LEARNING AT THE POTTER'S WHEEL

Why Do I Need Iodine?
Iodine is one of the necessary elements required by the human body for health. Iodine helps regulate the endocrine system which in turn regulates hormone production. A lack of iodine can affect your I.Q. as much as 15 points, and your height by as much as ten centimeters, according to one nutritionist.

Recently, the Dutch people made headlines by becoming the tallest people in the world. Scientists are tracing it directly back to nutrients and minerals in the diet, specifically iodine. See two reports here:

Tall Tales: New Approaches to the Standard of Living, by Richard Steckel

The Height Gap: Why Europeans are getting taller and taller -- and Americans aren't, by Burkhard Bilger

Dr. David Brownstein states that prostate cancer has a possible link to a deficiency in iodine. He says that men don't show signs of the deficiency as early or as strong as women because of the number of cell receptors in men being less than women. Cell receptors are found in breast tissue and fat cells. However, in terms of fatigue and hormone imbalance, the men suffer also. As the cell receptors grab whatever substance is available instead of iodine, the body's functions become inefficient, resulting in some of the same complaints women have suffered.

What are cell receptors? Imagine little containers, or receptacles, within each cell that must be filled in order for that cell to function properly. When enough iodine does not exist, the body has to make choices as to which cells receive the little iodine available. This means, that organs not deemed critical to survival do not get as much of the limited iodine as organs like the thyroid gland gets. Organs like the ovaries, prostate, and breast tissue that would normally have iodine do without or try to use one of the toxins in your diet or environment as a poor substitute. These substitutions result in malfunction on the cellular level and hormonal imbalance can begin, exacerbated by the phytoestrogens in plants, and other estrogens in drugs, environmental chemical contamination, etc. It becomes part of a larger domino effect of symptoms of ill health.

Often, the symptoms are treated rather than the cause (iodine deficiency). Hormonal imbalance (sometimes called estrogen dominance) is one of the symptoms of iodine deficiency. As this condition is treated with supplemental progesterone, the thyroid and other glands get the progesterone they need. The body gets a burst of energy. This increase in stamina/energy leads to an even greater need for iodine (which is already deficient in the body, leading to the original hormonal imbalance). This can leave a person with the initial feeling of wellbeing later suffering from the same symptoms (a bit of a relapse) as the body's need for more iodine now creates a greater imbalance for which the original dosage of hormone therapy is not adequate. It's a bit of a spiraling effect.

What causes Iodine deficiency?

ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS
Many chemicals in our environment, food and water supply mimic iodine’s chemical components, fooling the receptors in our bodies to accept these toxins. Fluoride and Bromide (a common ingredient in store bought bread) are two chemicals which do this. Even water used to irrigate organic produce can have some of these copycat chemicals.

Iodine has the highest number on the relative atomic weight scale in relation to these halogen toxins. Next comes Bromine, Chlorine, Flourine (flouride). What this means is that the cellular receptacles that are made to receive Iodine can be fooled into receiving any of the lighter toxic halogens within the cellular receptacles. Once the cell’s receptors have taken in a chemical other than iodine, the cell must continue its life cycle in that state (or have its toxin replaced by another toxin). The new cells will continue the process of looking for iodine and accepting poor substitutes (chemical toxins) if no iodine is available.

In practical terms, Bromine can be displaced by Chlorine or Flourine; Chlorine by Flourine. BUT the reverse is not true. Iodine cannot displace the lighter toxins once they are in the cellular receptacle. This is why treatment for Iodine deficiency takes 3 to 6 months. The body needs time to build new receptors and let the Iodine do its work, ridding itself of the toxins through your urine and other means. If iodine is present in the system, the cell will receive the iodine it was created to receive instead of the toxins that are present.

AGRICULTURE
Another contributing factor in iodine deficiency is geographically depleted areas of iodine. If the soil in which our food is cultivated is depleted of iodine, then foods normally rich in iodine will no longer be the rich sources of nutrients they once were. This means that agricultural practices greatly influence the ability of our foods to supply us with needed nutrients.

DIET
Diets that are low sodium also contribute to iodine deficiency by further reducing the inadequate quantity of iodine made available in iodized salt. That is not to say that consumption of iodized salt will solve iodine deficiency, but that this trace amount helps prevent some of the symptoms of iodine deficiency, such as goiter.

Diets that may cause iodine deficiency include:
1. Diets without ocean fish or sea vegetables
2. Low iodized salt diets
3. High consumption of bakery products containing Bromide
4. Vegan and vegetarian diets

Complications of Iodine Deficiency
Once the cell receptors in your body have been fooled into receiving substitute toxins (because iodine was not present), the cells begin to malfunction as they attempt to utilize other chemicals that cannot replicate iodine’s benefits.

Some symptoms of Iodine Deficiency include:
(This is just a partial list)
brain fog
depression
fatigue/low energy
difficulties at work
poor eyebrow growth
slow reflexes
puffiness under eyes
dry skin
low basal body temperature (normal 97.8-98.2)
mental retardation/deficiency
cretinism/deafness
delayed physical/mental development
goiter
hypothyroidism
hyperthyroidism
thickened tongue
infertility
headaches
insomnia

Diseases related to Iodine Deficiency
Iodine in the body helps regulate cell division – especially in breast, uterine, ovary and prostate glands. Iodine is like the referee that helps cells know when they should stop dividing and die as they would in a normal life cycle. Without iodine, cells can begin to multiply rampantly as a cancer. Some cancers (and fibroids) have been shown to reverse when iodine deficiency is addressed, disintegrating from the center of the tumor out. Why? The iodine begins to do its work of regulating the cells’ division and life cycle. The cells begin to die off as they should and the cancer cannot sustain itself.

Specific conditions that iodine can treat include:
ADD
Breast Diseases
Dupuytren's Contracture
Excess Mucous
Fatigue
Fibrocystic Breasts
Hemorrhoids
Headaches
Keloids
Migraine Headaches
Ovarian Disease
Parotid Duct Stones
Peyronie's
Sebaceous Cysts
Thyroid Disorders
Vaginal Infection

Treatments to correct Iodine Deficiency
Make natural sources of iodine a part of your daily diet and take supplemental iodine.

Expect your body to detoxify itself of the copycat toxins if you get iodine at the levels you NEED. This means that while you continue to treat your body for the symptoms of iodine deficiency (for example hormone imbalance), you also find ways to replenish the body's stores of iodine. In this example, you will likely find that after 3 to 6 months of iodine supplementation, you may be able to start backing off of the hormone therapy and eventually stop it all together as the system begins to balance itself. It takes 3 to 6 months for your cells and receptors to regenerate and utilize the extra iodine in your diet. It is at this point that most people are then able to maintain the benefits with dietary and/or decreased supplementation.

Natural food sources

FROM THE SEA
Kelp, or seaweed, is considered a rich source of iodine. Cod Liver Oil (from wild-caught, deep sea, cold waters) is another rich source of iodine. Other fish which are wild-caught in deep, cold waters, having scales and not skin are also sources of iodine. These foods draw their iodine from the ocean waters and retain their richness. One of the main benefits of this organic form of iodine is that the sea’s nutrient stores are still considered rich. However, the consumer will need to investigate the food source as some waters have become polluted.

Fresh waters flow over land and transport nutrients and minerals into the sea. Plants and animals then convert these nutrients and minerals into an organic form that can be processed by the human body. Our Creator in His wisdom provided us with these plants and animals from the sea as nutrient processors that take what our bodies could not use and transform it into a bio-available form – or a form that can be utilized by a human body.

As our oceans and seas become more polluted with various chemicals and toxins, it becomes more important to be selective about what sea foods to add to the diet. Given the option, it is preferable to consume food harvested in deep, cold ocean waters than that harvested in warm shallow waters. Fish with skin absorb more of the pollutants in the waters where they live and are generally scavengers, consuming rotting or dead matter, so these are not recommended for regular consumption. The Creator has also placed shelled animals within our waters to act as filters to clean up toxins that find their way into the water. Consumption of shellfish exposes the human system to these poisons. I mention these things in order that the reader might avoid the temptation to increase the amount of sea food in the diet without taking the time to select that which is best suited to his (the reader’s) purpose.

FROM THE LAND
Our agricultural lands are now considered deficient in iodine. Our food sources for land grown foods have been depleted as the stores in the soil have gone down. You would have to eat much more of these foods than you would have years ago to get the same result -- even if the food is organic. I’ve mentioned iodine in salt as a source of iodine. However, the iodine in salt is not the amount the human body needs on a cellular level. The amount in salt may only prevent goiter. A greater amount of iodine is needed to maintain proper health.

Dairy products, eggs and meat will contain iodine if the animal has been fed an iodine rich diet. In the 1980's iodine was removed from many food products on U.S. shelves.

Iodine is present in all parts of the black walnut tree. Iodine is in the highest concentration in the outer hulls of the nuts. This is also the part used for vermifuge solutions. Black walnut is also a significant source of potassium, magnesium, manganese, sulfur, copper and silicia, with the meat being a good source of essential fatty acids.

Land-based food sources of iodine include:
Radishes
Asparagus
Carrots
Tomatoes
Spinach
Rhubarb
Potatoes
Peas
Strawberries
Mushrooms
Lettuce
Bananas
Cabbage
Egg Yolk
Onions

It has been observed that when iodine is consumed in an acid reactive medium, the iodine is more readily utilized by the body. Drinking a glass of water with a spoonful of organic apple cider vinegar along with these foods helps your body process the iodine in the food. Without knowing the science, our grandmothers were securing the health of future generations by serving some of these foods preserved in a vinegar solution.

For further study:
The following is a partial list of my source material for this article. While I have found these volumes informative and useful, my listing them here is not an endorsement of their personal philosophies and/or belief systems. I list the web sites as a convenience to the reader and because I find the price competitive, not as an endorsement of these businesses. Purchasing volumes used or borrowing them from the local library would save the reader even more money.

Iodine: Why You Need It, Why You Can't Live Without It,
Dr. David Brownstein, M.D. (Medical Alternatives Press, 2004)
ISBN-10: 0966088239

Folk Medicine: A Vermont Doctor's Guide to Good Health,
by D. C. Jarvis, M.D. (Henry Holt & Co, January 1958)
ISBN-10: 0030274109

The Cure for All Diseases,
Hulda Regehr Clark (New Century Press, January 1995)
ISBN-10: 1890035017