You may think of iodine as the powerful, natural antiseptic found in first-aid kits, but did you know that it’s actually vital to supporting your overall health and well-being? Though the body doesn’t produce iodine, it requires it to create thyroid hormones that ensure healthy thyroid function. In fact, the American Thyroid Association recommends adding iodine to your diet to prevent iodine deficiency. Nascent iodine supplementation is an excellent way to introduce this substance into your daily routine to naturally and safely improve thyroid function.
Why Does Thyroid Function Matter?
The American Thyroid Association says that if your body doesn’t have enough iodine, it cannot produce enough thyroid hormone. When the body doesn’t make enough thyroid hormone (causing a condition known as hypothyroidism), it is unable to properly regulate the body’s metabolism. This causes a wide range of frustrating symptoms, including:
Fatigue and weakness
Weight gain and difficulty losing weight
Dry skin and hair
Hair loss
Constipation
Irritability and depression
Memory loss
Decreased libido
Cramps and muscle aches
A lower tolerance to cold temperatures
Despite the fact that this hormone is vital to good health, many Americans—approximately 10 million, studies suggest—aren’t producing the right amount of it. Iodine therapy is one of the best ways to better regulate hypothyroidism because iodine is the primary component used by the thyroid gland to produce thyroid hormone. Therefore, if you introduce more iodine into your diet, the body can produce the properties it needs to regulate good health.
For a more detailed explanation about how iodine affects the thyroid gland and new advancements in iodine nutrition, be sure to read this report from Hallelujah Diet Research Director Dr. Michael Donaldson.
What is Nascent Iodine?
Traditionally, doctors recommend adding iodized salt into the diet to introduce more iodine into the body. This presents several obstacles, especially for people trying to lower their salt intake. A better option is to add a nascent iodine supplement to your diet. Nascent iodine is simply iodine in its atomic form rather than its molecular form—in other words, it’s the simpler, easier to digest form of iodine. Additionally, it has an electromagnetic charge that naturally attracts bacteria, viruses and parasites.
With regular iodine, digestive enzymes must metabolize the extra components, turning them into iodate, in order to reap the full benefits of the compound. This means that approximately 80 percent of the iodine is excreted, leaving only about 20 percent for use by the body. On the other hand, nascent iodine is more pure, so the body can take full advantage of it without the need to discard a good majority. This form of iodine is demonstrated to be a safe and effective way to obtain optimal iodine levels in the body.
Iodine and Pregnancy
Iodine is also incredibly important for the development of the fetus and young child, so it’s important that pregnant and breastfeeding women take iodine supplements. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), pregnant women should increase iodine intake through supplementation in order to prevent issues associated with iodine deficiency in pregnant women. With that being said, proper dosage is extremely important during pregnancy and breastfeeding—finding the right balance of not too much and not too little iodine is key—so take iodine pregnancy supplements in dosages we recommend or as adjusted by a nutritionally-oriented doctor.
How to Take Nascent Iodine
The Institute of Medicine has set the Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA) of iodine at 150 μg (micrograms) per day (which is woefully low). One of the simplest ways you can add iodine to your daily diet is through the use of nascent iodine drops. All you have to do is add one or two drops of nascent iodine to purified water and drink it 15 minutes before or one hour after eating. One drop is 310 µg of iodine. We recommend gradually working up to taking iodine several times per day or as often as is recommended by your physician. Our nascent iodine is the highest potency available without a prescription, so you may want to consult your nutritionally-oriented health care professional before consuming, especially if you’re pregnant or breastfeeding.
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