As I discussed in my post a few days ago, I’ve been reading the book  Iodine: Why you need it, Why you can’t live without it by David Brownstein MD.

I’ve now finished reading the book, and I ordered and received a bottle of Lugol’s Iodine a few days ago. It’s not easy to come by! I phoned almost every health shop and several chemists here on the Gold Coast, and only one person actually new what I was talking about, but none of them sold it.

Iodine is a product that was commonly sold in pharmacies years ago, but has been almost wiped out – removed from the shelves and removed from the consciousness of everyday people to be replaced with drugs that make their makers rich and  their users sick.

Anyway, this is a book I would highly recommend – if you value your health.  David Brownstein MD, along with other doctors such as Guy E Abraham MD, FACN, have researched, tested and used iodine successfully for many years in their practices to treat many common health issues and David explains why iodine is so important to our health and why the rates of deficiency are so high these days and getting higher.

He has had and seen great success in treating the hormonal cancers such as breast cancer, ovarian cancer and prostate cancer. He also talks about the epidemic of ADD and ADHD in children and the results that can be obtained by supplementing them with iodine. I know that I have heard amazing testimonials from the parents of children with ADD and ADHD getting fabulous results with the use of vitamins and minerals and EFA’s and probiotics and to me it is common sense that we are all going to struggle if we’re not getting the right amount of nutrients and we’re being bombarded with chemicals. It changes our body chemistry!

But to read of the difference that one nutrient can make and how it actually works to remove toxic halides such as fluoride, bromide, chlorine and heavy metals such as mercury from the body is really exciting!

Iodine is best known for it’s use by the thyroid, but our bodies require it for much more than just our thyroid gland. Iodine is stored and used by every cell in our body! It’s needed everywhere and if there’s not enough then there is no way that our body will function as it should. The priority when iodine levels are low is the thyroid. It requires the most iodine to function, and the breasts come in second place. Other areas/organs that require higher amounts of iodine are the ovaries, uterus, prostate, and brain. This is why iodine deficiency in women is more obvious and more common, however it commonly affects men as well.

For some reason, the drops that are commonly sold and the supplements that a commonly produced only contain Potassium Iodide. David says in his book that it is assumed that our body will convert Iodide into Iodine, but his experience over the years (and now my experience of the past few days) proves that not to be the case due to results.

I watched some video of David Brownstein talking yesterday here, where he talks about how he when he started to try iodine supplementation on patients with thyroid problems, he was using Iodide and didn’t get the results he was hoping for or expected. It was only once a test for iodine levels was created and he started using the Lugols mixture or Iodoral tablets (tablet form of Lugols) containing both iodine and iodide, that he got the results he was after.

My experience over the past four days would indicate the same. Although I did get some good results with the Potassium Iodide, I believe just from the differences I am noticing in the way that I feel already, that my results will be much different using this mixture – I will keep you posted.

My husband on the other hand, has had a very different experience on the Lugols mixture in just 4 days! We have both started on a fairly high dose – about 50mg per day which is the dose that David seems to be using. Now my husband Ray’s story is a little complicated, but suffice it to say he’s had some health challenges over the past 10 years (more than many people realise) and he was taking the potassium iodide for quite some time at a high dose but got really no result that he noticed from it and so hasn’t taken any for a month or two.

Ray’s body, has been heavily contaminated over his adult life – both through work and through his own bad choices. He has worked in factories where he has been exposed to all sorts of chemicals – one place in particular he worked with, and inhaled solvents all day every day with no protection and left work each day stoned from the fumes. He’s worked in situations where he was required to go into radioactive areas one day after they were shut down, with a supervisor telling him it was safe to do so and the list goes on – lot’s of exposures that never should have happened.

He also has had a whole lifetime of teeth that were black with amalgam fillings. Teeth that were rotting and decaying and leaching so much mercury into his body that he has what the dental profession refer to as ‘tattoos’ on his gums where they are stained black. He now finally has all the amalgam removed from his mouth, but this has only been completed in the last 12 months and I believe there is very likely much mercury lodged in the cells and tissues of his body.

So, when he started taking 50mg of Iodine three days ago, we didn’t consider the effect that might have on his body. Detoxification! that’s what’s happening. It never happened with the iodide, but it’s happening with the Lugols mixture. He’s stopped taking it until his body calms down and then he will take it slowly – and adjust his dose upwards as he is able.

He first noticed that something was going on yesterday morning. The front of his neck was sore. Then after he had his dose of Iodine, it got worse and was hurting when he swallowed. Gradually as the day wore on, he started to get tired and achy. By the time last night arrived, he was lying on the couch, running a temperature, with a sore neck, head and everything else – even his hands. He was peeing a lot yesterday afternoon, and during the night last night he was up 7 times to pee! He’s feeling a little better this morning, but still pretty miserable.

It took a little while to figure out what was going on, and it made me finish reading the book – Poor Ray! But it just proves the difference between the potassium iodide drops and the lugol’s mixture and it proves that the iodine is having an effect. I believe that if he takes it slowly, and we up his other supplements to assist his body’s detoxification pathways (vitamin C in particular) it will gradually, over time, help to remove a lot of that mercury and the huge amounts of toxic halides that are undoubtedly contained in his body and help to improve his health even more over time.

This detox reaction that Ray has had, apparently happens in about 5% of people from what David Brownstein has witnessed.  While it is uncomfortable and can be a little scary (when it’s something new), it’s simple to rectify with an adjustment of dosage. He explains that there is no one dose that will suit everyone. Some people are a lot more sensitive than others and as in Ray’s case, a lot more toxic than others! He explains that Iodine is safe, even in high doses  and whilst we choose not to do this under a doctors supervision (and that is our choice) he recommends that you find a health practitioner familiar with iodine (not an easy task I would imagine) and have tests done to see where your iodine levels are along with levels of the other halides such as bromide and fluoride. I personally am happy to go with the way I feel.

If you’re wanting to try iodine for yourself – I ordered mine from Complementary Compounding Services here in Australia. Other compounding pharmacies would also be able to make it up for you I would imagine. Otherwise it is available from Amazon here – Lugol’s Solution 5%.

I’ll keep you posted with more results as I have them.

I have written a couple of posts a while back about my experiences with Fibrocystic Breast disease and my success with the use of iodine in reversing this after 20 years of suffering the symptoms of terrible breast pain that was present usually at least three weeks out of every month.

I did a fair bit of research at the time on the internet at the time and then because of the success I had I haven’t really done much more since. I’ve still been taking the iodine, but have reduced my dosage quite some time back and my breast pain has been almost non existent. It does still appear every now and then, but the lumps haven’t reappeared which is great news.

Anyway, I went to the library yesterday and stumbled across the book Iodine: Why you need it, Why you can’t live without it by David Brownstein MD. I didn’t go there to get this book, but it is a book that I have wanted to read for a while after finding it referenced in my prior online research. David Brownstein is one of a couple of doctors that have done a large amount of research on iodine and it’s effects on health, and he uses it a lot in his practice.

I’m only part of the way through his book, but wanted to write a post on what I’ve learned already about the use of iodine for fibrocystic breasts, because I know that so many women suffer with this painful condition, and with breast cancer rates increasing, women need to know this information. I know that I’m incredibly grateful for my finding out about iodine and being able to rid myself of my hard painful breasts and if that’s all it did, that would be wonderful, but it does much, much more than that as I’m learning from this book.

Firstly, David Brownstein says in the forward of his book that when he lectures to physician he makes this statement: “Iodine is truly the most misunderstood nutrient”.

There is little mention of iodine in medical schools, and most doctors know nothing really about it and believe that the use of iodised salt is sufficient to supply our needs, that is if they think about it all! Studies have shown that iodine deficiency affects about 90% of the population! and that is a real problem as you will learn.

Iodine was first discovered in 1811 during the making of gunpowder and the first medical use of iodine was reported by Jean Francois Coindet (1774-1834) who showed that Goiter (swelling of the thyroid) could be treated with Iodine. The use of iodised salt began in the early 1900’s after tests were completed in Michigan and Ohio (USA) where there was a high rate of goiter and results showed reduced rates from the use of iodine. The use of iodised salt however, although enough to reduce the rates of goiter, is not enough to keep iodine at healthy levels and the salt that it is attached to, has serious health implications because it is highly processed, devoid of nutrients and can cause hypertension and hardening of the arteries as most of us are aware.

I have copied the contents of this table from Dr Brownsteins book showing the therapeutic actions of iodine along with the conditions that can be treated with it:

As you see, iodine has a whole lot of uses! and a whole lot of implications if your body isn’t getting enough! When it comes to not only fibrocystic breast disease, but also to breast cancer, ovarian cancer, thyroid cancer, prostate cancer and more, iodine is a nutrient that should not be ignored. To put it simply, with regard to hormone dependent cancers and disease in women, a lack of iodine will cause the ovaries to produce more estrogen, while at the same time causing the tissues of the breast to become more sensitive to estrogen. When iodine levels are increased to optimum levels, the rate at which estrogen is produced is reduced as is the sensitivity to estrogen in the breast tissues.

Dr Brownstein says he has seen many cases of cancer resolve with the use of iodine. He also gives his patients a regime of vitamins and minerals and often bio-identical hormones as well. I want to share a story of one of his patients from the book (one of many in this book!):

Joan, a 60 year old English teacher, was diagnosed with breast cancer in 1989. She refused conventional therapy and looked for other options. She found a holistic doctor who recommended that she take 2mg/day of iodine in addition to a regimen of vitamins and minerals. She was also diagnosed with hypothyroidism and treated with thyroid hormone. Over the next ten years, she felt well and continued to teach. The tumor metastasized in early 2005. Joan’s tumor markers also increased and she felt very fatigued. She lost 25 pounds of weight by July 2005. “If felt like I ws dying” she said. After she read of Dr Abraham’s research on iodine, she found a doctor to prescribe iodine for her. She increased the iodine dose from 2mg/day to 50-62.5mg/day using a tablet form of Lugol’s.  As she increased the iodine, she was able to stop the thyroid hormone. After six weeks of taking the higher iodine dose, Joan had a PET scan. The scan showed that all of the existing tumors were disintegrating. The central areas of the tumors were disintegrating after just 26 days of taking a higher dose of iodine. “I am so grateful for this information as it is surely saving my life” Joan claimed.

Apparently this is not uncommon. The iodine can stop the cancer cells from replicating and the tumors gradually disintegrate.

The iodine drops that I have been taking contain only Potassium Iodide and the Lugol’s drops that are used by Dr Brownstein and his colleagues are a 5% Iodine and 10% Potassium Iodide mixture, and he says in his book that this is important to have both types as one is more effective in certain organs than the other. He has seen much better results with the use of both iodine and iodide than the use of the just the iodide. I’ve managed to source Lugols drops here in Australia and so will be ordering them before my current drops run out. Lugols’ can be purchased online also via Amazon. Be sure to read what you are getting. The true Lugols is a mixture at the ratio stated 5% iodine -  make sure you get the 5% mixture – there are weaker mixtures out there and they’re not going to give you the correct dose.

I still have a lot of the book to read, so watch out for the updates. I, of course, can’t give you all the information that’s included in his book, so I’d suggest you read it for yourself if you’re able. I’ll be back with more……

This is an update from my earlier posts where I talked about my starting to take iodine again as a supplement and my realisation that I had in fact been taking it a couple of years ago but hadn’t really realised or thought about the iodine specifically. At the time when my health and my weight started to improve and my weight finally started to move, it was after a long time (18 months or more) of doing lots of exercise, and looking after myself but getting very limited results.

I’ve been back on the iodine now for a couple of months or so and as already described, I noticed a huge difference in my mood immediately. I’m not having as much problem with fluid retention (still a little puffiness in my left foot off and on) and my weight is pretty stable. It has stopped fluctuating wildly from one day to the next. Prior to the iodine my weight could fluctuate by 3kg from one day to the next – fluid retention being the main culprit.

This post however is to comment on my boobs! There has been no pain in them – NONE. That in itself is a little miracle. For most of the past 20 years I have had breast pain for 2-3 weeks out of the month. Sometimes so bad that when I take my bra off at night, I’d be wincing with the pain. I’ve had times over the years where it has been better or worse, but lately it’s been in the worse category again.

This all started when we first moved to Australia 20 years ago. I don’t know if having my tubal ligation played a part in it’s beginnings or not, but the first I remember was all of a sudden I notice painful lumps  particularly in the left breast . They were always sore to touch and I’ve always avoided them for that reason. They’ve been there now consistently (even when the breast pain has been better) for twenty years. They’ve almost completely disappeared! In two months on a high dose of iodine they’ve gone and I’ve had no breast pain.

Isn’t that interesting?

There has been quite a few studies done on Iodine and it’s implications reducing or even curing breast disease, fibrocystic breasts and breast cancer with great results. There is a whole book on the subject. Breast Cancer and Iodine: How to Prevent and How to Survive Breast Cancer by Dr. David Derry M.D., Ph.D.

If you’re going to try supplementing with iodine don’t make the mistake of thinking that iodised salt will do it – it won’t! The iodine used in the salt is crushed rock that your body can’t use and it’s combined with nasty processed, bleached mineral deficient sodium chloride that will give you high blood pressure, hard arteries, fluid retention and just plain give your body a hard time!

Use sea vegetables if you like them or get a good quality iodine supplement from a reputable company that makes quality supplements. I’m currently using two brands of iodine. I’m currently taking a brand of iodine drops as well as a very bio available excellent quality multi vitamin that includes iodine and this is the supplement that I was taking in New Zealand when I didn’t realise that a big part of my good results that I was getting was probably the iodine that it included. I think after a few months and once I know how much I need to take for best results I’ll go back to the just the multi vitamin tablets as I know that they’re a better quality than probably anything else on the market as they’re made by a company that always uses only the best, most bio available ingredients and contains not only iodine, but B Vitamins as well as other nutrients that will work synergistically with the iodine to help my body to function as it should.

Keep coming back and I’ll keep you posted with my results as the months go on. If you’ve got any questions feel free to email me.

Ok I’m back. I didn’t get to this yesterday, but here I am now – better late than never!

Iodine. What is it?

Iodine is apparently a non metallic element found  in abundance in seawater and in some minerals in the earth. That’s about as scientific as I want to get right here, so if you want more detail on that, you’ll have to do a search yourself.

What is iodine good for?

Once upon a time in the medical world, iodine was it! If you had a problem that wasn’t resolving, chances are you’d be prescribed iodine by your doctor and that’s hardly surprising when you start looking at the symptoms of iodine deficiency and what it’s used for in our bodies!

The most commonly known  and discussed thing about iodine, is that it’s required by our thyroid gland for it to function properly. That is because iodine is used by the gland to make thyroid hormones. A deficiency in iodine can cause Goiter which is the gradual enlargement of the thyroid gland in the front of the neck, the swelling is caused as it tries to keep up with demand for thyroid hormone.

Lack of iodine can cause hyopthyroidism (or underactive thyroid) due to the lack of thyroid hormone being produced. Symptoms of hypothyroidism are

• Weight gain and difficulty in losing weight
• Fluid retention
• Depression
• Apathy
• Dry skin and hair
• Fatigue
• Feeling cold
• and a whole lot more

During my info hunt into iodine and what it does, I also discovered that iodine is used by much more than our thyroid – it’s used by pretty much all the cells in our body! Within the body, iodine should be stored in almost every cell, including fat cells, organs. stomach and even some brain cells. The second highest concentration of iodine in the body is in the breasts. Apparently fibrocystic breast disease and breast cancer are both implications of iodine deficiency and research has shown that fibrocystic breast disease can be completely resolved in a majority of cases with supplemental iodine! Good news for those of us with lumpy sore boobs I can tell you

There is no real test available to test for iodine deficiency. The only way to get an indication is to test the urine to see how much is being excreted.

A simple lack of iodine could be the cause of your breast or prostate cancer, your chronic illness, fatigue, foggy head, digestive problems, constipation, glaucoma, dementia, PMS, and even Parkinsons disease! All of these and more may simply be caused by not enough iodine according to various doctors and researchers.

From what I’ve read, I there are various forms of iodine and some are better than others as is the case with all supplements. Find a good brand from a company that formulates their products well, from the most effective ingredients.

What about iodised salt? I hear you ask. I would hazard a guess that the iodine added to table salt would no doubt be the cheapest, nastiest form available and even if it does have any value, the salt that it’s attached to isn’t and it’s not something we really should be consuming. So although the idea of adding iodine to salt in principle was a good one, iodised salt isn’t a good option if you’re looking for improved health!

There does seem to be conflicting info (as there always is when it comes to natural, simple stuff for your health!) and it would seem that some people may be overly sensitive to iodine. Popular medical wisdom tells us that too much iodine will cause problems and that the RDI is enough for everyone. However, I know that I noticed a difference within only a couple of days after I started taking it and I’ve now upped my dose to 4 times the RDI and have experienced no ill effects at this point in time.

Prior to starting on iodine again, over the past 6 months or more, I felt as though I were spiralling down into a deeper and deeper combination of depression – crying at the drop of a hat on a daily basis, weight gain, fluid retention, horrid menstrual cycle, lack of energy, never feeling like I had enough sleep and the effects from any dietary indiscretions were rapid and severe eg swollen feet and legs, puffy face, weight gain etc.

I realised with some thought a couple of weeks after starting on the iodine, that I had in fact been taking it in a supplement without realising during the last year that we were living in NZ, and that was when things started to come right for me again – weight started to come off, and energy levels up etc. I had stopped taking that supplement when we moved back to Australia at the beginning of 2008 and I guess my levels had gradually gone down over time and the ongoing deficiency had started taking it’s toll once again!

With regard to the amount we need – there is never going to be a one size fits all! There are different factors that will cause one person to need more than others. Some of these are

• Diet (how much iodine is already in your diet)
• Stress levels
• Amalgam fillings and other mercury exposure as mercury competes with iodine for receptor sites in the body
• Fluoride consumption as it also affects the amount of iodine the body can use
• Genetics
• General nutritional status and other defiencies

There are probably other factors also that may play a part in how much iodine we need to take and how well our body is able to use it. It’s an interesting subject and I’ll keep you posted on how I’m getting on.

Hope it’s been helpful and got you a little curious about whether you might just need to supplement with some iodine too!

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.