Greetings all,
A few months ago I learned about using iodine as a supplement. I bought some iodine at the health store. It was a weak solution but I wanted to give iodine a try. I started out rather slowly and began with about 1mg of iodine. The solution is a combination of iodine and potassium iodide. Then I went to 6mg and tried 12mg. I ended up getting Lugol's solution at a local pharmacy and once I finished my first bottle, I started to use the more potent Lugol's so that I wouldn't need as much drops as 1 drop of Lugol's 5% contains 6mg, whereas with the iodine I purchased 1ml is 6mg. (1ml is equal to 20 drops)
I have been reading alot about the benefits of iodine and learning how it relates to the thyroid but also to other body parts. Women need more iodine because of our breasts.
I also read that iodine is anti-fungal so it can help with candida albacans, which might be what was causing my brain fog.
About a week and a half ago I decided to increase my dosage to 25mg as the protocol says you can take 50mg for 6 months to fully saturate your body and then you can do a maintenance dose of 12mg.
Apparently in the US, bromide is allowed to be used in foods whereas here in Canada it has been banned and since iodine is in the halogen family, they all compete in the body so the bromide in the food is probably responsible for iodine deficiency.
I ended up feeling really good at 25mg and felt like my brain fog was gone. I had a test 2 days from that date and it helped me to really focus and study. I wasn't sure if this would make me feel good temporarily as last winter I started to take fish oil and it made me feel really good for about 3 days and then I went back to feeling like crap. I still take fish oil because I don't consume fish and probably am missing out on some essential fatty acids. Although recently I have started to consume chia seeds which have a high omega 3 content. I still make sure to consume the fish oil for the EPA/DHA content.
It's been about a week and a half and I still feel good. I think iodine was what was lacking in my body. You can get iodine from sea vegetables like kelp or nori but I don't like anything fishy. As well, I learned that since I am in the Great Lakes area, our soil is well known for being iodine deficient so getting it from foods is probably difficult.
I also learned that iodine is one of the major components to make thyroid hormone. You also need selenium and tyrosine. I read that sometimes people get diagnosed with depression when really they have low thyroid. I did get my thyroid tested this year and it is in the normal range. I learned as well that the range for being normal is so wide and that you can still be classified as normal, even though you probably aren't. My naturopath thinks I have subclinical hypothyroidism because of my symptoms of low energy, fatigue, brain fog and cold hands. I also started to keep track of my body temperature, which was slightly low. The ideal body temperature is 37 C at it's peak. Mine is a bit off but I have heard others say they have temps such as 34 or 35 C and mine is around 36.3-36.4 so not necessarily the ideal
I don't think it was the other supplements that I am taking that have helped me because I noticed an immediate improvement when I started to take the 25mg of iodine. I feel stronger and feel I have more endurance and energy.
I have read that there are risks with taking iodine and that it is necessary to take the supporting nutrients such as Vitamin C, selenium and magnesium. I have been doing this and haven't had that much detox symptoms. I had detox symptoms when I was at 6mg but it was mild. Basically I had a puffy face but that went away.
I was having this conversation with a couple of friends about how flawed our medical system is. With my regular doctor, I had myself tested for various things but nothing conclusive. I probably would have been given depression medication. I didn't want to go on meds because I don't believe too much in giving people pharmaceuticals to treat their health issues. I believe in a more holistic approach that looks at the body from a bio-chemical perspective and treats deficiencies.
Doctors as well seem to just go by what the tests say and not by the symptoms you have.
And once you get on a pharmaceutical, it doesn't stop. You need drugs to treat the side effects of the drug that you are taking but then that drug creates side effects and another drug is needed to treat those symptoms and it ends up that 1 drug leads to many drugs. It's a slippery slope and once you get hooked, it's all downhill. I witnessed this with my grandfather so it's not bullshit. It's fact.
Medicine has become all about the money. It doesn't care about the science. It only cares to prescribe people drugs that don't treat the symptom but only causes more problems so that they can make the money.
My dad doesn't like that I am taking all these supplements but I am to take them for 6 weeks and then probably need less. There are already certain things I don't care to take but am only doing so because this is the protocol that my nutritionist is recommending.
The iodine protocol is something I found out on my own and I think is what my body needs. I like taking the Lugol's because at least I can taste the iodine. There is a pill but I think I prefer Lugol's. Last week I was craving iodine. I am on an email group for iodine and someone was saying my craving was a sign that my body needs it.
As cliche as it sounds, iodine has given me a new lease on life. I am glad to see that it has made me feel good physically and mentally for well over a week and isn't just something that gave me a quick boost, only to make me feel like crap again after 3 days.
I'm posting some links so that you can learn more about iodine.
There is a breast cancer site that recommends iodine for breast health. It is pretty much the protocol I am following.
Breast Cancer Protocol
This is a guide for how to supplement with iodine. It is pretty practical and informative.
The Guide to Supplementing with Iodine
Basically the protocol I follow is the one by Dr. Brownstein and he has a few videos on the subject that I think are informative
Dr. Brownstein video on Iodine
A site by his mentor, Dr. Abraham
Iodine For Health
A bit on the history of iodine
It seems like most people benefit from it, however some people have issues with it and it may be a detox issue. I think it's best to go slow like what I am doing. It wasn't until I increased my dose to 25mg that I noticed a noticeable improvement and I think we all have to experiment with our own bodies to see what works.
I think our medical system is a joke. We have to take responsibility for our health. Our doctors don't care and don't have the time to figure out what our bodies really need. We can't trust our doctors anymore.
As a Canadian, I have to pay into a system I don't support but have to pay out of pocket to see a nutritionist and naturopath. We need to treat things differently instead of prescribing drugs. Yes some situations may require drugs but that should be a last resort. We need a public that is better educated so that they don't just blindly follow doctors. We need a world where people are scientifically literate.
