So since all that being cold on raw food business and Powerlifer suggesting that it was low iodine that was the culprit...

my mom (who I got to go raw, YAHOO) and I were talking about iodine. She told me that she has a high TSH (thyroid stimulating hormone) on her bloodworks, and so do I. She also told me that our family has a history of goiter.

Bingo!

And we got to looking into natural iodine sources, and found out that besides sea vegetables, CRANBERRIES are super high in iodine.

Which was interesting to me because I have been craving them all week.

Double Bingo!

Thank you Powerlifer!!! I have a feeling my cold toes will be a thing of the past very soon. I love this board!

raw coconut oil is another great nutritional thyroid booster.

What about coconut butter? And fresh coconut? I don't really like eating coconut oil, but I absolutely love coconuts and raw coconut butter...

, just remember that its not always iodine though that is the culprit of low thyroid function and for some conditions such as auto-immune hashimotos you dont want to go overboard with the iodine as it can cause problems. Although goiter is most commonly caused by iodine deficiency. Goiter can also be caused by vitamin B12 deficiency which is common on vegan/raw diets as there is no real viable plant source.

The meat in fresh coconut etc and butter its the medium chain fatty acids that work to stimulate thyroid function and metabolism.

[www.amlaberry.co.uk]



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/09/2011 09:56AM by powerlifer.

What happens if I overdo the iodine? How much is too much? Can I juice cranberries and eat kelp without having to watch out for too much iodine?

Ok so I just read about too much iodine... So maybe I could eat sea vegetables every other day or so? Is every day ok I wonder...

Coconana Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Ok so I just read about too much iodine... So
> maybe I could eat sea vegetables every other day
> or so? Is every day ok I wonder...

In my opinion pending you dont have thyroid disease such as auto-immune hashimotos, you would have a hard time getting too much iodine with just eating sea vegetables. So pending your not eating bowls and bowls you'd be fine to include them everyday.

Its more of an issue with synthetic iodine supplements.

[www.amlaberry.co.uk]

Found more info: 1000 mcg daily is usually ok. Iodized salt is the usual way Americans get iodine.

So when I cut out the Sad food, that meant I cut out the iodized salt, too. And then went from probably 300+mcg daily to basically nearly zero.

And that's when I got cold suddenly.

So if I eat just a little but of sea vegetables every day or every few days, my body temp should go back to normal, because all I need is as much as I used to get when I ate regular salt, maybe just a little bit more.

Does that sound solid or is that way off...

I found this interesting. A few little blurbs from this International Council for Control of Iodine Deficiency Disorders:

[www.iccidd.org]

UK slips to iodine deficiency: national assessment

Western Europe, North America and Australia had all been thought iodine-sufficient due to widespread use of iodized table salt. While U.S. surveys show marked decline, Australia discovered a significant deficiency several years ago and has mandated use of iodized salt in bread. A new survey of British teens, conducted in 2009, found average intakes barely half the recommended amounts with the authors concluding that "the UK is now iodine-deficient." The report was published in Endocrine Abstracts.


Vegans may be at risk for iodine deficiency

A small US study of vegetarians and vegans, mostly women, found that vegetarians were consuming an amount marginally lower than that recommended, but vegans were half the recommended intake level and consuming 79 micrograms of iodine daily. Below 100 is considered iodine deficient and pregnant women require 150 - 249 micrograms/day. The study was published in The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism and by Reuters Health to the general public.

Yeah iodine deficiency can be considered pretty widespread at this point and has been for a while now even with the use of iodized salt, vegans tend to be at more risk as the most common sources tend to be dairy/cheese and eggs which are obviously not part of a vegan diet.

The Japanese average around 12mg of iodine daily and some studies think that this plays a role in lower levels of various cancers.

[www.amlaberry.co.uk]

I have been dealing with significant thyroid issues, an involuted goiter to be specific, and have done a lot of research. I am feeling 100% better, and know that what I personally am doing is helping me recover. Nascent iodine, that is in liquid form, more bio-available and not toxic, like other forms in higher doses can be, is what I have found to be best for me. I am taking 100's of times the rda and am having great results. If you want to check into this form of supplementation, google "electridine." I posted the link in your "raw clothes" thread.

Now, that being said, there are many related components that also need to be looked at and possibly addressed. The endocrine system is complex and works as a unit. Just isolating the thyroid and taking iodine is probably way to simplistic. The adrenals, the sex hormones (estrogens and such) are key, as well as proper liver function and a proper balance of intestinal flora. These and more, are all related and work together to produce thyroid hormone and support thyroid health.

Coconana, I've been there, and I'm still there dealing with this. In the beginning, I was fooled into thinking the solution lies in supplementing with iodine. However, over the past few months I have learned that it is so much more than that.This whole situation has become an opportunity to really take resposibility for my own health and research and understand what I can do to truly live up to my potential and maximize my health in ways I never dreamed possible.

Cocoana,

You will know almost immediately if you canot tolerate iodine; you will feel awful. Please keep in mind that most of the "heartland" of the US, which grows so much of our food, still has iodine-poor soil, so getting iodine metabolized first through plant fooods is difficult. Second, the amount of iodine in salt is not therapeutic anymore: salt was first iodized after a spate of goiter and other thyroid abnormalities was noted in the Upper Midwest in the early 20th Century. Back then, a deficit of iodine in foods could easily be corrected by supplementing iodine in the medium of salt. However, today we still have deficits, but our food and water are contaminated with toxins, that were not common in commercial applications 100 years ago, that compete with iodine for receptors in our thyroid and mammary tissues. So it's an uphill battle to stay properly iodized; iodized salt just isn't sufficient anymore for many people.

Like marsh, I have had great, marked health improvements with iodine supplements(hate the taste of seaweed, alas). I just had a physical a couple weeks ago with the most accurate thyroid test one can have through blood--which, admittedly, isn't as accurate as could be but is more precise since the ones I've had since the mid 90s--and my thyroid hormone levels are good for the first time in a decade! This, after two years of iodine supplements at high levels. Wish I'd known about it sooner.

This is such an important nutrient, and one of which a small deficiency can have serious health consequences. Please do your homework and stay on top of this!

one more thought on seaweed...

The oceans are pretty polluted these days, so although seaweed is a good source of iodine, and is probably fine in small to moderate amounts for people taking it for maintenance levels of iodine, you could most likely be toxing out your system if you take it in therapeutic amounts to fix a deficiency.

Tamukha-
Good job on those thyroid levels!! That is awesome! I'll go in pretty soon and see how mine is doing

Always best to source from good suppliers who regularly test there seaweed for metals etc. Then there really isn't much issue, any small amount of metal that would rival other land plants would be bound to the algins anyway.

[www.amlaberry.co.uk]