The test is simple: At time zero, urinate and discard. After emptying the bladder, an adult would take 50 mg of an iodine/iodide mixture. Since nearly all the iodine taken orally is cleared through the kidneys, measuring 24-hour urinary iodine excretion levels can provide information on the body’s iodine status.
When I began testing my patients’ iodine levels, I found nearly all—over 97% were deficient. After correcting iodine deficiency, I saw remarkable improvement in my patients’ health including improvement in glandular disorders.
Correcting iodine deficiency allowed me to drastically reduce the number of patients who were treated with thyroid hormone for hypothyroidism. The use of iodine allowed me to reduce the prescribing of thyroid hormone by over 50% as these patients had their diagnosis of hypothyroidism resolved with iodine therapy.
Furthermore, my average dosing of thyroid hormone declined by four-fold (from 120 mg to 30 mg) after iodine supplementation.
Patients with Hashimoto’s and Graves’ disease often had their antibody titers markedly decline and, in many, become non-existent with the use of iodine.
My two (doctor) daughters were diagnosed with Hashimoto’s disease at ages 10 and 11. The introduction of iodine supplementation resolved both cases of Hashimoto’s disease. At present time, neither have signs of Hashimoto’s disease as their antibody titers have resolved.
There are many health care providers both conventional and alternative who claim that iodine is responsible for the epidemic of thyroid disease, including autoimmune thyroid illness as well as hypothyroidism.
That is simply mis- or dis-information. The NHANES data clearly show declining iodine levels over the last 50 years. Over that same time period, all thyroid disorders have dramatically increased including those mentioned above. Not only that, but all the glandular diseases have also increased dramatically over that time period. If iodine were causing the escalating rates of glandular disorders we should be seeing a rapid rise in iodine levels over the last five decades. But, we are not seeing a dramatic increase in iodine levels, we are seeing the opposite. This is an example of a negative association. A negative association disproves iodine as the cause of rising thyroid and other glandular problems.
As I previously mentioned, iodine is needed by all the glands of the body. Hormones are made in the glands. The thyroid gland makes thyroid hormone, the adrenal glands manufacture adrenal hormones, and the ovaries and testicles make ovarian and testicular hormones. All the glands of the body need adequate amounts of iodine to manufacture hormones. A lack of iodine may cause problems with the hormonal system in manufacturing hormones.
Let’s take the thyroid gland as an example. As I explain in my book, “Overcoming Thyroid Disorders,” Iodine is an essential ingredient in all of the thyroid hormones. T4 (thyroxine) contains four iodine atoms. T3 (triiodothyronine) contains three iodine atoms. Without sufficient iodine supply, the thyroid gland is unable to make thyroid hormones in adequate amounts.
The thyroid gland cannot optimally function in an iodine- deficient state. One of the consequences of an iodine-deficient state is goiter (swelling of the thyroid gland). Over a hundred years ago, it was shown that goiter could be avoided and often reversed with iodine. In addition to goiter formation, iodine deficiency may also lead to other thyroid conditions including hypothyroidism, autoimmune thyroid diseases such as Graves’ and Hashimoto’s disease, as well as thyroid cancer.
Studies have shown that iodine-deficient individuals have an increased incidence of anti-thyroid antibodies.[1] [2] This chapter will focus on the relationship between low iodine levels and hypothyroidism.
Iodine is found throughout the body, with approximately 15-20mg stored in the thyroid of the average adult.[3] [4] When body iodine levels are sufficient, the thyroid gland can hold up to 50mg of iodine. The thyroid gland requires adequate iodine levels to make thyroid hormone.
The thyroid gland has developed a specialized system to concentrate a large amount of iodine as compared to its size. This system is known as the sodium/iodide symporter (NIS). There are other tissues of the body that utilize NIS to concentrate iodine including the breasts, kidneys, placenta, stomach, rectum, and salivary glands.[5]
The thyroid gland is located in the lower part of the neck and produces thyroid hormone. It is regulated by the pituitary gland which produces thyroid stimulating hormone—TSH. TSH stimulates the thyroid gland to release thyroxine (T4). Triiodothyronine (T3) is converted from T4 in the periphery of the body. T3 is believed to be the active form of thyroid hormone that drives the metabolic functions of the body. The Figure below illustrates how the thyroid gland produces thyroid hormone.
T4 and T3 are the most common thyroid hormones produced. The ‘4’ in T4 and the ‘3’ in T3 refer to the number of iodine atoms present. As previously stated, T4 has four iodine atoms present, while T3 has three iodine atoms present. The end result of iodine deficiency is severe. It can include a poorly functioning thyroid gland, goiter, increased autoimmune thyroid problems, and an increased risk of thyroid cancer.
Thyroid hormone is essential for normal brain development of the newborn. Since iodine is necessary for the production of thyroid hormone, an iodine-deficient state may predispose the newborn to abnormal brain development. In children, iodine deficiency can result in mental retardation, goiter, lowered IQ, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and autism. Furthermore, fetal iodine deficiency is associated with increased rates of stillbirth, abortion, and congenital anomaly.[6]
The World Health Organization stated that iodine deficiency is the single greatest cause of preventable mental retardation.[7] Research has found almost a 50% increase in perinatal mortality due to iodine deficiency.[8] When iodine deficiency is rectified, neonatal mortality has been shown to decline by over 50%.[9] [10]
Many studies have shown that children who live in iodine- deficient areas have lower IQ’s as compared to children living in iodine-sufficient areas. A large analysis comparing children in iodine-deficient and iodine-sufficient areas showed a 13.5 point difference in IQ score.[11] A 13.5 point IQ decline is a disaster as this can lead to children not being able to meet their potential in life.
As I mentioned earlier, iodine is critical for normal glandular architecture, therefore altered iodine levels may lead to a disrupted architecture of the glandular tissues. This disruption can take the form of cysts, nodules, hyperplasia (a precursor to cancer), and finally cancer.
Breast and ovarian tissues are very sensitive to iodine deficiency. A lack of iodine can lead to commonly diagnosed problems in these tissues including fibrocystic breast disease and ovarian cysts. It has been hypothesized that fibrocystic breast disease is a precursor to breast cancer. Far too many US women are suffering with breast cancer.
Iodine deficiency has been shown to produce specific changes in the breast tissue of rats. Studies dating back nearly 40 years ago show that iodine deficiency in rats produces the exact precancerous changes seen in humans—dysplasia and hyperplasia.[12] [13] Furthermore, with long-term iodine depletion, more atypical changes in rat breast tissue occur.[14] This is the precursor to breast cancer.
Dr. Bernard Eskin, one of the world’s foremost researchers on iodine and the breast, writes, “In all these studies, termination of dietary iodine restriction…results in a variable modest return toward the normal {breast} structure.”[15]
Dr. Eskin has studied the effects of estrogen and iodine in rats. He has found that rats need an adequate level of iodine in order for estrogen to perform its normal function in breast tissue.[2]
[1] Eskin, B. Iodine and Mammary Cancer. Adv. In Exp. Medicine and Biology. Vol. 91. 1977