The Iodine Deficency Epidemic

If you live in the Midwest like I do this information will be vital to you and your family. If you live inland in any country you are in the same situation - soils that are deficient in iodine. Iodine comes from the ocean so all of us landlubbers are suffering from underactive thyroids - another epidemic in the United States causing all kinds of problems including obesity, chronic fatigue, constipation and much more. You might be thinking that nobody should be suffering with a deficiency of iodine because iodine has been added to our salt and you are correct EXCEPT the medical community has put millions of Americans on a low or no salt diets. Not that table salt has enough iodine and anybody in natural health is going to eat table salt.
So, why is iodine so important? Iodine is the most important nutrient for your thyroid gland which controls the metabolism of your body. When your thyroid slows down your body slows down. So, what can you do? If you feel tired, your hands and feet get cold, hair thinning or you are gaining weight you just might have an underactive thyroid.
One caution is that blood tests for thyroid are not very accurate so if your doctor tells you your blood test didn't show an underactive thyroid it can still be underactive. You can try adding some iodine to your diet with Celtic sea salt, kelp or dulce - all from the ocean and full of iodine. But, there are many other reasons for an underactive thyroid which would require an exam from a naturopath to discuss those possibilities .
My next blog will discuss some of these other reasons.