Iodine skin test.

[Femme1]

My local pharmacy stocks potassium iodine, is this the correct stuff for the skin patch test, and do we think it is a good guide or not? Want to check myself and both daughters. Many thanks

[helvella Administrator]

The skin patch test is unreliable and does not indicate iodine sufficiency.

From the published data, the skin iodine patch test is not a reliable method to assess whole body sufficiency for iodine. Many factors play a role in the disappearance of the yellow color of iodine from the surface of the skin. For example, if iodine is reduced to iodide by the skin, the yellow color of iodine will disappear because iodide is white. In order to regenerate iodine on the skin, one needs to apply an oxidant such as hydrogen peroxide, complicating the test further. The evaporation of iodine from the skin increases with increased ambient temperatures and decreased atmospheric pressure due to weather conditions and altitude. For example, the yellow color of iodine will disappear much faster in Denver, Colorado at 5,000 feet above sea level then Los Angeles, California at sea level, irrespective of the amount of bioavailable iodine.

optimox.com/pics/Iodine/upd...

And "No" - even if the patch test worked, potassium iodide would be inappropriate as it is colourless.

Rod

[Femme1 in reply to helvella]

Lol 're potassium iodide, just saw pharmacy sold this and assumed it was the right stuff. Doh ! Fair does, will save my cash, thanks for the info Rod

[Hidden]

Hi Femme,

The jury is out on iodine. Dr. Abrahams (Optimox) and Dr. Brownstein have done a lot of work on it which is very interesting, but sometimes things are not as clear cut as they may seem.

I would be doing you a gross disservice if I did not tell you about my daughter's experience. She was brought up by the sea, and indeed spent much of her time actually in it until she went away to uni. As with thyroid issues each person is an individual when it comes to diagnosis and treatment it appears.

When we eventually discovered that she had a thyroid problem we inquired about iodine and were told that the skin test would do her no harm (providing you are not allergic to iodine!). We used ordinary iodine used for wounds from the chemist. Her patch test disappeared after 2 hours. We had been advised that disappearance in anything from 4 - 6 hours COULD indicate iodine deficiency, whereas if it lasted overnight for example there was probably no problem. So she had a test at the doctor's which did indeed indicate that her levels were extremely low.

She had to take lugol's tablets (VERY expensive), but we then discovered that lugol's solution is easy to buy in the UK and I have subsequently discovered that Mountain Warehouse sell it as an emergency water decontaminant for hikers. etc. A drop in a glass of water is easy to drink.

We have subsequently tested her skin periodically and have found the test results very different.

Her levels now seem fine, but we have also discovered that all of her test results had been compromised by other things in her system which are now being addressed.

Perhaps the skin test might not give you a complete picture, but for us it was a very clear indicator that a test at the doctor might be worthwhile and iodine is VERY cheap!

Good luck. Jane x x

[greygoose in reply to Hidden]

A lot of Hashi's people are allergic to iodine - especially if they've been exposed to an excess. And believe me, it is agnony!

[Femme1 in reply to greygoose]

Think I posted my reply as you posted this message greygoose. I can only assume I am not iodine allergic, judging by the amount I ate of salt up to last month?

Sounds nasty

[greygoose in reply to Femme1]

Now I'm confused! lol You mean salt with added iodine? Well, that's not the same as rubbing pure iodine on your skin, is it.

However, it might be interesting to do a little experiment. Change to non-iodised salt for a month and see if you feel any different. Then go back to the iodised and see how you feel on that.

But I would say that if you are using iodised salt, there's not much chance that you are low in iodine.

Hugs, Grey

[helvella Administrator in reply to greygoose]

And by far the majority of salt in the UK is NOT iodised. You have to put in extra effort, and usually pay extra, to get iodised salt.

Discussion of salt, I have found, often assumes it is universally iodised - probably because that is the case in some countries.

Rod

[greygoose in reply to helvella]

Ah ha! Good point! I suppose I got confused in my reply by the French name, because a lot of salt is iodised in France. Although by no means all of it. Now I'm more confused than ever! lol

[Femme1 in reply to greygoose]

O oh, sorry guys, I just assumed iodine was in all salt and that the body maybe didn't utilise it very well in people with hypothyroid. Doh. I have learned something today . Out of interest does sea salt contain iodine then ? Sorry for dizziness on my part

[greygoose in reply to Femme1]

Funnily enough, it doesn't contain that much, no. Certainly not as much as when the iodine is artificially introduced.

[Femme1]

Hi Jane, Thanks for this info , that's really helpful! I see what you mean re iodine skin test not being an exact method, but if the iodine disappears really quickly then its a good indicator! Pleased to hear your daughter is doing ok now too, its reassuring

[greygoose in reply to Femme1]

It would be much more accurate and safer to get a urine test. One has to be very careful with iodine.

[Clarebear]

I had a bad experience with iodine last year. Whilst on holiday in France, I had a horrible abscess on my tummy burst (sorry if tmi), I went to the doctor who told me to see the nurse on a daily basis to have it packed and dressed. I did this for about a week in France. The nurse cleaned it with iodine and then packed it with iodine gauze. I had been feeling pretty well on my 1.75 grains of Armour for a couple of months, but my symptoms came back with a massive vengeance during this time. When I got home, I still had to have the wound dressed but they stopped the iodine and my symptoms settled down again. I can't be 100% sure, but am pretty confident that the considerable worsening of my symptoms was due to the iodine xx

[Femme1 in reply to Clarebear]

Blimey that sounds awful clarebear, you wouldn't believe an antiseptic could make that much of a problem thought this would be a simple home iodine test, but not so straight forward. Thank you for the advice xx

[greygoose in reply to Femme1]

But basically it's not an antiseptic, it is an ingredient of thyroid hormone and too much is too much whether you swallow it or it's absorbed by the skin.

[Femme1 in reply to greygoose]

Think I need to research more on this don't I? Because I had iodine all over my stomach before a laparoscopy in my teens, I have always assumed it was an antiseptic. MustReadmore.com thanks greygoose .