Iodine: Exploring This Essential, But Much Ignored Mineral As we explained in the summary, iodine is a mineral. It has an extremely important role in the human body, and deficiencies can lead to many different symptoms. In the UK, almost 3 out of 4 people have an iodine deficiency, and so it’s important that we start to address the problems. It’s unfortunate that iodine is relatively rare in our diets, and this is largely because we aren’t eating enough of the types of food that contain it. This is because these foods are not considered very nice by a great number of people… you’ll see by reading on. What Is The Role of Iodine In the Body? Iodine plays many different roles in the body. It is essential in the early years from babyhood to toddler hood. Here, it helps to ensure that we have healthy teeth, nails, and hair. It also helps to ensure that babies grow properly – a baby with a diet rich in iodine will grow up tall and strong, providing they receive other nutrients too! As adults, iodine continues to play an important role in the human body. It is especially important in the following three areas:
1. Cognition: if you feel slow and sluggish and as if you “have all the information, but can’t pull it all together” (- known as executive function) then it could well indicate an iodine deficiency. 2. Energy: if you feel tired all the time, then iodine could be the cause, or its lack thereof. 3. Weight gain: if your diet has remained the same, but you are gaining/losing weight, then you might have an iodine issue. These issues are largely caused by problems with the thyroid gland and its functions. Iodine is essential for healthy thyroid function. Where Can You Get Enough Iodine? Seafood is the biggest source of iodine in the diet, but unfortunately, people in the UK tend to balk at the idea of fish. It isn’t something that we eat often, and this is what we meant earlier when we said that people here don’t like to eat iodine-rich foods. The best sources of iodine are things like winkles, oysters, crabs, shellfish, seaweed, sardines, and mackerels: the darker and deeper the colour, the more likely they are to be rich in iodine.
Fortunately, there are supplements like Detoxadine that can help you to replenish your stores of iodine, without having to eat shellfish and seaweed.
We would always recommend getting your iodine from your diet, but if you can’t, then supplements such as Detoxadine can really help. Doctors will prescribe iodine tablets, so a supplement is fine, we just feel that natural foods are better because they often have additional enzymes that help process the iodine better. Nonetheless, as we said, many people will avoid eating seafood, and for them, supplements are the best option.
If you would like to learn more about iodine supplements, please visit thefinchleyclinic.com Orderline: 0800 2800 486 Int'l: +44 (0)118 969 1402 Advice Line 0845 017 0755 https://www.thefinchleyclinic.com