Iodine and my thyroid

I’ve been researching and subsequently experimenting with  iodine over the past few weeks. It all started with me searching for any hints on what might be causing pain in the saliva glands when one first starts to eat (something I’ve had in the past, and my hubby still has), and I stumbled upon an article on iodine and that was it – I was off! That’s what happens with me I find, start off looking at one thing then something else makes sense and takes my interest and I’m away on a completely different info trip. It keeps things interesting and those around me guessing! I actually know these days that the info that I need doesn’t come to me by accident and my intuitions are worth following – so I follow them! but that’s another story.

What I realised once I started hunting down more info on iodine and studying it all, was that I (along with much of the population) was very likely iodine deficient. The thing is, as with everything, this deficiency is going to effect me a little more or a little less than the person next to me as we are different and have different genes and requirements for a particular nutrient. I think from what I’ve read, and looking back that I’ve probably been iodine deficient all of my life – growing up we only ever ate fish very occasionally and definitely no sea vegetables! We were very Scottish! Mince and tatties kind of people. Scones and jam, rice puddin – that sort of thing was our fare.

Anyway, a few years ago (after I was back on the cigarettes), I started to suspect that my thyroid was underperforming. I went off to the doc, and asked for some blood tests, but he would only do the TSH test as the others were too expensive or something. The test came back normal, and so as far as he was concerned, all was well. The only thing that showed up in the battery of blood tests that I requested was that I was quite anemic.

It wasn’t until a couple of years later, once we’d moved back to New Zealand, that I started to do some research on the thyroid again, along with the use of nature identical hormones such as progesterone and dhea as I was depressed, gaining weight, was cold all the time, my cycle was horrendous and I was just not right.

I learned that coconut oil helps to balance thyroid problems and so started using it, and was in fact taking it in fairly large amounts for a while along with supplements aimed at thyroid problems. I also started using progesterone cream and dhea under the guidance of a clinic in Tauranga. The hormones helped to start with, but eventually started causing problems as it was impossible to get the dose right so I gave up on them and went back to using a larger dose of a cream containing wild yam and chaste tree which I still use, with much better results. Gradually my body temperature came up a bit (never over about 36.3 tho) and I started to feel a bit better and stopped taking my temperature.

What I didn’t realise at the time tho, was that around this time I also changed my supplements that I was taking to a much better brand, and one of those contained iodine! Gradually over 12 months or so, I started to lose some weight, my muscles were working better and that was when I started running – for the first time in my life I felt like I could actually run! Even as a child, running always felt really hard! My muscles in my legs just didn’t respond.

Then, (as I know realise) when we moved back to Australia, I stopped taking the supplement with the iodine in it! Because I didn’t know about the iodine. I hadn’t looked into it at all and so didn’t give it a thought. I knew that something had changed but didn’t know what! I was still taking other great supplements from our company, but not that one! Not the one with the iodine.

Our first years back in OZ, 2008, was extremely stressful as not only did we change countries again, then three months later move to different state and buy a business, but we bought a dud business and found ourselves losing money hand over fist, in large amounts and although we worked hard and improved the business, it wasn’t quick enough and we closed it at the end of 2008 and moved back to Queensland.

All this stress takes a toll on our bodies, and I believe that because I wasn’t taking the iodine my thyroid was slowing down again. For the few months prior to starting back on it, I felt like I was sinking into a hole. I was becoming more and more depressed, crying every day, not wanting to get out of bed and no energy. Exercise was an absolute mission.

This all changed pretty quickly once I started taking the iodine and getting back into the coconut oil! We had still been using the oil for cooking some of the time, but I’m back to spreading my toast with it and putting it in to smoothies etc. It’s delicious (always buy organic if possible,  cold pressed virgin oil).

I’m currently taking about 4 times the RDI of iodine per day. Half in the morning and half at night with only good effects at this point. I figure that once my body temperature is normal and is staying that way, I’ll try dropping the dose and see if the benefits stay – other wise I’m happy to keep taking as much of the stuff as I need to to feel normal.

Tomorrow, I’ll share some of what I’ve learned about iodine and the massive role it plays in our bodies and of course the implications of not enough. I’ve just shared with you how much difference it’s made to me in just a few weeks. Get some and try it for yourself.