deficiency.  He discusses the various factors contributing to iodine deficiency, including reduced use of iodized salt (remember the experts talking about avoiding salt?), low iodine levels in the soil in various areas, and the increase in goitrogens and bromide, flouride and chlorine which takes iodine's space on each cell and block the cell's iodine receptor.  I can go into more detail at another time if you like.

He mentions that iodine levels "have fallen by approximately 50% over the last 40 years" and points out that thyroid disease has increased over that time.  Logically, if too much iodine caused these diseases, then those diseases should be declining, not increasing.

Regarding Hashi's, this is what he writes:

Quote
Q:  Can iodine supplementation cause a flare of Hashimoto's or Grave's disease?

A:  Yes.  However, if iodine is given as part of a comprehensive holistic treatment program, my clinical experience has shown this to be a very rare occurence.  It is important to provide the proper nutrients to slow down the oxidative damage that occurs in autoimmune thyroid illness (covered in Chapters 5-7).  Unrefined salt, vitamin C, selenium, and magnesium supplementation all help to minimize a flare.  These nutrients can be taken for 2-4 weeks before beginning iodine therapy to minimize the risk of precipitating a flare.

I kept thinking of you, Dee, as I was reading this book, and I'm hoping if you have time that you'll read it as well.  You have to do what's best for you, I just couldn't help but wonder if the information in it would help you.  There were others here that I thought of while reading it, too.

Gotta get ready for bed soon, but I will write more about this book.  Just give me some time!    :)

EDIT:  Dr. B does say, more than once, that you need to consult with an iodine-knowledgeable practitioner and get your iodine levels tested before you do this.  So whatever I write here is NOT medical advice, nor do I recommend anyone start doing this on their own.

That said, (confession) I have started added 2 drops of Lugol's (2%) iodine/potassium iodine to my water in the morning.  The total iodine content in those 2 drops is about 5 mg.  I don't intend to go much higher than that without doing an iodine test.  But considering I'm hypothyroid, I wanted to see if it would help my medication.  Sometimes I do feel a bit more energy, but I haven't been doing this for very long.
« Last Edit: November 02, 2017, 09:14:53 PM by Pookie »
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Offline Lola

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Re: Iodine: Why you need it, why you can't live without it
« Reply #4 on: November 02, 2017, 09:45:03 PM »
I thought (or didn't) that you were BOTH quoting books.  Neither mentioned author names.  I'll stay out of this conversation now.   Silly7
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Re: Iodine: Why you need it, why you can't live without it
« Reply #5 on: November 02, 2017, 09:58:22 PM »

That said, (confession) I have started added 2 drops of Lugol's (2%) iodine/potassium iodine to my water in the morning.  The total iodine content in those 2 drops is about 5 mg.  I don't intend to go much higher than that without doing an iodine test.  But considering I'm hypothyroid, I wanted to see if it would help my medication.  Sometimes I do feel a bit more energy, but I haven't been doing this for very long.

5 mg is 5000 mcg, and the recommended daily adult amount is 150 mcg to be doubled with pregnant and nursing women. That's a LOT of iodine you're taking there.
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Offline Middle Child

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Re: Iodine: Why you need it, why you can't live without it
« Reply #6 on: November 03, 2017, 05:36:49 AM »
Salt hog here.  I get plenty of iodine, but am hypothyroid with a goiter and a nodule that has grown a tiny bit. (have had the goiter my entire life). :)

Offline Pookie

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Re: Iodine: Why you need it, why you can't live without it
« Reply #7 on: November 03, 2017, 08:06:04 AM »
5 mg is 5000 mcg, and the recommended daily adult amount is 150 mcg to be doubled with pregnant and nursing women. That's a LOT of iodine you're taking there.

You're still ahead of me, Dee.  :)  So the nice summary I was going to put together is now going to be broken up.

Correct, the RDA is 150 mcg/ day.  Keep in mind that RDA's are minimums, meaning they are to prevent disease.  It does not mean they are doses to be healthy.  The RDA for iodine is only to prevent goiter.  That doesn't mean it's what the body actually needs.  For example, vitamin C's RDA is to prevent scurvy, but you can certainly take higher doses (to bowel tolerance).  The vitamins that I personally would be careful about are the ones that are fat-soluble, since the body doesn't flush those out with urine if it doesn't need them.  Iodine isn't a vitamin, but it is excreted in the urine.  That doesn't mean I would suggest taking thousands of milligrams, but the RDA is inadequate.

Anyway, 150 mcg is arbitrary.  It's only to prevent goiter.  That doesn't mean it's the optimal amount for the body, and in fact, no one ever really determined how much iodine the body actually needs.

One other thing:  large doses of iodine, e.g. 50 mg or more, were used for years (late 1800's - mid 1900's) to treat all sorts of illnesses.  The RDA was only established in the 1980's (I think -- I don't have the book with me right now).  The Japanese, at least until they started eating the Western diet, eat approximately 13 mg of iodine daily in their food supply, and they have low rates of a variety of cancers.

As for the salt:  the amount of iodine in refined salt varies, and once the container is opened, it loses a lot of iodine over time.  This author doesn't recommend getting iodine from refined salt, and he's not a fan of refined salt at all.  It's been stripped of all it's minerals and basically bleached to get the white color.

Look, I don't want to get into a debate here.  I read the book and wanted to share with y'all what I learned.  But I can just recommend people read it and find out for themselves, just to keep it simple.  I'm not pushing anything, and people need to decide for themselves.  It's hard to make a decision, though, if you don't have all the information.  But I will say this:  we have lots of people with breast cancer, prostate cancer, etc.  From what I read, iodine deficiency plays a huge role in that, and clearly, the RDA for iodine isn't working.

If I should post more about what's in this book, please let me know.
« Last Edit: November 03, 2017, 08:13:04 AM by Pookie »
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Re: Iodine: Why you need it, why you can't live without it
« Reply #8 on: November 03, 2017, 11:07:01 AM »

If I should post more about what's in this book, please let me know.

Keep on posting. It's interesting despite being opposite of what my Dr's have told me to do. I like knowing every side of things.
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Re: Iodine: Why you need it, why you can't live without it
« Reply #9 on: November 03, 2017, 08:11:10 PM »
My original plan was to go chapter by chapter and write down the highlights, I just haven't had a chance to do that yet.  I did find someone else's summary of the book online and can post the link to that in this thread along with some quotes, but it doesn't cover a couple of key points.

(This isn't in Dr. B's book, but can be found here:  http://www.townsendletter.com/Oct2005/gabyrebuttal1005.htm))  There are different forms of iodine:  organic and non-organic.  And within those are also different forms.  Inorganic iodine can be non-radioactive, e.g. iodides (SSKI), tincture of iodine, or Lugol's solution.  These are safe forms.  Then there's "Radioactive iodides for diagnostic and therapeutic purposes" which are non-organic, and these are carcinogenic and cytotoxic.

There is naturally occuring organic iodine, such as thyroid hormones and thyroidal iodolipids, which are "safe within physiological ranges," and there is manmade organic iodine such as radiographic contrast media and iodine-containing drugs (i.e. amiodarone).  These are extremely toxic.

So it's very likely that all that fear about iodine is because of confusion about the various kinds of iodine.

What's also not mentioned in the summary I'll be linking to is that iodine can induce cell death in cancer cells.  According to Dr. B (page 153-154) [bolding is mine]:

Quote
  Iodine has many anticancer properties.  Cancer cells, unlike normal cells, do not have a normal life cycle; they just keep dividing over and over.  Normal cells have a life cycle, and when they eventually die, they are replaced with a new cell.  This process of timed cellular death is known as apoptosis.  Iodine has been shown to induce apoptosis (death) in breast and thyroid cancer cells.  However, this apoptotic effect will be negated if a goitrogen is given.

Goitrogens would include flourine/flouride (yes, like what's in toothpaste), bromine/bromide (which replaced iodine in bread as a non-caking agent about 30? years ago), chlorine/chloride (in swimming pools, drinking/bathing water if your water is not from a well), and soy.

« Last Edit: November 03, 2017, 10:28:08 PM by Pookie »
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Re: Iodine: Why you need it, why you can't live without it
« Reply #10 on: November 03, 2017, 10:19:07 PM »
Ok, so I'm cheating a bit here.  As mentioned in my previous post, there's a naturopathic doctor, Dr. Showler, who wrote about Dr. B's book, and here's a link to her summary:  http://www.livingnaturally.com/PDFDocs/e/E0KE5CTEDA6D8JML5SXJNNL1LMVJ9C42.PDF.  To save myself some time, here are some highlights from his book, as written in Dr. Showler's summary.  Any bolding you see is mine.

Quote
•Adequate amounts of iodine are essential for the health of most, if not all, the glands in the human body (in addition to other tissues not covered in this article).
•Most adults and children in the U.S. are significantly iodine deficient.
•Iodine, fluorine, bromine and chlorine are close chemical relatives in the halide family of minerals.
•Because of their chemical similarity, fluorine and bromine can attach to iodine receptors, replacing iodine and causing iodine deficiency in iodine-dependent organs and tissues.

Quote
  In the early 1900's Dr. David Marine conducted the first large-scale study on using iodine as a therapy to reduce goiter.  He chose Akron, Ohio as the test area for iodine supplementation. Akron was chosen due to the high rate of goiter - 56% of school-aged girls had goiter in Akron. There was a 600% increase in goiter in adolescent girls versus boys. The reason for this increase was due to the increased iodine requirements in pubertal girls as compared to boys. The first hormonal tissue to grow at puberty is the breasts, which require significant amounts of iodine (Brownstein, page 27). ... But in fact, both the thyroid gland and the breasts have developed a specialized system to concentrate iodine known as the sodium/iodide symporter. According to Brownstein, "the breasts need at least 5 mg of iodine" per day (page 91).  That's 5 milligrams, by the way. The Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA) for iodine has been 150 micrograms since it was established in 1980. One thousand micrograms = one milligram. If you do the math, you will quickly realize, as I did, that the RDA for iodine is hopelessly inadequate to address the needs of the endocrine system. Given the current, prolonged epidemic of endocrine disorders in our country, we could safely say that the RDA for iodine is, in truth, appallingly inadequate. The thyroid gland alone requires approximately 6 milligrams of iodine per day in order to function adequately (Brownstein, page 91).

Ladies, if you have fibrocystic "girls," iodine can get rid of those cysts, as well as ovarian cysts.  From page 75:

Quote
Iodine is responsible for maintaining the normal architecture of the glands of the body including the thyroid, ovaries, uterus, breast and prostate.  When the cells of the glandular tissue have enough iodine, the tissue maintains a normal structure.

When iodine is deficient, the architecture of the glandular tissue becomes disrupted and the tissue becomes cystic.

Back to Dr. Showler's article:

Quote
  As you may have already surmised, the amount of iodine in iodized salt and in most supplements is grossly inadequate because it is based on our grossly misinformed RDA for this element. In recent years iodine deficiency has been exacerbated by the plummeting use of salt as droves of Americans do all they can to normalize their blood pressure.  Sea salt, by the way, contains negligible amounts of iodine. Iodine deficiency in the American public has also increased because of a little-known change in flour production a few decades ago. In the 1960's iodine was added to milled flours as an anti-caking agent. This was a good move on the part of the National Institute of Health! Ah, but the trend in recent times has been for good policies to be short-lived, and iodine-enriched flour was no exception.  Concern was raised that people might be getting too much iodine from baked goods. One slice of bread contained 150 mcg of iodine, so two pieces of toast for breakfast and iodized salt on your eggs - well, there you were, teetering precipitously close to an iodine overdose before the kids had even finished their Cheerios! Therefore, in the 1980's iodine was booted out of flours and was replaced with....bromine. And who knew anything about bromine? Life went on, bread tasted the same, and if people started to feel a bit more tired? Well, that was just a result of life in the fast lane, right?

Quote
It is curious that the U.S., meaning the FDA, still allows bromated flours to be used in commercial baked goods. Great Britain and Canada banned these flours back in the 1990's.

Quote
So, how do you rid your body of the toxic halides? Iodine, in sufficient amounts, has the ability to detoxify the body of bromides and fluorides. And of course, you will want to do a little research and eliminate any significant sources of these elements in your home or at work. In addition to being an impressive detoxifier, iodine is also a potent antioxidant when it is taken in the correct amount. This is one of the reasons why it is thought to have a significant protective effect against certain cancers, most notably breast, prostate, ovarian and thyroid cancers.
« Last Edit: November 03, 2017, 10:43:17 PM by Pookie »
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Re: Iodine: Why you need it, why you can't live without it
« Reply #11 on: November 03, 2017, 10:45:13 PM »
(continued):

Quote
In closing, I would like to say that although most people are significantly iodine-deficient, it is possible to take too much iodine in the form of supplements, thereby causing unintended hyperthyroidism, a potentially dangerous condition. There are test kits available for checking iodine and bromide levels. It is advisable to work with a knowledgeable practitioner if you are considering iodine supplementation beyond several milligrams a day. This is especially true if you are taking any kind of thyroid medication (Synthroid, Cytomel. Armour Thyroid, etc.). A small percentage of the population is allergic to iodine. If you are allergic to seafood, or if you suspect you might have an iodine allergy, it is advisable to work with a doctor if you are thinking of trying iodine supplementation. If you have or have had any of the following conditions, you might do well to investigate the possibility of iodine deficiency:  fibrocystic breast disease, breast cancer, prostate cancer, polycystic ovarian syndrome, parotid duct stones, adrenal fatigue, chronic fatigue, hypothyroidism, hyperthyroidism, Graves disease, Hashimoto's thyroiditis, or chronic insomnia.  There are other conditions as well that often respond well to appropriate iodine supplementation, including ADD and ADHD in children. 

By "too much" -- we're talking grams.  Dr. B and his mentor, Dr. Abraham, estimate that people need approximately 12.5 to 50 mg of iodine a day, depending on each individual and how high their goitrogen load is.  So I'm not suggesting everyone run out and starting taking huge amounts of iodine.  Read his book (if you're interested), do the research, and work with a doctor.  As I posted before, I'm "only" taking about 5 mg a day.  I'm having labs done soon to see if my thyroid medication needs to be adjusted, and when I do that I will notify my doctor that I'm also taking iodine.  I'm hoping she's educated about this and will work with me.  I also plan to do the 24-hour loading test and bromide test when my finances permit, unless my doctor is able to arrange that.
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Re: Iodine: Why you need it, why you can't live without it
« Reply #12 on: November 08, 2017, 08:44:23 PM »
For those who are interested, some more from/about this book:

p. 25  Iodine “is also responsible for the production of all the other hormones in the body . . . Iodine contains potent antibacterial, antiparasitic, antiviral, and anticancer properties.”

P. 46  “The research does not support the idea that iodized salt is a readily available source of iodine for the body.”

p. 49  “Diets that may cause iodine deficiency:  1. Diets without ocean fish or sea vegetables, 2. Inadequate use of iodized salt including low-sodium diets, 3. Diets high in the consumption of bakery products (e.g., breads, pasta) which contain bromide, 4. Vegan and vegetarian diets

p. 60  In 1829, “Dr. Lugol began treating many different infections with his [iodine] solution and had great success.”

p. 61  “Different tissues of the body respond to the different forms of iodine.”  Some cells use iodine, and some use potassium iodide.

p. 70  “There are other tissues of the body that utilize NIS [a specialized system developed by the thyroid gland to concentrate a large amount of iodine as compared to its size] to concentrate iodine including the breasts, kidneys, placenta, stomach, rectum and salivary glands.”  “Studies have shown that iodine-deficient individuals have an increased incidence of of anti-thyroid antibodies.”

p. 75  Iodine is responsible for maintaining the normal architecture of the glands of  the body including the thyroid, ovaries, uterus, breast and prostate.”

p. 112  Discusses how to treat auto-immune disorders.

p. 139  An entire chapter that discusses the connection between selenium and iodine.  “Adequate selenium levels are necessary for regulating thyroid function and iodine metabolism.”  Selenium is something that our bodies can’t produce – it must be obtained through diet or supplementation, but it is also one of those nutrients where you can have too much of a good thing.  Do not exceed 400 mcg/day.

p. 153 Ovaries “contain the second highest concentration of iodine in the body.”  The breasts are one of the main storage sites for iodine in the body, and compete with the thyroid for what little iodine is available.

p. 167  Treating hypothyroidism with thyroid hormone, in some studies, can exacerbate breast cancer and increase the risk of breast cancer and thyroid cancer.  Taking thyroid medications with correcting the existing iodine deficiency “results in an increased metabolic state” which increases the body’s need for iodine.  If the body is already deficient, then the deficiency is increased.

p. 178  Other tissues that use iodine:  prostate gland, gastrointestinal tract, salivary glands, bones, connective tissues, and “the fluids of almost the entire body.”  Also the adrenal glands, thymus, ovaries, hypothalmus, and pituitary axis.   Iodine accumulates in the prostate, salivary glands, skin, intestines and red and white blood cells.

p. 220 Some medications contain bromide, which is a goitrogen.  P. 258 Discusses iodism, which “occurs when the dose of iodine is too high.”  From other papers I’ve read, once the body achieves iodine sufficiency, it excretes excess iodine.  If you take too large a dose and experience iodism, e,g acne, headache and other side effects, just lower the dose.

p. 265 Goitrogens, such as bromide (found in baked goods), fluoride/fluorine, chloride/chlorine, perchlorate, and thiocyanate (from cigarette smoke) bind to a cell’s iodine receptors, blocking iodine.  The book goes into detail about where those goitrogens exist in our environment, from pools and hot tubs, to insecticides, medicines, produce, dairy, flame retardants used in carpet and on furniture, off-gassing in cars (that “new car smell”), etc.

p. 298 “Every cell in the body needs and requires iodine to function optimally.  The white blood cells cannot fight infection without iodine.  Iodine is concentrated by the glandular tissue in order to maintain normal glandular function.  There is not a single hormone in the body that can be produced without iodine.”

p. 300 If you are hypothyroid and start taking iodine, it’s possible that your TSH level will increase.  This is normal and T3, T4 and reverse T3 often improve.

The author emphasizes that it’s important to have nutritional support when using iodine, esp. B2, B3, magnesium, vitamin C and selenium, as well as sea salt (to help the body detoxify).

The book also states that iodine is both an oxidant and an anti-oxidant.  While it mentioned that iodine is antibiotic, antiviral, and antiparasitic, it didn’t really discuss those uses, but instead focused on it’s anticancer abilities and it’s impact on treating thyroid disease.  I would have like to have learned more about those other properties, as I can’t help but wonder if it would be beneficial in treating Lyme disease.

You don’t need a medical degree to read this book.  It gets a little technical when explaining how the body actually processes iodine, but aside from that part, you’ll get a pretty good idea of just how important iodine is to the body, how exposed we are to the goitrogens that block iodine from binding to our cells, and how we’re not getting enough of this nutrient, esp. when factoring in all those goitrogens.

Note:  The 5th edition is the most recent, and is not available on Amazon.  You can order it from the author’s website, www.drbrownstein.com.
« Last Edit: November 08, 2017, 09:17:40 PM by Pookie »
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Re: Iodine: Why you need it, why you can't live without it
« Reply #13 on: November 08, 2017, 08:46:31 PM »
This information isn't from the book, but I wanted to share it since it was written by the doctor who developed the 24-hour iodine loading test and who mentored the book's author.  The information was pulled from here:  http://www.optimox.com/pdfs/IOD14.pdf

By the early 1900’s iodine was well established in medical and surgical practices, as described in the Encyclopedia Britannica 11th Edition published in 1910-1911 24. In Volume XIV, under iodine, on page 725-726, one reads:
 
“Another instance of the deobstruent power – “alterative,” it was formerly termed – is seen in the case of chronic lead poisoning. The essential part of the medicinal treatment of this condition is the administration of iodides, which are able to decompose the insoluble albuminates of lead which have become locked up in the tissues, rapidly causing their degeneration, and to cause the excretion of the poisonous metal by means of the intestine and the kidneys. The following is a list of the principal conditions in which iodides are recognized to be of definite value: metallic poisonings, as by lead and mercury, asthma, aneurism, arteriosclerosis, angina pectoris, gout, goiter, syphilis, haemophilia, Bright’s disease (nephritis) and bronchitis.”
 
In a monograph published in 1940 by the Harvard University press, reviewing the history of iodine in medicine with 588 references, the author, William Thomas Salter 25 expressed his amazement at the surprisingly good results obtained with iodide in tertiary luetic (luetic means syphilitic) lesions and arteriosclerosis using daily amounts of gms of iodide for long periods of time and without any evidence of complications. “After the discovery of iodine by Courtois in 1811, there was a great vogue for iodine therapy. … Likewise, in the 1820’s it was first introduced in the treatment of syphilis, and that use of the medication has continued since. It still is employed in the treatment of various granulomata such as actinomycosis, blastinomycosis, and odd skin disturbances like lupus erythematosus. Occasionally, even today, a gumma is found and the response of such a tertiary luetic lesion to iodide therapy is very surprising, … The dosage used in these disturbances is often very high. Doses of several grams a day have not infrequently been administered for considerable periods. … This form of therapy, however, still remains important in the treatment of sclerotic lesions of the aorta due to syphilis, and has even been used over long periods for the treatment of generalized arteriosclerosis. One cannot help wondering what complication such therapy may produce in the endocrine system, but there is available no very clear-cut evidence of manifest endocrinopathy due to these heroic doses of iodine.”
 
In the early 1900’s, Professor Kocher came on the scene and had an adverse iodophobic effect on the treatment of hyperthyroidism. Professor Theodore Kocher carried a lot of weight, being the recipient of the Nobel Prize in Medicine and Physiology in 1909 for his work on “thyroid surgery”, the only Nobel Prize assigned to research on the thyroid gland. The year after Kocher received the Nobel price, he reported that he suffered from hyperthyroidism following ingestion of iodide. Kocher then became the most famous medicoiodophobe in medical history. He was against the use of iodine/iodide for all forms of hyperthyroidism 4 . Whether Kocher suffered from Iodophobia Vera, true iodophobia, when the physician, although misguided, is sincere; or Iodophobiae Simulatio, that is simulated iodophobia with intent to deceive, remains a mystery. The timing was perfect. The Nobel Prize gave world recognition to Kocher who did not waist any time to use his fame in the promotion of iodophobia.

It is of interest to note that prior to iodization of salt, autoimmune thyroiditis was almost non-existent in the USA, although Lugol solution and potassium iodide were used extensively in medical practice in amounts 2 orders of magnitude greater than the average daily amount ingested from iodized salt. This suggests that inadequate iodide intake aggravated by goitrogens, not excess iodide, was the cause of this condition 2 . Of interest is the fact that autoimmune thyroiditis cannot be induced by inorganic iodide in laboratory animals unless combined with goitrogens, therefore inducing iodine deficiency.
 
In 1912, pathologist H. Hashimoto 36 published his histological findings in four thyroid glands removed at surgery: numerous lymphoid follicles; extensive connective tissue formation; diffuse round cell infiltration; and significant changes of the acinar epithelium. He called this pathology of the thyroid “struma lymphomatosa”. This condition became known as Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis.  At the time of his publication in 1912, autoimmune thyroiditis was not observed in the U.S. population until the iodization of salt. Hashimoto’s thyroiditis is now classified as goitrous autoimmune thyroiditis because the gland is enlarged, in distinction to atrophic autoimmune thyroiditis where atrophy and fibrosis are predominant. Both conditions are chronic, progressing over time to hypothyroidism in a significant percentage of patients 4 . Both conditions improved following a complete nutritional program emphasizing magnesium combined with iodine supplementation for whole body sufficiency 4 .
 
Based on this proposed mechanism where deficiencies of magnesium and iodine induce autoimmune thyroiditis, implementations of a complete nutritional program emphasizing magnesium combined with iodine supplementation was effective in patients with this thyroid pathology, including autoimmune hyperthyroidism. Even a patient with atrophic autoimmune thyroiditis responded to this program 4 .

I'm not sure if it was this article or another on that same website, but iodine was also used to help detox the body of lead.  It also helps detox mercury from the body.  Good to know if you still have amalgam dental fillings.
« Last Edit: November 08, 2017, 09:18:46 PM by Pookie »
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Offline Pookie

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Re: Iodine: Why you need it, why you can't live without it
« Reply #14 on: November 08, 2017, 08:48:38 PM »
Some information on Hashimoto's that might be interesting:  https://stopthethyroidmadness.com/hashimotos/

Quote
CAN I TAKE IODINE WHEN I HAVE HASHI’S??

If you hear or read someone state that all Hashi’s patients should avoid iodine, you might want to question other things you hear or read from that source. Because there are a strong body of Hashi’s patients who report doing quite well on iodine, and some outright report that it was their iodine use that lowered antibodies, even if others need extra help. Doing an iodine loading test can confirm if you have low iodine. And since iodine is the main component of thyroid hormones, plus has anti-cancer benefit, the use of iodine can be a wise decision.

For others, it’s trickier, since iodine can promote the detoxification of certain toxins like bromide, and this can exacerbate symptoms. And they wrongly blame the iodine, when it’s the detox causing issues. This is why it’s important to learn about companion nutrients to counter the die off. Bottom line, we let each person decide what is right for them.
« Last Edit: November 08, 2017, 09:16:41 PM by Pookie »
2-4-6-8  Please don't over-vaccinate!
"Pass on what you have learned."  -- Yoda, Star Wars:  Return of the Jedi

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