Interesting read - what are the thoughts?

I am not sure if this has been shared before, what are the thoughts .

Iodine and Cardiac Conditions, Afib, Arrhythmias

15th June 2008 by Arrow Durfee Posted in Uncategorized

ATRIAL FIBRILLATION, ARRHYTHMIAS AND IODINE

By Bruce West, D.C.

[In Health Alert, June 2006, Volume 23, Issue 6. To order, call 831-372-2103, weekdays. Or write Health Alert, 100 Wilson Road, #110, Monterey Ca 93940.]

“As you have read over and over in Health Alert, there is an epidemic of cardiac arrhythmias and atrial fibrillation in this country. Expert Thyroidologists like Guy Abraham, MD, are convinced that the medical iodine phobia has a great deal to do with this phenomenon. Adequate stores of iodine are necessary for a smooth heartbeat.” — Health Alert, Vol. 22, No. 12

Too many years ago medical experts determined that high doses of iodine were dangerous, despite a hundred-year history of extremely high doses (in today’s terms) of iodine prescribed by doctors for just about everything—with great results. As is often the case, the flawed results of this study became medical dogma. And today, more than 50 years later, organized medicine still follows that dogma when it comes to iodine therapy.

This is particularly sad for those who do not have access to alternative medical care and are suffering from problems with thyroid and goiter, female reproductive diseases, menopause, diabetes, obesity, liver disease, polycystic ovaries, breast disease, heart disease, and most especially arrhythmia problems.

Missing Link

Iodine supplementation may be the missing link in a good percentage of heart arrhythmia cases, especially atrial fibrillation. The body needs adequate stores of iodine for the heart to beat smoothly. After close to a year now of using Iodine Fulfillment Therapy, I can attest to this fact. Most of the stubborn cases of cardiac arrhythmias and atrial fibrillation that we were unable to completely correct with our cardiac protocols have now been resolved with adequate supplies of iodine added to the protocol.

Even I was fooled for years—fooled away from using adequate doses of iodine. But thanks to bona fide experts like Dr. Abraham, I was able to see the decades-old medical iodine phobia for what it really was—a mistake. Carefully and slowly at first, I started having patients take sufficient doses of iodine. Much to my surprise, there were no problems, just many great results, especially with arrhythmias and atrial fibrillation.

Iodine Fulfillment

Iodine fulfillment means the entire body has adequate stores of iodine to function properly. Although iodine can be found in every organ and tissue in the body, some areas utilize more iodine than others. It is not only the thyroid gland that uses iodine but also the heart, breasts, ovaries, muscles, liver, and adrenal glands. We are also discovering that while it may take smaller doses to fulfill the thyroid’s needs, it often takes much larger doses to fulfill the rest of the body’s needs, including the needs of the heart.

These parts of the body are iodine sensitive—that is, if they are starving for iodine, they do not function properly. Since there are so many iodine-sensitive sites in the body, medical experts are finding that iodine therapy can be a “panacea” of sorts for all types of stubborn problems. Just as physicians noted 60 to 100 years ago, iodine therapy can help people with hypo- or hyperthyroid (with or without goiter), fibrocystic breasts, polycystic ovary syndrome, brain fog, constipation, obesity, diabetes, and hypertension. In addition, it may prove essential treatment if you suffer from heart disease, arrhythmias, and atrial fibrillation.

In the past, with just about every patient with heart problems, arrhythmias, and atrial fibrillation, I would always use a protocol from Standard Process that included Cataplex F. Cataplex F is a combination of liver extract, omega-3 fatty acids, and iodine. But the typical dose of four to six Cataplex F tablets contains less than one milligram of iodine. While this dose was adequate for most people, some failed to respond, or only got partially better. Old-time physicians used to routinely prescribe up to 100 milligrams daily for all kinds of problems with excellent results. Now I know that they were on the right track.

How Much Iodine, and For How Long?

As I see people with stubborn arrhythmias getting better on 10, 20, 30, and even up to 50 mgs of iodine daily, I know that large doses are sometimes needed by the body. This is what Iodine Fulfillment Therapy is all about. Iodine fulfillment simply fulfills all of the body’s needs for iodine. For those deficient, this may require up to 50 mgs daily for three to four months.

If you have been unable to resolve your heart arrhythmia with one of my protocols, the simplest way to proceed with Iodine Fulfillment Therapy is to add Prolamine Iodine from Standard Process to your heart protocol. Begin with one Prolamine Iodine tablet daily. If there are no problems after a few days to a week, increase the dose to two daily. Continue this procedure, increasing the dose by one more daily until your heart begins to beat smoothly. At this point, you have reached iodine fulfillment. Stay at this dose for a full three months.

Since each Prolamine Iodine tablet contains 3 mgs of iodine, your body may require from 1 to 15 tablets daily for three months. Most people achieve results after 3 to 10 tablets daily. After three full months at your iodine fulfillment dose, begin to cut the dose back by one to two tablets daily each week. If you begin to feel your heart act up again, you have gone past your maintenance dose. Add back one more tablet daily. You will generally end up with a dose of one to four daily—and this dose should be maintained for 12 months. Thereafter, you will probably need even less.

Don’t Take Prolamine Iodine and Amiodarone

Amazingly, while medicine shuns iodine therapy, their most popular anti-fibrillation drug, Amiodarone, actually is iodine in a toxic, sustained-release form. This drug can produce a smooth heartbeat when the body has accumulated about 1,500 mgs of iodine—the exact amount of iodine retained by your body when iodine fulfillment is achieved by natural supplementation with Prolamine Iodine.

Unfortunately, Amiodarone is an extremely toxic form of iodine used by the medical profession. The side effects are often too great (and even life threatening) for most people to endure long enough to achieve a normal heartbeat. In addition, once you stop this drug, your original problem returns. Iodine therapy, on the other hand, fulfills the body’s needs safely, then maintains the smooth heartbeat with a low-maintenance dose.

Because Amiodarone is iodine, you cannot use iodine fulfillment therapy while you are taking this drug. Rather, your doctor needs to wean you off this drug first, so you can then begin natural iodine treatment. In other words, iodine fulfillment therapy is done in place of Amiodarone, not together with it. Amiodarone and iodine at the same time can be dangerous.

If you are on a heart protocol that has been only partially effective, or your arrhythmia or atrial fibrillation problem is stubborn, you will need to test iodine fulfillment therapy. However, you will maintain your original heart protocol with one change. Once iodine therapy has started (even at one Prolamine Iodine tablet daily), you will no longer need to take Cataplex F. Everything else in your protocol remains the same.

The Iodine Test

In the past we held that if it took less than 24 hours for tincture of iodine to disappear from the skin then there was a need for iodine supplementation. Today, I am not so sure this is a good indicator of iodine need. There are just too many variables involved in how quickly the tincture disappears from the skin.

However, tincture of iodine, available in drug stores everywhere for pennies, cannot hurt. Common sense dictates that if the iodine first disappears in a few hours, but stays in place for more than 24 hours after iodine fulfillment therapy, it is a good test. I will leave it up to you if you want to challenge this test.

As far as I’m concerned, I am finding more and more people deficient in iodine—even those I would not have thought would have this problem. At this stage, unless you know you are allergic to iodine (a very rare condition), it would be best to fulfill your body’s needs for iodine if you have any of the problems mentioned in this article.

Simply proceed with caution, slowly and carefully. For anyone setting out on a course of iodine fulfillment therapy, please send us a self-addressed envelope with two stamps and say IODINE. We will send you our full article so you will know exactly how to proceed. The best course of action is to proceed with iodine therapy safely, as there have been some problems reported in certain individuals. I recommend that you proceed only when you have our Iodine flyer in your hands.

Problems and Allergy to Iodine

Few problems have been reported when iodine therapy is accomplished slowly and safely—as outlined in my flyer. Sensitive individuals may experience skin irritation; watery eyes, nose, and saliva; nervousness or headache. Some highly sensitive individuals may also experience a racing heart or irritation of the esophagus. These are extremely rare (I’ve seen very few of these potential problems), and they are easily resolved by either immediately reducing the dose or quitting the iodine.

The greatest problem arises when an individual with a known allergy to iodine tries iodine therapy. This therapy cannot be used by these folks unless their allergy to iodine is resolved.

Resolving an allergy to iodine may be possible with an acupuncture technique called NAET. To find out if your allergy to iodine (or other substances, for that matter) can be resolved, check out the acupuncture site of an old friend of Health Alert, Dr. Devi Nambudripad, at naet.com.

The second greatest problem can occur if you try iodine therapy while taking an iodine drug like Amiodarone. This will cause problems that can require medical attention. Do not attempt to take large doses of iodine when you are taking Amiodarone, Pacerone, or Cardarone. If you want to try iodine therapy, your doctor will first have to wean you from these drugs.

In conclusion, if you suffer from heart arrhythmias or atrial fibrillation, or any of the problems listed in this article, keep iodine therapy in mind. If you use iodine therapy, please feel free to send me your results. As I’ve said, I have been nothing but pleasantly surprised with results coming back better and better. And I can finally reach some of those really stubborn arrhythmia and fibrillation cases that just would not respond completely to my protocol containing only a milligram or two of iodine.

It is now beyond a doubt that adequate iodine is necessary for a smooth heartbeat. This ongoing research is truly wonderful news.

………………………………………………………………………….

Iodine Facts and Results

By Bruce West

[from Health Alert, October 2006, Volume 23, Issue 10]

Iodine therapy continues to be highly beneficial to iodine-deficient people. It is now proven that 50 mgs of iodine daily detoxifies the body of toxic halide compounds such as bromine and fluorine—as well as the heavy metals lead and mercury. It is proven that there is a built-in safety mechanism for iodine overload. With iodine deficiency, the amount of iodine retained in the body is related to the amount of the deficiency. At full sufficiency (when there is no longer any iodine deficiency), the excess iodine is excreted via the urine as iodide. It is proven that the amount of iodine needed and retained in the body for total iodine sufficiency is 1,500 mgs. This is 50 times higher than the amount reported in medical textbooks.

Our environment is now loaded with the toxic halides bromine and fluorine. Up until now we have had no way to detoxify the body of these thyroid poisons. Iodine Therapy now provides a protocol to accomplish what we have desired for years. And as an added bonus, there is additional detoxification of mercury and lead.

Iodine is needed for a smooth heartbeat. Yet the medical establishment continues to have a penchant for the toxic, iodine-containing drug Amiodarone. This drug is extremely toxic to the thyroid and can induce severe thyroid abnormalities. Yet rather than switch to the nontoxic form of iodine, cardiologists and thyroidologists would kill the thyroid gland with ablation of the thyroid (surgical or drug destruction of the gland) in order to continue the use of the toxic drug Amiodarone.

As a result, rather than switch to the nontoxic form of iodine to smooth out a severe cardiac arrhythmia, medical doctors would sacrifice the thyroid gland altogether. This radical procedure is performed so that the drug, which is rarely a successful, long-term treatment for cardiac arrhythmias, can be used. Seem a little drastic? Once something becomes the gold standard in medicine, almost nothing will stand in the way of physicians continuing to prescribe it.

Nontoxic and Effective Treatment

So if you suffer from atrial fibrillation, ventricular tachycardia, ventricular fibrillation, or any other cardiac arrhythmia, you will probably be prescribed the toxic drug Amiodarone along with the rat poison warfarin (Coumadin). All the while you probably need Iodine Therapy. But take note…you cannot proceed with Iodine Therapy while you are taking Amiodarone. The combination of safe iodine with the drug’s toxic iodine would overwhelm the body.

Instead, you need to start a heart protocol available from us, and then have your doctor wean you from Amiodarone as you prepare for Iodine Therapy. After three weeks off Amiodarone, you can begin Iodine Therapy….

The Body’s Many Needs for Iodine

It seems hard to believe that many, many people need large doses of iodine. But when you consider that toxic halide molecules and heavy metals are in direct competition for the iodine sensitive sites in the body, it makes sense. These toxins are now everywhere in our environment. They are displacing iodine from your body every day. And iodine fulfillment can only be reached when these toxins are released from the body. This happens only with Iodine Therapy.

Aside from the thyroid gland, your heart, muscles, skin, brain, breasts, ovaries, and other glands and tissues are dependent on iodine. People who are just depleted, chronically cold, depressed, obese, forgetful, chronically fatigued, and old before their time probably need Iodine Therapy.

People with heart arrhythmias, heart disease, ovary disease, breast disease, menopausal problems and hot flashes, muscle wasting, hypo- and hyperthyroid disease, “brain fog,” dementia and Alzheimer’s osteoporosis, premenstrual tension, and just about everyone on thyroid hormone medication probably need Iodine Therapy. And just about everyone poisoned with bromine, fluorine, mercury, lead, and the drug Amiodarone probably needs Iodine Therapy.

The Body’s Safety Mechanism

Given what we now know about the built-in safety mechanism for iodine overload, Iodine Therapy is relatively safe. You could be tested for the amount of iodine you need and then checked again to see if you’ve reached fulfillment, but since excess iodine is harmlessly excreted as iodide in the urine, this is often not necessary. Most people reach Iodine Fulfillment on a dosage of between 37 and 50 mgs daily for 3 to 6 months.

The iodine dosage is increased slowly, and after 3 to 6 months on the full dose it is tapered back down to a low dose. The responses to this therapy are often extremely dramatic. Patients with stubborn heart arrhythmia that partially responded to my heart protocol, which contained small amounts of iodine, are now routinely cured with their protocol combined with Iodine Therapy.

A Fountain of Youth?

As a result of Iodine Therapy, women enjoy relief from chronic cystic breasts. Thyroid function is improved. Skin tone is improved. Indeed, in some patients, years seem to roll back. The mind functions better, and the “brain fog” is often lifted. Ovary syndromes are often permanently resolved. And the need for life-long thyroid medication is often diminished or eliminated altogether.

If you fit into any of these categories, you may wish to consider a proper protocol combined with Iodine Therapy. This type of treatment is now very well tested, proven, and safe. Remember to proceed only after you’ve read my Iodine Therapy flyer. Patients routinely use Iodoral (which can be procured from physicians), or Prolamine Iodine from Standard Process.

The clinical evidence of significant health benefits continues to gather from physicians who use this type of treatment. The results we get with our patients show the same kinds of benefits.

[icklebud99]

This sounds absolutely fascinating, so much so I am going to discuss with my GP as I wish to try this out. I will report back in a few months if this has worked for my PAF, it requests I send a self addressed envelope so I can receive a fact sheet, can you let me know where I should send it as I am not sure.

[Hidden in reply to icklebud99]

The only address on this article that I can find is : Health Alert, 100 WIlson Rd, #110, Monterey CA 93940

[1803sioban]

Hi Everyone,

Bruce West appears to be saying that a person could need up to 50 mg of iodine daily. That sounds a dangerous amount of iodine and I would caution everyone to be very careful before starting on a "Iodine Fulfillment Therapy" Please see below recommended amount of for iodine and I have used an American site for reference as Bruce, himself is writing in an American Blog.

"The US recommended daily intake of iodine is 150 micrograms (mcg) per day for most adults, and about twice that for pregnant and nursing women. This level of iodine intake prevents goiter, mental retardation, and all the associated problems with iodine deficiency.

Iodine: How Much is Too Much? | Paleo Leap

paleoleap.com/iodine-much-much"

I would advise talking to your GP before taking a supplement of iodine.

Have a good weekend everyone and keep as well as possible.

Sioban

[Hidden]

Not sure my INR nurse would approve, most supplements are banned for warfarin takers

[Beancounter Volunteer]

In a past life, and many years ago, I qualifed as a chemist, not a pharmacist but a chemist working literally manufacturing chemicals and pharmaceuticals.

What every chemist and even chemistry student knows is that Iodine is a halogen like it's brothers flourine, bromine and chlorine, and they are ALL highly reactive elements which hate existing in their natural state and will react with just about anything else to avoid existing alone. They cannot be found in their natural elemental state anywhere in nature.

As a supplement, Iodine is likely to react with almost anything you take, and in fact the doctor is suggesting here iodine mixed with an organic compound to try and stop it reacting, and iodine is certainly poisonous to the body in too high a dose, with some serious side effects to the thyroid. Having said that the body needs Iodine and cannot manufacture it so it needs to come from our food, personally I love Japanese food, so I know my seaweed intake is plenty high enough for Iodine levels in my body.

Do you remember all the arguments over flourine being added to the water? Well that was in tiny tiny amounts of less than 0.5 ppm (parts per million) And flourine by comparison to iodine is it's stable and much less reactive little brother.

I think anyone even considering going anywhere near a supplement such as this should talk very seriously with their medical advisors. This could, in my opinion, make things a great deal worse.

I know that some think there is a worldwide drug company conspiracy to prevent natural remedies, and like all arguments I think there is an small element of truth to this, but this "theory" has been around long enough for ethical doctors and researchers to have conducted proper peer reviewed medical research studies if they thought there would be a benefit. The fact that this has not happened certainly leads me to believe that the evidence is scarce at best, of any benefits.

Lastly even a quick search reveals that Iodine supplements should never be taken by anyone having thyroid treatment, and with Amiodarone, most of the high blood pressure tablets (ACE inhibitors, ARBs) any diuretic, and any lithium therapies.

Please please seek qualified medical advice before even thinking about this.

Ian

[1803sioban in reply to Beancounter]

Thank you Ian for that excellent explanation. There are far too many "experts" peddling dangerous or just expensive but useless therapies that only benefit themselves !!!

Sioban.

[Hidden]

Thanks for posting, I look forward to reading this later. I also would be very cautious and haven't taken any to date. You may wish to check out Robert Redfern of Good Health Naturally who is I hope a more reputable (from what I read) supplement salesman and he has been banging on about Iodine for some time for various health benefits...can't remember if that includes AF but I think so as it is on my radar to check into more.

[mrsg46]

Ok, here's the thing ... as someone with three failed ablations behind them and now in persistent AF and atrial tachycardia I read this all the way through, and with the misery and restrictions that my life has become I should be a prime candidate for rushing out and getting these supplements.

BUT .. where are the results of evidence-based clinical trials? Why are EPs and cardiologists not writing papers in respected medical journals or suggesting this therapy to their patients. I'm sorry but until there is good hard long-term evidence that this idea works I for one would not consider it.

[Hidden]

Well, I am definitely allergic to iodine so I may have to sit this one out... Would do me more harm than good I think!

[nettecologne]

Too much iodine is definitely dangerous for people with a autoimmune thyroid condition. In those with a genetic disposition it can even trigger Hashimoto's and Graves Disease. The iodine added to food in Germany has triggered many autoimmune thyroid problems that would never habe existed without the addition. On the other hand, no goiters.

I think a goiter is easier to treat than an autoimmune condition once it is started, so am completely against iodine via pills or added to food.

[Elaine1951]

Yes. Be v careful with iodine if you've had an over active thyroid.

[CDreamer]

Ian great reply thank you!

And good recommendation - seaweed. You can buy thin, dried sheets of it in shops which I use instead of crackers or bread - makes a tasty accompaniment to many dishes.

I also use a seaweed soak in the bath, again buy the dried variety - although if I am feeling energetic and we have a high tide - go collect from the beach. It is also great for the garden so don't through it away - put directly on the garden where you grow you veg.