PD and iodine deficiency?

[faridaro]

Came across the following article today and not sure what to think of that - would appreciate PD veterans opinions on Magnesium/Iodine supplementation as recommended in the article. I believe that magnesium is crucial for many metabolic pathways, however there are potential serious risks associated with taking megadoses of iodine and I would never take it in recommended below amounts on my own unless there is a nuclear fallout. Have anybody heard of iodine deficiency leading to dopamine deficiency as briefly stated in the article?

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Two-mineral combination can erase Parkinson’s symptoms

October 10, 2017

Most people think I’m crazy when I tell them they might be able to erase most, if not all of their Parkinson’s symptoms. All they have to do is take two simple minerals. It sounds too good to be true. But it can work.

Just ask Judy. When she first went to see her integrative doctor, she was barely able to walk. She had to depend heavily on a walker. Her doctors had her on a handful of medications, but her hands still shook uncontrollably. The integrative doctor she saw gave her only one mineral, both orally and transdermally. Here’s the miracle.

After just two weeks, she had a follow-up appointment. But this time, she almost ran into the office. Her tremors were significantly reduced. And she was smiling from ear to ear.

This is the first story I ever heard about the amazing power of magnesium to erase Parkinson’s symptoms. It sounds absolutely incredible. But there’s real science behind why this treatment works. More

Many cases of Parkinson’s are the result of a significant magnesium deficiency and an overload of heavy metals and chemicals. Magnesium protects your cells against the damage heavy metals and chemicals can cause on your cells. It also keeps the metals from building up in your brain. So when these two conditions exist, there’s nothing to protect your cells against the toxins.

If you’re able to correct the magnesium deficiency early enough – before too much damage takes place – you can see similar results to what Judy experienced. While the research into this is in its infancy, there is some research on epileptics. In one study, researchers gave 30 epileptics 450 mg of magnesium daily. The mineral was able to successfully control their seizures. Other studies have shown that the lower your magnesium blood levels are, the worse your epilepsy will be.

Now, magnesium works even better if you take it with other nutrients. One of the best to take it with is iodine. Long-term iodine deficiency can lead to dopamine deficiencies. The science behind this is complex, but let me blow your mind on one aspect of research. There’s growing concern that hypothyroidism is connected in some way to Parkinson’s. One group of researchers said, “We believe that given the potential overlap of symptoms and signs, thyroid function should be assessed in (Parkinson’s) patients showing worsening of symptoms that cannot be explained by disease progression or resistance to therapy adjustment.”

I’ve seen patients with severe hypothyroidism develop Parkinson’s. I haven’t seen evidence that it causes Parkinson’s. But it’s possible an iodine deficiency is the common denominator. I’ll have more on Parkinson’s in the coming weeks. But for now, if you have Parkinson’s disease, make sure you’re taking ample magnesium (up to 1,000 mg daily) and iodine (12.5 mg daily). You can buy good quality magnesium online and at any drugstore. And the iodine supplement I recommend is Iodoral. Other nutrients to consider taking along with these are vitamins B1 and B6, as well as zinc.

Your insider for better health,

Steve Kroening, ND

Source:

ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/152....

Steve Kroening

Steve Kroening, ND is the editor of Nutrient Insider, a twice-a-week email newsletter that brings you the latest healing breakthroughs from the world of nutrition and dietary supplements. For over 25 years, Steve has worked hand-in-hand with some of the nation's top doctors, including Drs. Frank Shallenberger, Janet Zand, Nan Fuchs, William Campbell Douglass, and best-selling author James Balch. Steve is the author of the book Practical Guide to Home Remedies. He earned his Doctor of Naturopathy from the Trinity School of Natural Health.

[MBAnderson]

“… I tell them they might be able to erase most, if not all of their Parkinson’s symptoms. All they have to do is take two simple minerals.”

“After just two weeks ... she almost ran into the office. Her tremors were significantly reduced.”

“…the amazing power of magnesium to erase Parkinson’s symptoms.”

essentially, the study showed nothing.

"CONCLUSION: Although hypothyroidism was not more prevalent in our PD patients in comparison with the control group ..."

Billions of dollars have been spent over the past three decades studying Parkinson’s disease and every single neurologist that any PWP on this forum will talk to will agree these claims are patently ridiculous. If this claim, or any claim like it, were true it would be shouted from the rooftops.

There’s a lot of people on this forum myself included who have been taking magnesium daily for long time and I can’t tell that it’s done anything. It probably helps, but I can’t say that with certainty.

In my humble opinion, any claim this dramatic or that the solution is simple or that the solution is based on of few supplements is complete and total unadulterated Bolshevik.

[MBAnderson in reply to MBAnderson]

actually, I wish it were a felony level crime to knowingly create false hope for people with serious, chronic illness.Parkinson's disease presents us all with a daunting challenge and many of us are desperate for a fix and reaching for every promise that floats by. These are vultures preying on the fears of vulnerable people. every week on this forum, someone comes across an article promising a miracle - that only they know about.

my apology if my reaction is strong but I think this is comparable to telling somebody to spin around and say rubber dock, rubber duck, rubber duck.

[faridaro in reply to MBAnderson]

I was thinking along the same lines and very much appreciate your response confirming that.

[Mejane in reply to MBAnderson]

I have recently bought a book called the iodine crisis and it’s observations are that iodine has mysteriously disappeared from the food chain and it’s antagonist bromide has replaced it... blocking iodine.. fluoride is another bag of snakes.. used in Europe until the 70s in pill form to treat over active thyroid ie knocking it out..so why would we put it in the water?

I agree about over simplistic sweeping promises... but even a broken clock is right twice a day.. so with some critical thinking and a bit of research I sometimes find another piece of the puzzle..

On the subject of false hope.. I have a hard time with the concept... a bit like saying..what’s the difference between phoney tinsel and real tinsel? To me there is only hope or no hope.... I choose .. hope.

[rhenry45 in reply to MBAnderson]

I agree. That bit about magnesium is pure bs

[Enidah in reply to MBAnderson]

Thank you for that refreshing opinion well put! And, in someone so young. Haha

[Astra7]

Magnesium has made a significant difference to me. I started taking it before diagnosis as my toes curled so much at night I could hardly walk first thing in the morning. Azilect and NAC added later have removed 95% of that problem.

Recently my integrative GP gave me iodine drops as I was a bit low in iodine. I've been taking daily for 4 weeks but havnt noticed a dot of difference!! However they are cheap and easy to take so it may work for you. It is clear to me that everyone has different nutritional needs and if you are very low in iodine it might help. If not I guess you'll just pee it out!

[faridaro]

Unfortunately excess of iodine can damage thyroid, see link

livestrong.com/article/2829...

[pvw2 in reply to faridaro]

Iodine poisoning

medlineplus.gov/ency/articl...

Supplements could cause excess .

Note some of the excess symptoms are opposite of poisoning: (note the home test with Betadine to see if you have too much iodine )

Excess iodine in the body: symptoms, effects, methods of removal

medicalj-center.info/poison...

There are so many different ways people react to too much iodine, if you are taking a higher dose than recommended and you are starting to feel ill, its a good idea to stop taking iodine and see if your symptoms get better, especially if you start getting allergy type symptoms.

This site appears to have the best description of iodine overdose symptoms:

iodine-resource.com/iodine-...

because it is split up between initial symptoms and sever symptoms. From what I'm seeing initial symptoms such as sore gums, sore throat, and head cold symptoms show up when the Bernadine test in the previous link still shows iodine levels are OK.

[asmckay]

I hate overblown clans. It seems cruel. I wish for responsibility. And I think that magnesium can help most of us, PD or not, to some extent. In my case (no PD) I know that it eradicates my muscle cramps, eases muscle stiffness, helps me to sleep, and helps my skin.. We tend to be deficient in both magnesium and iodine - this is in major part because of intensive farming over many decades - we haven't put these nutrients back into our soils, so our foods are deficient. If is easy to do a pretty good check on whether or not we need iodine by doing an iodine patch test. facebook.com/zeezsleeppebbl...

If you are supplementing magnesium, make sure that it is a form we absorb - magnesium citrate works for most of us. Mag oxide is useless - we don't absorb it.

Selenium is also missing in our soils - supplement with a couple of brazil nuts day.

Ideas on how much iodine to take seem to vary wildly. I found this reassuring. drsircus.com/iodine/iodine-...

Anna

[pvw2]

The problem with looking for cures to Parkinson's is there are multiple causes. The poor correlation between research on mice and people shows that cures must be based on the cause. The woman's story about iodine possibly shows mercury poisoning which can cause both iodine deficiency and Parkinson's. Some have estimated mercury poisoning to cause about 6% of Parkinson's cases. Note: mercury poisoning will cause low thyroid when diet would seem to have adequate iodine because of the mercury binding with the iodine. Note: the symptom of Parkinson's from mercury is the type with tremors starting with hand tremors, not the other stiff muscles type with no tremors. Note: magnesium is one of the many supplements used to help combat mercury poisoning.

[pvw2 in reply to pvw2]

Parkinson's researchers starting to recognise multiple causes:

news-medical.net/news/20191...

Here's research related to a particular genetic defect:

hhmi.org/news/new-wrinkle-p...

[pvw2 in reply to pvw2]

‘Not all disease is the same’: study highlights protein variability in neurodegenerative diseases

technology.org/2019/12/04/n...

[faridaro in reply to pvw2]

Good information - thanks for sharing!

[faridaro]

I have been aware that PD has many "faces" and many causes. From what I understand PD is just an umbrella diagnosis for a group of neurological conditions that have not been identified yet. I've seen so many people with Borreliosis (Lyme) on this site and there is no doubt in my mind that it can be one of triggers for PD.

Also, it is known that chemical/pesticide exposures, nutritional deficiencies along with metabolic issues like methylation might be contributing factors in PD development/progression - Iodine could be just one piece of the puzzle.

[pvw2 in reply to faridaro]

I know Lyme is suspected of affecting the thyroid. I don't know how iodine helps in that particular case. An MRI is supposed to detect if PD symptoms are due to Lyme.

[chartist]

faridaro,

I believe that iodine such as Lugol's iodine has significant value in human health. I think the article touches on this value, but iodine can do odd things in humans. One positive of iodine for PWP is that it helps the body to produce T-3 and T-4 and these two in the brain have the potential to activate neurotransmitters such as dopamine which may be good for PD, but is it a solution to PD, not likely, but possibly helpful.

Iodine is a very potent, broad spectrum, pathogen neutralizer as in viral, bacterial, protozoan, fungi and molds. Somewhat similar to colloidal silver. As such, for a person with a relatively high pathogen load as might be the case with a pathogen such as candida albicans which can be systemic, there is a very significant chance to initially get a strong or extreme Jarisch Herxheimer reaction to iodine when first starting to take it. I know this for a fact from when I experimented with iodine. Since iodine so effectively kills a broad spectrum of pathogens, the sudden toxic burden placed on the body by the massive die off of these pathogens can make a person feel very sick as the body tries to clear the debris of the toxic dead pathogens. Flu like symptoms or rash would be a typical reaction, but in some cases the herx symptoms may be even more severe. Mild herx symptoms would be more like a mild to moderate headache that lasts two or three days before slowly dissipating or body ache. Here is a description of a herx reaction :

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jaris...

Iodine has value in this way, but does much more in the body to improve health. Since iodine has been removed as an additive in some foods and I believe bromine was the replacement used, most people have insufficient or deficient iodine status. If you choose to supplement with iodine, it would be a good idea to start with a relatively low dose and slowly work your way up to the dose you want to achieve in order to avoid or greatly minimize the potential for a herx reaction. If you still end up with a significant herx reaction, it is best to stop use of iodine until the condition improves. You don't want to keep killing off pathogens until your body has recovered and effectively rid itself of all of the toxic pathogen die off that it is dealing with.

Regarding magnesium and specifically PD, I have written about that here:

healthunlocked.com/parkinso...

Art

[pvw2 in reply to chartist]

What is different with mercury poisoning is the mercury ties up iodine so that the person needs even more than normal. Normally it's not good for people to take very high doses of iodine.

[faridaro]

Thank you, Art, for taking time to write such detailed response and providing links. I use iodine on and off just simply rubbing a few drops on my arm and letting the body to absorb what it needs.

I also have a jar of magnesium chloride flakes and appreciate your homemade magnesium oil spray recipe which I am going to try. Thank you for sharing all the creative varieties of mag oil and describing cases of people that you shared it with - it gives a broader view of versatility of mag oil's applications.

[chartist in reply to faridaro]

faridaro,

With topical iodine application, open wounds or a perturbed barrier function as might happen with a rash, can increase the absorption level of iodine through the skin. Intact skin gives a slower absorption, something to keep in mind for topical applications. Unfortunately the bromine competes with iodine for the receptors in the thyroid and this adds further to iodine deficiency.

The topical mag oil(MO) from magnesium chloride flakes is a very inexpensive way to make and use MO. Using vodka in place of distilled or filtered water as a solvent for the flakes, will make for a slightly less oily feeling mixture that drys faster on the skin because of the quicker evaporation rate of alcohol/vodka. I hope the MO is helpful for whatever you are going to use it for and please keep in mind that it does add to your total magnesium intake. I have also used the weaker form of Everclear in place of vodka, because of the higher alcohol content (151 proof) and it dries even faster, but adds to the cost of the mix. I think the stronger form of Everclear is too pure of an alcohol to fully dissolve the magnesium chloride flakes.

I no longer use essential oils (EO) in my MO mixes, because if it sits on the shelf too long, it seems to morph into something with a not so good smell that I wouldn't want to put on my skin. I just thought that rather than possibly wasting a batch because of this fact, I would just keep it simple and use water or vodka only with no EO in it. I still use the 50/50 mix even though some commercial products are stronger at possibly 70%, the 50% mix seemed to me to be just as effective or very similar in terms of pain relief.

Good luck with your MO testing and please keep us posted on what you use it for and how it works for you and anyone else that you give it to!

Art

[faridaro in reply to chartist]

Art, couple of years ago I've used commercial mag oil spray which gave me slightly stinging sensation and I had a feeling it was too concentrated. Since then I've been experimenting with oral mag products - glycinate, citrate, malate, ascorbate, taurate, threonate and Dr. Dean's ReMag trying to get rid of atrial fibrillation. Unfortunately, after trying all those (along with some herbal compounds) I have not noticed any major effects and after much research 8 months ago finally took the plunge and had ablation.

Well, this month I developed shingles on my leg (not sure if there is connection with ablation) which is nicely healing right now as I've treated myself with different herbal anti - virals, immune boosters and l-lysine. However, I am concerned about PHN -postherpetic neuralgia which is supposedly to be a common side effect of shingles and want to arm myself with MO spray as it may be helpful with nerve pain (along with capsaicin according to some sources).

Thanks again for your time and advice - will keep you posted!

[chartist in reply to faridaro]

faridaro,

What I have found to be helpful in dealing with the Herpes Zoster (HZ) virus and PHN is very finely ground aspirin added to any common body lotion and applied topically as needed for pain. Aspirin is an antiviral that helps to impede the viral replication process of HZ and I suspect that would make it more effective than MO for the purpose. For HZ when no pain is present, colloidal silver is sometimes effective orally and topically, but not much at relieving pain, but likely to control the virus fairly quickly. Here are two very brief links discussing the aspirin in lotion potion for HZ :

ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/117...

ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/105...

Btw, I have experimented with Capsaicin and it can be difficult to work with because of the heat it brings and please be meticulous about washing your hands afterwards! Any little bit left on your hands can be painful if you happen to rub your eyes!

Regarding atrial fibrillation (AF), magnesium is often needed, but so is potassium as these two are often deficient in AF. You might also consider ginger root extract.

Good luck with your testing!

Art

[faridaro in reply to chartist]

Thank you, Art for aspirin-in-lotion advice and links - I may try it. I used colloidal silver in the beginning of outbreak (along with few other supplements) and they seemed to work very well.

Thank you for reminder to be careful with capsaicin applications which reminded me of someone in my family using it successfully years ago for trigeminal neuralgia and covering his hands with disposable gloves to avoid inadvertently touching his eyes afterwards.

Regarding afib - I have never tried ginger root extract although use fresh ginger every day in tea, but had some potassium as one of ingredients in Optimal Electrolyte by Seeking Health brand - may be should have added some extra, will keep it in mind!

Thank you Art for your kind advice and desire to help - I am so grateful for this forum!

[chartist in reply to faridaro]

faridaro,

You're very welcome!

For the aspirin mix, I use the inexpensive type that has no coating and I put it in a "bullet type blender" to grind it into a very fine powder and mix this with common hand or body lotion and apply to the affected areas as needed for pain relief and to help fight the virus replication.

Art

[faridaro in reply to chartist]

Brilliant - thank you!

[bassofspades]

I am certain that iodine plays a role in dopamine transport because when they do a DATscan, the nuclear medicine test for Parkinson's, they use an isotope of iodine to light it up.

[faridaro]

That's interesting to know - thanks for sharing!