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A Speculative Account of the Effects of Iodine Supplementation at Different Doses

Screen Shot 2016-01-08 at 10.14.42 AMThe following Guest Blog Post was written by Malcolm Maclean, MD of the United Arab Emirates. Dr. Maclean serves as a Trustee and Medical Advisor for TPA (Thyroid Patient Advocacy) UK.

Dr. Maclean makes strong speculative proposals in this article as to why there are differing bodily experiences in the use of iodine and the doses used.

Take the time to read the below slowly and carefully–good points to consider!

NOTE: if you are receiving email notice of this blog post, a reply to the email goes nowhere. Instead, you need to click on the title of the blog post, which will take you directly to the STTM blog, and there you can comment.

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The value of iodine

Most folk in the Thyroid Community understand the requirement for Iodine because the body uses it to synthesize thyroid hormone.

But a variety of cells require iodine for optimum function, as well (e.g. breast, ovaries, pancreas and prostate). So Iodine is important for the body quite apart from supplying the thyroid gland with Iodine. This view is not widely held in the mainstream.

Further, several scientific reports point to widespread iodine deficiency, particularly in the UK and parts of Russia, pointing to the value of Iodine supplementation, at least in some cases.

Yet a problem and a challenge

The capacity of Fluoride and possibly Estrogen Dominance to aggravate dysfunctional Iodine metabolism argue for close attention. Because for those who choose to supplement with Iodine (and there is a strong case for this to prevent breast cancer, plus those diagnosed with Hashimoto’s Disease, see below), the response to such supplementation (based on reported experience of those contributing to Iodine Forums) appears to vary according to:

  1. the baseline Iodine status
  2. the state of the adrenal glands (operating at full strength or in a state of “adrenal insufficiency”?)
  3. whether Companion Nutrients are simultaneously supplemented.
  4. the chosen dose of Iodine
  5. how it is taken (via skin/orally)
  6. the size of the dose
  7. how quickly dosage is introduced

Important Point: For those in the Thyroid Community who have been diagnosed as having Hashimoto’s Disease, Iodine has a reputation for exacerbating Hashimoto’s Disease. However, Iodine may be tolerated provided that the “Companion Nutrients”, referred to above, are in place.

Why are Companion Nutrients important?

Arguably, the adverse effects attributed to Iodine, when used in the situation of Hashimoto’s Disease, are caused by the Iodine-induced, unbalanced and exaggerated activity of the activity of an important and powerful thyroid enzyme: Thyroid Peroxidase, thereby a creating Oxidative Stress and the potential for thyroid cell damage. The Companion Nutrients are designed to support the body’s antioxidant System. Companion Nutrients are used here to prevent damage arising from the unopposed action of Thyroid Peroxidase, as and when Iodine is introduced to the Thyroid Gland, especially in the situation of an inadequate anti-oxidant System.

The purpose of this article

The purpose of this text is to examine the variable experience of those who have reported the effect of supplementing with Iodine and to attempt to explain those experiences according to how the body responds in different metabolic situations. Therefore the purpose is not to influence the reader in any direction (as regards Iodine usage) but to perhaps enable a speculative view of what might happen if/as and when, Iodine is supplemented and why.

I believe that no one should adopt Iodine supplementation without a good deal of reading around the subject, e.g on the STTM and TPAUK websites.

I apologize for the length of this contribution. However, it deals with the complex issue of Iodine effects and it is tricky to give a brief interpretation of this little-understood, but important area, especially for those whose metabolism is out of whack because of the toxic effects of mercury, which has the capacity to damage adrenal, thyroid and methylation function (at least).

So, this text has also been written for those with suspected toxicity (e.g. from dental amalgam) in the hope that the text might explain and emphasize components of the Shade Protocol (designed for the elimination of mercury), which might be ignored by those who, unwisely, are too hasty to get better. 

The right dose of Iodine

I don’t think anyone fully understands what “the right” dose of Iodine is.

If your adrenals are out of whack, Iodine is liable to cause you to crash.

Nor is there agreement on what may be the further results of Iodine supplementation, especially at higher doses.

Some people assert that if you start supplementing with Iodine, two different effects may result, depending on what dose you start at:

Low Dose

Effect: Up-regulation of thyroid synthesis, especially for those who are Iodine deficient (many people are Iodine deficient, so that makes sense). However, if your adrenal function is down, the cells cannot handle the increased levels of stimulation (via thyroid hormone) without a correspondingly elevated level of cortisol.

It is known that thyroid hormone and cortisol work together. Hence, in the situation of adrenal insufficiency (possibly Mercury-induced in the first place, for some) there is the potential for an adrenal failure-induced “Crash” (= feeling dreadful +/- palpitations =”Thyroid toxicity”). So in these two situations… (a] adequate, vs  b]  inadequate adrenal function…taking Iodine may make you feel better or worse

High dose

Effect: Some people report benefit from the introduction of Iodine at a high initial dosage (going against the principle of starting low, increasing slow). This appears not to make sense.

The theory of taking high doses of Iodine

One theory involves acknowledging that Iodine may function as an antioxidant (that Iodine has antioxidant properties, is accepted, although, perhaps not widely so).  The theory goes: Iodine exerts its antioxidant properties but only noticeably at higher doses.

Further, so the theory goes, that antioxidant effect at higher doses tends to overcome the blockage of adrenal function that is creating impaired adrenal function in the first place. Meaning: Low cortisol synthesis and low cortisol levels, because of Mercury blocking cortisol Synthesis by exerting stress on the anti-oxidant system (Iodine usage here, supporting the anti-oxidant system and opposing Mercury).

That too makes a certain amount of sense, because Mercury is known to be able to block cortisol synthesis by acting as an oxidant and exerting stress on the anti-oxidant system.

Speculatively, once your Iodine dosage has (according to this scenario) restored adrenal function by opposing Mercury effects, any further increase may start to be counter-productive (meaning onset of Iodine overdose).

Speculatively, according to dosage therefore, these situations may result sequentially:

1. Baseline: Iodine deficiency in the diet.

Sub-optimal thyroid function with, perhaps, symptoms of Hypothyroidism.

2. Addition of Iodine at low dosage

a) Improves you if adrenal function is adequate
b) Crashes you if you have adrenal insufficiency

3. Addition of Iodine at high dosage

a) Bypasses the “Crash” effects
b) Remits the oxidative stress which is causing the (Mercury-induced) adrenal Insufficiency (with knock-on low Cortisol levels), enables the adrenals to restore Cortisol synthesis:

Result?  Feeling better

4. Supra-Optimal Iodine Dosage

Meaning: even higher dosage than that necessary to restore adrenal function and Cortisol levels:

Speculatively: Iodine Toxicity

Result: You start to feel down again.

Speculative summary of Iodine effects according to dosage

Starting at a “Low” baseline level (Iodine Deficient status) and from there, increasing daily dosage: Feels down-> Take more Iodine-> Feels better->Increase Iodine dosage. More iodine-> Feels worse-> Increase Iodine dosage. More Iodine->Feels better-> Increase Iodine dosage even further: feels worse

This is all theory and is provided for the benefit of those who speculate about what effects Iodine may have.

In preparing the description of this speculative scenario, I am indebted to the contribution (of a lawyer) to an Iodine Forum, who wrote interestingly on this topic as follows:

“Okay. This all-theoretical, mind you, but based on my experience, I think my theory may be correct. At lower doses of iodine, many of the symptoms labeled as bromide detox are identical to adrenal fatigue symptoms: air hunger, low blood sugar, weight gain, headaches, dizziness, fatigue, insomnia, anxiety, palpitations, etc. Another coincidence: the very things that Brownstein etc. recommend for bromide detox are actually things used to alleviate adrenal fatigue: Vitamin C, salt… This may explain many of the symptoms of detox at lower doses. It’s actually adrenal fatigue. Now, iodine can also act as an antioxidant, but only when the body uses excess iodine to make a lipid called delta-iodolactone. But the body will not make this unless it is such a high dose of iodine that the body feels confident that it has enough iodine for its basic needs, so it can use the excess iodine to make this antioxidant lipid. This antioxidant is like 300x more powerful than Vitamin C. I think that you have to take upwards of 100mg of iodine or higher for the body to make this. Because when I take 25mg, I have horrible detox symptoms, but when I take 100mg of iodine I feel normal. I think that at 100mg and up, the body makes delta-iodolactone, and this [is an] antioxidant . It’s the only thing that can account for the fact that people, who can’t take 25mgs without getting sick, can take 150mg without a problem. And there have been about 10 of us who have found this to be true”

The only difference between the lawyer’s interpretation of Iodine effect (at high dosage) and my interpretation:

My interpretation is that at high Iodine dosage, that strong antioxidant effect kicks in, thereby enabling Iodine to resurrect the adrenals (and thus cortisol levels) by opposing the strong oxidant and toxic effects of Mercury. The evidence for this speculation?  At high concentration, iodine appears to tighten up the mitochondrial membrane, thereby preventing leakage of cytochrome C from the mitochondria, across the mitochondrial membrane into the cytosol (cytoplasm).

Result? Less  in the cytosol diminishes oxidative processes in the cytosol.

Result? Less risk of the negative consequences of oxidative stress.

Result? Restoration of the important enzymes which have been suppressed by oxidative stress.

Result? Recovery of 17-Hydroxylase, 5′ Deiodinase, and Methionine Synthase, thereby contributing to the recovery of adrenal, thyroid and Methylation function respectively.

There are those, including myself, who attribute their thyroid & adrenal failure to Mercury toxicity (from dental amalgam). Importantly, this interpretation of Iodine effects draws attention to and emphasizes the importance of supplements described in the Shade Protocol (designed for the elimination of Mercury) and also described as the “Companion Nutrients” in “Iodine Context”.

To summarize: Iodine supplementation is a tricky area. Extensive reading prior to any usage is advised. Adrenal function should be good and the Companion Nutrients should be in place as supplements before embarking. Potential effects of Iodine at different doses have been speculatively described. Getting the right dose is especially tricky and there appears to be no way of knowing what is the right dose without just trying and seeing. Few would argue against a daily dosage of Iodine: one milligram per day, properly supported, as described above.

Further, importantly, this text is not a recommendation to start taking Iodine at massive doses, despite the fact that some report benefit from this approach. The reason for such caution is, as usual, that our metabolisms are all different.

Dr. Malcolm Maclean

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63 replies

10 Rockin’ Thyroid Patient New Year Resolutions just for you!

10 RESOLUTIONSHIP HIP!! As we head into a New Year, here are 10 resolutions to potentially help you feel better and stay better as a thyroid patient…and informed patients everywhere will back you all the way, thyroid friends!!

check mark in square1. I WILL GIVE UP THE PATIENT PASSIVITY AND BECOME EDUCATED AND PROACTIVE!

It’s on purpose that this is the first resolution! Why? Informed thyroid patients achieve better results plus become more confident and proactive in their doctor’s office. Both the latter are IMPORTANT to getting well and staying well, say informed patients.  Let the wisdom of thyroid patients in the Stop the Thyroid Madness books and the patient-to-patient website information be your key towards finding your better thyroid treatment spot. (The STTM II book is even written by medical practitioners!)

check mark in square2. I WILL EXERCISE MY RIGHT TO FIRE MY DOCTOR AND FIND A MUCH BETTER ONE IF I CAN.

If attempting to educate our doctor doesn’t work, there’s the option to find a better one. In the United States, thyroid patients do have choice, and they can exercise it. They work to find a better informed or more open-minded doctor. In the UK, patients choose a clinic…and believe it or not, they do have the right to choose a specialist, but they need to fight for their rights to find a good replacement doctor. Says an informed UK patient: if you hear of good Endo, ask for a referral and ensure you contact them to say you only want to see that Endocrinologist. No one else.  In Canada like elsewhere, patients can do the work to find a better doctor, but may have to call to make sure someone is taking new patients. Every province has different rules.

It’s not always easy depending on where you live, but it’s possible!

check mark in square3. I WILL RETHINK THE SYNTHROID/LEVOTHYROXINE BALONEY.

A healthy thyroid makes five hormones, not just one. T4 is a storage hormone meant to convert to the active T3 hormone. It’s T3 which does the trick in removing hypothyroid symptoms. But a healthy thyroid also gives you direct T3 and doesn’t force you to only get it from conversion. There are plenty of reasons why you won’t get enough T3 from conversion, sooner or later, even if at first, some do feel better. That’s why patients all over the world are switching to natural desiccated thyroid (NDT), or adding synthetic T3 to their synthetic T4 and raising the T3 or NDT to find their optimal dose.

check mark in square4. I WILL KEEP TRACK OF MY IRON LEVELS

Informed patients, whether female or male, found out the hard way in groups associated with STTM that their iron levels are important. If iron gets too low, we’ve noticed we might have hyper-like symptoms with NDT or T3 on top of feeling poorly from low iron. Or we just might feel pretty darn awful from inadequate levels of iron. And we know that there are important iron labs we pay attention to, as well as learning where our iron should fall.

check mark in square5. I WILL PAY ATTENTION TO MY GUT HEALTH AS WELL AS WHAT I CONSUME.

The “gut” refers to the journey and bodily activity from what goes into your mouth all the way down to where what’s left comes out. And for those with Hashimoto’s, the majority do better by avoiding gluten. It helps decrease antibodies for many, and lowers the problem of inflammation caused by the gluten. Removing gluten has also improved nutrient levels. Some need additional help with LDN, or selenium, or iodine–it’s individual as to what will work best for any one patient.

Our intestinal bacteria is also important and believe it or not, can have a major role in a strong immune system and even our brain health, besides good thyroid function. Informed thyroid patients nourish their microbiome with fermented food like sauerkraut or kombucha, or consuming yogurt, or taking a broad-spectrum probiotic supplement–all for the good bacteria. Prebiotics are dietary fibers which will help feed the good bacteria, and include foods like asparagus, onions, garlic, dandelion greens, raw chicory root, and even bananas or beans and more. You can do a search for prebiotic supplements, too.

check mark in square6. I WILL PROTECT MY ADRENAL HEALTH.

Our adrenals are the knights that protect us and keep us going. So patients have learned to support and protect them. One important way is to avoid or lower stress the best way we can: resting, meditation, pleasure reading, music, artistic pursuits, laughing, yoga…you name it and it’s individual. When under stress, thyroid patients often use adrenal-supportive herbs, such as Ashwagandha, Rhodiola or more. If there is suspicion of a problem with our cortisol levels, informed patient do saliva testing, not blood, since they found it fit their symptoms better, besides revealed the cellular, useable levels of cortisol.

check mark in square7. I WON’T BE FOOLED BY “NORMAL” RANGES ON MY LAB WORK.

This is a huge area that thyroid patients learned about in the early patient groups and into the present. Namely, we saw that many of us fell in the so-called “normal range” result, yet clear symptoms of the particular problem. The TSH lab rest was one, but there are many other labs and their so-called normal ranges that we won’t be fooled by anymore.

check mark in square8. I WILL LEARN FROM THE MISTAKES OF OTHERS BEFORE ME!

Yes, along the way, thyroid patients and/or their doctors have made a lot of mistakes, and we can learn from them! This page outlines many of those mistakes and what was done about them.

check mark in square9. I WILL PAY ATTENTION TO MY DUCKS–quack quack.

Yes, there are first priority issues to find through testing and working with informed doctors that we need to take care of, which ranges from better thyroid medications to treating cortisol or iron issues correctly to keeping our nutrients at healthy levels. But some have to explore other issues with their doctor to find their sweet spot, ranging from h-pylori to lyme to reactivated EBV to high heavy metals and more. It’s individual and it’s all about our ducks in a row.

check mark in square10. I WILL HAVE HOPE!

There is very good reason to have hope: there are thyroid patients all over the world who have gotten better. Janie Bowthorpe, the creator of the informational Stop the Thyroid Madness website and books, went from having to apply for Social Security Disability to regaining her life again. Hang in there! Learn from worldwide patient experiences and wisdom on STTM and find a good doctor to help!

All the above are just summaries and if more detail is needed, click on the links. For information not linked, there is plenty on the internet. 🙂

JanieSignature SEIZE THE WISDOM

 

 

 

 

 

 

– Have active Graves disease and you aren’t hypothyroid yet? Go here. 

– Check out all the STTM articles on Thyroid cancer here.

– Come on over and “Like” the STTM FACEBOOK PAGE for daily inspiration and information. 

– Here are patient groups for support and information: //www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/talk-to-others

22 replies

10 Gray Areas about Thyroid Treatment and related issues: The Anomalies

Screen Shot 2015-09-01 at 2.34.02 PMEver heard of the word “anomaly“? It means that which deviates from what is standard, normal, or expected. You could also call it the “gray areas”.

And when you’ve observed and compiled thyroid patient experiences and wisdom as long as I have, one thing certainly stands out: though something may be true for the majority of thyroid patients, it may not be true for others.

Here are 10 of those anomalies when it comes to thyroid treatment and issues related – – all based on repeated observations: 

 

  1. HASHIMOTOS and GLUTEN:

    Though the majority of Hashimoto’s patients seem to need to be off gluten to control their antibodies and improve nutrient absorption, there have always been a small percentage of those who have never had problems with consuming gluten….ever.

    i.e. though their once-high antibodies revealed their Hashimotos state, eating gluten didn’t make them worse, nor did gluten consumption bring their antibodies back up after they had gotten them down due to a better thyroid treatment or use of iodine. (Yes, iodine use has helped many Hashi’s patients bring their antibodies down).

  2. SYNTHROID OR OTHER T4-ONLY MEDS:

    Though we’ve observed that the biggest body of Synthroid or T4-only users see the failure of their treatment either from the beginning or within the first few years (in their own degree and kind), there is a small percentage who may not see the failure for 15, 20 years or more, and an even smaller body who feel they never have problems from it (though they usually do and don’t recognize them as problems related to being forced to live for conversion alone).  

    Informed thyroid patients have observed that in fact, some T4-users convert to T3 (the active hormone), better than others…for awhile.  Other T4 users may never have needed treatment at all. My sister-in-law is an example. Her doctor once found her TSH was high, so he put her on Synthroid. She seemed to do fabulously for about 4 years. Then she stopped and was fine. Looking back, there’s a good possibility that chronic stress was pushing her cortisol high, which promotes a hypothyroid state and higher TSH…thus the appearance of thyroid disease. When the chronic stress is resolved, the “hypothyroid state” goes away.

  3. ADRENAL ISSUES:

    Though we’ve observed that at least 50% or more of thyroid patients end up with an adrenal problem due to being on the inadequate T4-only or other stressors to their adrenals, there is another body of patients who never seem to acquire adrenal problems yet had every stressful reason to. 

    Who knows why some escape it. My mother was on Synthroid her entire adult life and paid horrible prices, yet I saw no evidence of an adrenal problem. I was the same–had a million reasons to see my adrenals become sluggish, yet it didn’t happen. Something about our biological or genetic makeup in response to stress? Our way of handling stress? Supplements we took?

  4. HOW MUCH NDT CAN BE TOLERATED WITH LOW CORTISOL

    Though a large body of low cortisol patients can only tolerate “up to” 1 1/2 grains of NDT without having problems, if they go higher, they start to see either pooling of T3 or rising RT3. A smaller percentage can go much higher without noticeable issues, and another small percentage can’t even go as high as one grain without seeing those issues. But they are there.

    When one’s cortisol is a problem, especially when it’s too low, NDT at certain raises will reveal the low cortisol. i.e. NDT is not the problem; it’s revealing the problem via the raises. //www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/ndt-doesnt-work-for-me

  5. WEIGHT GAIN:

    Though it appears the majority of thyroid patients will either gain easy and/or have trouble losing weight, there is a smaller minority with hypothyroidism who stay thin.

    There are so many possibilities as to why some hypothyroid patients stay thin, ranging from not being one who uses food to treat emotions…to all the genetic differences in how each of us burns fat or what one craves. http://www.theguardian.com/world/2012/jul/17/food-metabolism-calories-obesity-diet

  6. WOMEN VS MEN AND HYPOTHYROIDISM

    Though the majority of hypothyroid sufferers appear to be women, there are a body of men who will find themselves in a hypothyroid and/or adrenal state, as well. 

    There is speculation that because of women’s hormonal changes, it makes them more susceptible to having a thyroid problem. But men get thyroid problems, too, so the problems of toxins in our environment and/or low iodine may be other issues affecting both males and females, even if females with their hormonal issues get it more often.

  7. OPTIMAL AMOUNTS OF NATURAL DESICCATED THYROID (NDT)

    Though it appears that a large body of thyroid patients, when optimal, end up in the upper two grain area AND HIGHER…there is a much smaller body who are even higher than the 3-5 grain area, and the very minority are optimal less than 2 grains. 

    If a line is drawn with the least amount of NDT on the left, and the highest amount of NDT on the right, and with a dot representing each person on an optimal amount of NDT, the majority of dots start to fall in the upper 2 grain area and into the 3 grain area. A lesser amount of dots fall in the 4-5 grains area, and fewer dots are higher. Same with the other direction, Much lesser dots are in the lower 2 grains area, and even less in the 1-2 grain area. Of course, this observation is only true when participants understand what “optimal” really means (which many do not) and is explained on the Natural Thyroid 101 page.

  8. DOCTORS

    Though patients have reported over the years that the majority of their doctors are overtly clueless about either diagnosing or correctly treating their thyroid disease, there are a small and growing percentage of medical professionals who are bucking the trend and taking the time to listen to informed patients and Stop the Thyroid Madness, both website and books. 

    And honestly, we all play a role in strengthening that trend by politely yet confidently being your own best advocate, learning what patients have learned, and having the courage to explain it to your doctor, besides make it clear that “this” is how you want to do “that”. If a doctor will not listen, we put our money into the hands of those who will. A doctor works for YOU, not you for him or her. Here’s how to find a good doc.

  9. PROGESTERONE

    Though many (not all) females see their sex hormones mess up in conjunction with having hypothyroidism…and thus, can need progesterone supplementation to counter estrogen, there is a risk of having the progesterone convert to too much cortisol and causing miserable symptoms of high cortisol!

    In the hormonal pathway of conversions, there are some who convert progesterone to cortisol far easier than others. So each person has to figure out how much progesterone they can handle, which is probably individual. If cortisol is low, though, progesterone converting to cortisol can be a slight boon! 🙂

  10. ACID REFLUX/GERD

    Though it’s very common for doctors to prescribe acid reducers like Prilosec or over-the-counter antacids like Tums for your GERD or Acid Reflux….in reality for thyroid patients, turns out they have LOW stomach acid causing the reflux, not high. 

    Though antacids will seem to relieve the symptoms, it’s actually making the low stomach acid now worse, which in turn makes your ability to absorb nurtrients worse. Read about this issue right here: //www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/stomach-acid

JanieSignature SEIZE THE WISDOM

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80 replies

10 ways you can live a better life as a Thyroid Patient

STTM 10 things(This post originally appeared in 2012, but has been updated for July 2015 with more information! It’s just a poignant today as it was then. Enjoy!)

In a post I did May 21st, 2012, I showed you two examples of very poignant emails I get weekly. And the second one revealed how hard it can be when you not only have very little money, plus an uninformed doctor who ends up keeping you sick. 

Yesterday, I received another email from a thyroid patient which simply blew me away, directed to the gal above. But it turns out her words are very appropriate for all of us. Read it carefully and enjoy.

Dear friend,

I am also hypothyroid. I am on Armour Thyroid, but if I couldn’t get it, I would still take the following supplements to try and give my thyroid gland the support and boost that it needs in order to make its own hormones. Please consider starting on one or more of these and see how you feel. I’m listing the most important ones first.

1. Sunlight! We all need sunlight every day. Our bodies make vitamin D3 in the skin following exposure to sunlight. People who are overweight are usually low in vitamin D3. D3 helps the thyroid. D3 from sunlight is the best kind; D3 supplements are not as good. Don’t believe the medical profession when they try to scare you off from getting sunlight, and don’t use harmful chemical sunscreens; just cover up with longer clothing after you have had your desired sun exposure. Vitamin D3 actually has a protective effect against most cancers. Best of all, it’s free.

2. Iodine — it is part of the raw material for thyroid hormone. Buy a cheap bottle of simple iodine tincture and paint a drop on your skin each day with a cotton-tipped swab. It helps in so many ways. Not only does iodine supply the thyroid gland with raw material for hormone, but it is the body’s own natural antibiotic. The neutrophils (specialized white blood cells) each contain a speck of iodine to help fight off microbes. And the eyes and ears work better if iodine is sufficient in the body. The ciliary body of the eye has a rich concentration of iodine. And the little cochlea of the inner ear contains fluids — perilymph and endolymph — which contain iodine as well.

3. Selenium — a co-nutrient with iodine. Iodine should always be taken with selenium. I get my selenium in the form of pumpkin seeds, 2 tablespoons each day.

4. Magnesium — I make my own magnesium oil and apply it to my skin daily. Janie will tell you how wonderful magnesium oil is — it helps to burn calories by supplying the “flame” for metabolism. And it’s very anti-inflammatory, with no side effects. My recipe is as follows: Stir a cup of magnesium chloride flakes and a cup of pure water together in a bowl for 5 minutes until dissolved, then pour into a clean plastic spray bottle (like what you might use for ironing). The Zechstein Sea magnesium chloride flakes are the purest; they are from a mine underneath the Netherlands, an ancient sea of 250 million years ago. A 1-kilo bag of Zechstein magnesium chloride flakes should last you more than a year. (From Janie: you can also use a good quality magnesium supplement, which I switched to sometime after 2012!)

5. Green leafy vegetables, a dietary source of magnesium — these are helpful in so many ways and are great either raw or cooked. If you cook them, top them with a little salt, a squeeze of lemon juice and a splash of olive oil.

6. Vitamin C — helps the liver to convert T4 to the active T3 hormone. I always have more energy when I remember to take 500 mg of vitamin C twice daily.

7. Coconut oil — really! It supports the thyroid and helps with weight loss. Try to get raw or unprocessed coconut oil, but in a pinch any coconut oil is helpful. Take 1-3 tablespoons per day. Stir it into yogurt and chill it if you don’t like to swallow oil.

8. Avoid refined carbohydrates like the plague, please! They are not food at all. It is impossible to lose weight if one is eating refined cereal, bread, pasta, pizza and sweets. These trigger the body to produce more insulin; the insulin then triggers the cells to store the calories as fat. This is from the book by Gary Taubes, Good Calories, Bad Calories.

9. Avoid using harmful chemicals to clean your house; use vinegar and baking soda for most cleaning jobs. Bleach, ammonia and other chemicals are extremely harmful to your thyroid gland; chlorine displaces iodine in the body.

10. Simplify your personal care supplies to further reduce your toxic exposures (this saves money too). Throw away the fluoridated toothplaste, and brush with baking soda. Hydrogen peroxide 3% makes a good dental rinse. Baking soda dusted under the arms is an excellent and nontoxic deodorant. If your skin is sensitive, mix equal amounts of baking soda and cornstarch and use that as deodorant. Use a soap with a very simple formula and no chemicals. Try to find a shampoo without SLS or parabens (carcinogens). To save even more money, stop using shampoo and wash your hair with a baking soda solution and rinse with a mild vinegar solution. Many people say their hair is lovely with this treatment; google “no poo” to learn more. If you have dry skin, massage in a drop of coconut oil. Don’t use commercial creams or lotions; don’t put anything on your skin that you wouldn’t eat.

I wish you all possible success with your health. Even if you haven’t much money, there are things you can do to feel better. Please let Janie know how you are doing in a few months’ time, so she can let us know! Your sisters and brothers in the STTM community will welcome your news.

All the best, and don’t lose hope. Better days are ahead. Lots of hugs,

Yvonne in Cyprus

Yvonne is an 57-year-old American whose background is in medical transcription, writing and editing. She is constantly reading in the medical journals and websites, looking for natural and inexpensive ways to improve health. She and her husband eat a Mediterranean diet (organic when possible) with good fats from olive and coconut oils, nuts and cheeses. She thinks every family should have some type of garden, even if it’s just a few herbs in a flowerpot.

Have any other recommendations for someone who is financially poor with thyroid disease (or not–this can apply to anyone), plus has a doctor who isn’t helping?  Let others know!

P.S. from Janie: I already do many of the above. Do you? I’m big into Vit. C, magnesium and selenium. I also use liquid Vitamin D. I use baking soda for deodorant and non-fluoride toothpaste. I only use organic lotions and soaps.  I outright use one tablespoon vinegar in my morning drink, as well as MCT oil (it’s what’s in coconut oil). Or I use lemon juice in most of my water daily! Great for alkalinizing the body. I don’t avoid refined carbs totally, but I do avoid them in many places. I love the sun. Plus exercise when I’m able. And lately, I’ve learned the hard how important it is to avoid chronic stress, or treat myself more gently when I have to go through it!

A 11th recommendation from Janie: 

I think it’s also important to add that in addition to all the wonderful ways you can live a healthier life as a thyroid patient, also consider adding T3 (Cytomel, cynomel, etc) to your T4 (aka Synthyroid, levothyroxine, eltroxin, etc), or look into natural desiccated thyroid with its five thyroid hormones, which is usually even cheaper. Updating your thyroid treatment is not based on opinion! It’s based on the experiences and wisdom of patients worldwide who found they got much better results! 🙂

Namaste Janie

 

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Hidden Danger of Treating Hypothyroidism: the Subtle Importance of Iodine

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The following Guest Blog post is from Dr. Malcolm Maclean of the UK. It’s a timely topic as there has been sporadic mention on the internet of a connection between even the best of thyroid treatments and certain potential risks! He feels the risk between a good thyroid treatment and an increased risk of breast cancer may be very real, and he suggests what you need to do about it. 

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For some people who experience symptoms of hypothyroidism, achieving a diagnosis of “Hypothyroidism” from a practitioner may be difficult. Even for those who are so diagnosed, the standard Thyroid Hormone for treatment tends to be Thyroxine, also known as T4-only (Trade names: Synthroid/Eltroxin).

For others, Natural Desiccated Thyroid (NDT) tablets are necessary to achieve any improvement and for others T3 may be the treatment of choice, with or without NDT.

However, the point of this text is not to dwell on such difficulties, which can include:

  • ** Is adrenal function adequate for initiation of thyroid hormone replacement?
  • ** Is the iron level right?
  • ** Have the levels of estradiol and progesterone been rectified? …and so on.

Rather, this blog article picks up at the point where thyroid hormone replacement therapy is in place and the patient has started to feel better.

In other words, if you are feeling great with your thyroid treatment, does that mean everything is alright?? Maybe not when it comes to breast cancer risk and some other conditions.

It has to be said that although many people do feel better once diagnosed properly and treated appropriately with Natural Desiccated Thyroid, there are the  prima facie puzzling reports of an association between “thyroid treatment and breast cancer risk” (as well as the risk of other cancers, lupus and of diabetes which have been associated with those who are taking thyroid hormone replacement) .[1-6]

Indeed the risk of breast cancer has been stated to be doubled in this situation and trebled for women in this situation who have not given birth.

The hazards of breast cancer is counter-intuitive. A person may say: “I feel so much better now that my symptoms of hypothyroidism have been improved, so why should I face the hazard of greater risk of breast cancer?”

A possible answer is that estrogen dominance, (a common predisposing factor in the development of hypothyroidism for some) down-regulates the IODINE PUMP, the active transport system of iodine. And this effect with down-regulation of the iodine bump has been produced experimentally, as well.[5]

It seems that whatever thyroid hormone preparation used, in the situation of this estrogen effect (i.e. estrogen dominance), thyroid treatment is liable to conceal a continuing hazard of Iodine-deficiency-induced breast cancer. This is because:

a) The cause of the original Iodine Pump down-regulation (estrogen effect) has not been addressed.

b) The thyroid hormone replacement used in therapy is liable to down regulate the Iodine pump further.

Apart from estrogen, the following agents are also said to down-regulate the Iodine Pump:

  1. T3
  2. T4
  3. Fluoride
  4. Perchlorate
  5. Interferon
  6. Interleukin [5,7]

This line of thought supports the mainstream view that, in thyroid hormone replacement, the TSH level should remain in the middle of the normal range. However that dosage does not always relieve symptoms. There’s a paradox and a therapeutic difficulty! What might/can be done to address that therapeutic difficulty?

The question is: in the situation of Estrogen Dominance, treated by thyroid hormone replacement, does Iodine supplementation overcome this hazard? (Together with the “Companion Nutrients” as advocated by the “Iodine Research” group). [8] .

The evidence suggests that the answer is “Yes”. The implication is that most females who are being treated with thyroid hormone replacement should be on the “Iodine Protocol” to overcome the cancer hazard, caused by impaired Iodine absorption.

Unfortunately, the standard test for Iodine status in the human body (the urine iodine test) tells us nothing about the state of Iodine absorption and therefore the true state of the body’s Iodine status. Saliva Iodine level (after Iodine loading, 50 mg) appears to be a more reliable test of the body’s true Iodine status. [9]

It is also appears that exposure to Fluoride, by depressing Iodine uptake, potentiates the cancer risk here.

Unfortunately, when Thyroid Hormone Replacement is used in the treatment of symptoms of hypothyroidism, iodine supplementation is not always used together with the “Companion Nutrients“. The evidence suggests that this supplementation of iodine should be in place to lower your risk of breast cancer, even if you are feeling great on your thyroid treatment.

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1. Turken O, Narin Y, Demirbas S, Onde ME, Sayan O, Kandemir EG, Yalaci M, Ozturk A: Breast cancer in association with thyroid disorders.

Breast Cancer Res 2003, 5:R110-R113. PubMed   Abstract | BioMed   Central   Full   Text

2. Eur Thyroid J. 2013 Jun;2(2):83-92. doi: 10.1159/000351249. Epub 2013 May 28.

3. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3765368/

4. //www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/2013/08/12/t4-only-lung-cancer/

  1. 5. http://www.hormones.gr/1/article/article.html
  2. 6. http://www.icjpir.com/sites/default/files/articles/ICJPIR%20-%2014-104%20Atta%20Abbas.pdf

7. Daniel H.Y. Shen,1 Richard T. Kloos,2,3 Ernest L. Mazzaferri,2 and Sissy M. Jhiang1,2 Sodium Iodide Symporter in Health and Disease THYROID Volume 11, Number 5, 2001 Mary Ann Liebert, Inc

8.  http://iodineresearch.com/supplementation.html

9. http://optimox.com/pics/Iodine/opt_Research_I.shtml

To read more on iodine plus groups you can discuss this in, go to the Iodine page on STTM.

About Dr. Maclean:

Screen Shot 2015-05-10 at 9.59.39 AMThe following text was kindly provided by Dr Malcolm Maclean, a Scottish doctor, who himself was diagnosed as having symptoms of hypothyroidism in his mid-fifties. He writes:
“Hypothyroidism evidently runs in my family. Looking back on my school days, I now realize that my mum had a royal flush of symptoms of hypothyroidism. Despite consulting an eminent specialist, the diagnosis was not made and she ended up with a diagnosis of “Narcolepsy” (Episodic sleepiness, not otherwise specified) and, as treatment, a prescription of long-acting amphetamine (Durophet).
It is clear that even in the 1950s there was a bias against proper diagnosis and treatment of hypothyroidism. 
My own diagnosis of hypothyroidism was not made until I started falling asleep at my desk in the mid afternoon. Starting Natural Desiccated Thyroid treatment, and I had the wonderful experience of mental fog lifting, which many, similarly affected and treated, will recognize.
As a medical advisor to the UK charity: Thyroid Patient Advocacy, I press (With others) for better diagnosis and treatment of symptoms of hypothyroidism as well as better education of doctors. The present unsatisfactory state of medical education concerning endocrinology, cannot last much longer, seeing that many patients now know more endocrinology than their doctors.
My particular interest lies in the management of those who make an incomplete recovery, having embarked on thyroid hormone replacement therapy and the attached text attests to that.

 

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