A simple way to boost your thyroid function and protect against cancer? Add kelp or other sea vegetables to your eggs, soups, salads or anything you can sprinkle seasoning on. I am not a fan of iodine supplementation in pill form (unless supervised by a Dr. for extremely low levels that have been tested). But organic toxic-free sea vegetables are a safe way to boost your levels. Many of us are low in iodine because:
- We don’t eat enough eggs, fish and sea vegetables
- We have reduced our consumption of iodized salt
- Bromine exposure; this is found in baked goods, plastics, soda, medications and pesticides.
- Fluoridated drinking water
- soil depletion
Other things low iodine can effect are dry mouth, dry skin, fibromyalgia, depression, weight gain and reduced alertness.
I love the Sea Seasonings Sea Salt with Sea Veges and use in place of regular sea salt at least once per day. 1/4 tsp = 370 mcg of iodine. There are some brown pieces in the salt but does not alter the taste of your food. As with any food or supplement too much of a good thing can apply. The RDA for iodine is 150-290 micrograms per day (very low in my opinion, set only for the prevention of goiters). 1000 mcg’s = 1 mg. The average daily Japanese consumption of iodine is 5-13,000 micrograms or 5-13 mg per day! I can’t recommend the right level for you, I would work with your naturopathic Dr. and get tested if you suffer from low thyroid or have any of the symptoms above.
3 Comments
Marie Pena
What is a naturuapathic doctor? My thyroid does not work right. At the clinic they just gave me pills (which I can’t afford anyway). Thank you, Marie Pena
Michelle
Naturopathic medicine is a type of primary health care that emphasized prevention and using self-healing through natural therapies. So for example you would use foods like iodine, to help your thyroid function better. Usually a Naturopathic Dr. would work with you to find alternatives to drugs to heal what’s ailing you. My blog gives natural examples through food on how you can improve your health. It is not a replacement for medical care. Here is a good article on your thyroid by Dr. Mark Hyman who runs the Functional Medicine clinic at the Cleveland Clinic http://drhyman.com/blog/2010/05/20/a-7-step-plan-to-boost-your-low-thyroid-and-metabolis/
or another article here http://www.naturalnews.com/046782_low_thyroid_natural_treatment_nutrition.html
Hormone replacement therapy which are probably what your pills are can be very helpful at improving your thyroid. Hopefully they will be covered by insurance. Good luck!
Marie Pena
Thank you for the information. I will read about this . Pills are called levothyroxine… Marie