Iodine Supplemention

[RollinsD]

Hi all fabulous friends. I take 100mgs of Levotiroxinaand 20mgs of Liotironina as soon as I awake. I want to take 3 drops of Iodine. Both are to be taken on an emplty stomach. So my question is will adding the "iodine" alter or efeect the other Lev and Lio?

[greygoose]

You're already taking iodine. 100 mcg of levo (T4) gives you 65 mcg iodine. And 20 mcg lio (T3) gives you approx. 10 mcg iodine. More than half your daily needs. This Iodine is recycled in the body. Plus what you get from your food. So, highly unlikely you need to take any more than what you're already getting. Excess iodine can be very dangerous.

[RollinsD in reply to greygoose]

Hi thank you. See the reason I think I'm low on iodine is a did the leg test where you put an inch square of iodine onyour inner thigh before bed, if you wake up and the iodine is gone then it is apparently indicative of low iodine. Consequently that's why I thought of starting adding the 3 drops of iodine. Thoughts? On another note, honestly I'd like to take no meds but since I've been doing this protocol of lev and lio I've never felt better. Is there a way to fell as I do without the meds period?

[helvella Administrator Thyroid UK in reply to RollinsD]

Suggest you have a look here:

helvella - Iodine Patch Test

Why the iodine patch test is not appropriate for indicating iodine status.

From Dropbox:

dropbox.com/s/a4xpwn6fwc42g...

From Google Drive:

drive.google.com/file/d/1C1...

[greygoose in reply to RollinsD]

As helvella says, that test was debunked years ago. So, very doubtful you are actually in need of extra iodine.

Wouldn't we all like to take no meds!!! None of us enjoy it - although, to be honest, it doesn't particulary bother me to take my three little tablets every morning - it's better than the alternative!

If you've never felt well on T4+T3 there must be a reason. Are you taking enough? Most doctors like to keep their patients under-medicated because they're terrified of over-medicating because they just don't understand how it all works. Or maybe your nutrients are sub-optimal. But, if your thyroid is failing/has failed, you'd feel a hell of a lot worse without the 'meds', because you cannot live without thyroid hormone, and your organs would just pack up one by one. So, no, there is no way to be well without levo and/or lio. You need them to stay alive.

[helvella Administrator Thyroid UK]

It isn't when you are proposing to take iodine. It is that you say you want to take it at all.

The (nominal) 2% solution of Lugol's (which is in your image) has 2.53 mg total iodine content per drop.

Three drops is 7.59 milligrams of iodine, which is 7590 micrograms.

A very widely suggested typical iodine requirement is 150 micrograms a day.

Which means that three drops is more than fifty times that daily requirement.

The typical human body contains around 15 to 20 milligrams of iodine in total. Just two doses of three drops is close to the entire iodine content of a human.

I know there are people who make all sorts of claims about iodine and taking large doses. I know some of them say they take simply enormous doses (such as 50 milligrams a day). I also know we have a number of members who are convinced that even modest iodine supplementation or iodine-containing medicine triggered or worsened their thyroid issues. There are many properly documented case reports of people suffering, sometimes very badly, from the iodine in existing medicines, especially contrast media and amiodarone.

I also know that many suggest that any oral iodine is taken with food or at least milk in order to minimise its impact on mouth, oesophagus and stomach. Again, there are case reports from use of iodine medically (e.g. during some investigations and surgery) which has damaged the organs to which it was applied.

I suggest you reconsider taking Lugol's solution.

You might find this fairly recent post of interest:

Iodine as a potential endocrine disruptor-a role of oxidative stress

healthunlocked.com/thyroidu...

And this in-depth article:

Potassium iodide (KI) dosing in a nuclear emergency

BY THYROIDPATIENTSCA on MARCH 4, 2022

thyroidpatients.ca/2022/03/...

And greygoose is quite right in her reply.

[RollinsD in reply to helvella]

Hi, thank you as well. I'm a touch confused here as how did you determine the actual amount per drop? It's odd because the bottle does not indicate how much per drop. Okay so due to this I have been kind of cross referencing from this supplement as it seems to me to have the same makeup....Your thoughts? brighteonstore.com/collecti...

[helvella Administrator Thyroid UK in reply to RollinsD]

I tried to avoid getting into too many issues!

A drop is undefined. There is a tendency for liquids to form drops of similar size depending on the makeup of the liquid. Ethanol (alcohol for drinking) produces small drops. Glycerol produces very large drops. The size is also affected by the dropper - but I think the main influence is the liquid itself.

I looked around and thought Wiki was a reasonable article:

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lugol...

To make an estimate of the amount you proposed talking, I simply used the figures included there. (Rather assuming you would put me right if my numbers were significantly out for the actual product you have.)

You might find a more formal definition, such as:

A volume of liquid regarded as a unit of dosage, equivalent in the case of water to about 1 minim (20 drops are equal to 1 mL).

But no-one should be using units which are so dependent on what substance is being measured. A manufacturer can say that the dose is a number of drops of their product, dispensed by their dropper. The rest of us shouldn't.

Nascent iodine is different from Lugol's. It contains no potassium iodine.

[userotc in reply to helvella]

Whilst I understand the need for caution, it should also be noted that:

(i) The (normally conservative) NHS states "Taking 0.5mg or less a day of iodine supplements is unlikely to cause any harm" nhs.uk/conditions/vitamins-....

(ii) Dr Sara Myhill (generally well-respected on this forum) is an advocate of iodine use eg using Lugol’s iodine 1-4 drops drmyhill.co.uk/wiki/Iodine_...

[helvella Administrator Thyroid UK in reply to userotc]

There is quite a number of papers which report bad effects from iodine used in surgery.

There is quite a number of papers which report bad effects from amiodarone (a medicine which is mainly iodine (by mass).

I feel she is a bit gung-ho - for example, looking forward to mumps orchitis in order to be able slosh iodine oil on. Comes across as somewhat experimental.

And one drop of Lugol's 2% is around five times the amount in that NHS statement.

[userotc in reply to helvella]

Understood but I trust that you accept 500mcg/day should be OK. I agree that Ms Myhill can be a bit extreme but I was just trying to bring some perspective to the (continued) debate on iodine by quoting her and NHS (maybe two extremes?).

Personally (no formal thyroid diagnosis but potential CH levels, low iodine) I only take 1 drop nascent every other day ie ~175mcg/day, though serving directions allow up to 6x that goodhealthnaturally.com/imm.... It keeps me well under the NHS 500mcg limit and also complies with study data reported by I Wentz thyroidpharmacist.com/artic...

[helvella Administrator Thyroid UK in reply to userotc]

I accept that 3 milligrams might be OK for many. After all, that is often quoted as the typical/modal iodine intake in Japan. But they do have relatively high rates of autoimmune thyroid disease.

As with so many things, how on earth do we decide if we are in the group who will be fine with higher iodine intake, or the group that won't be?

There does seem to be a difference between those who have always had relatively low iodine, possibly at times deficient, and those who have always had enough.

[RollinsD]

And yes thank you as well, knowledge and research is key....