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Imagine a universal nutrient that could critically enhance
your immune system and prevent disease, regulate moods,
mental health and blood pressure, fight diabete, restore
optimal function of all the body's hormones, prevent and
treat ovarian and prostate problems, remove heavy metals,
help to shield from radioactivity and clean out clogged
arteries, prevent heart attacks, strokes, and other
atherosclerosis-related problems. Helps the brain to proper
functionning and increase IQ for both adults and childrens.
What if this nutrient is also one of the most powerful antiseptic known to man and fight parasites, bacteria and viruses. The commonly accepted opinion is that iodine’s only role in the body is to help make thyroid hormones. Although this is an extremely important function, recent discoveries shows that the role of iodine goes far beyond the thyroid. This article will cover the whole iodine topic. Why is iodine still disregarded and feared today. Why iodine's extra thyroidal functions are still widely ignored even still scientifically established since more than fifteen years. |
 Iodine
have been isolated for the first time in 1811 by a french
chemist named Bernard Courtois. It is an element present in
nature and found more abundantly in the ocean than on earth.
Iodine is recognized as indispensable to human life and is
needed in every cell in our body. Like many other minerals
it needs a frequent intake of this element as it can not
store it long term. Iodine is an essential component of thyroid hormones which are involved in the regulation of various vital processes. The thyroid gland is the most commonly associated with iodine. It has a beautiful deep red color. This gland has two lobes well known to endocrinologists. The biologist appreciates the harmonious proportions of these two lobes united by an isthmus. They are located exactly on each side of the Adam's apple. The way the thyroid gland operates depends on the iodine we get from our diet. Then the gland secretes iodinated compounds called T3 and T4 hormones. These hormones (iodine compounds) produced by the thyroid T3 and T4 are essential to the human body. They act on many functions: regulation of body temperature, heart beat, nervous system, digestive tract, genital and reproductive system, but also on the health of our hair, skin, nails. Every 17 minutes, all the blood in the body passes through the thyroid gland. Because the cells that make up this gland have an affinity for iodine, each cycle of blood passing through the gland is subjected to iodine secretions, killing germs and viruses. Under normal circumstances, our body contains about 20 to 30 mg of iodine. Mainly distributed between the brain, muscles, skin, heart, the pituitary gland and the kidneys. During the nineteenth century iodine was considered a panacea for treating all kind of ills. |
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50
years ago, Nobel laureate Dr. Albert Györgyi, the
physician who discovered vitamin C in 1928, wrote: « When I was a medical student, iodine in the form of potassium iodide (KI) was the universal medicine. Nobody knew what it did, but it did something and did something good. We students used to sum up the situation in this little rhyme: If ye don't know where, what, and why, prescribe ye then K and I. » |
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Today, the commonly accepted opinion suggests that iodine's
role in the body is solely to help in the creation of
thyroid hormones. However it was recently discovered that
iodine was also stored in the prostate in men, in the breast
and ovaries in women, but also in the skin and in the
stomach mucosa. All these tissues can concentrate the iodine
to a degree close to that of the thyroid gland, thanks to
the presence of identical transport mechanisms called sodium
/ iodine symporters. Dr. Guy Abraham, one of the leading experts on iodine and former professor at the UCLA School of Medicine, studied the role of iodine and found evidence that iodine's benefits goes far beyond its thyroid function : • Iodine supports health in breasts, ovaries, uterus, prostate, pituitary and adrenal glands. • Helps to regulate blood pressure and blood sugar levels. • Acts like disinfectant agent to help tissues fight against infection (mycosis, eczema, etc) • Helps to eliminate fluorine, bromine, lead, cadmium, arsenic, aluminum and mercury residues. • Protects against electromagnetism, radioactivity, various toxins and environmental pollutants. • Regulates moods and supports mental balance. • Increases the antioxidant potential of blood serum to a level similar to that of vitamin C. It is deplorable that iodine remains so undervalued. Contemporary medical corpus recognizes the utility of iodine supplementation at very minor doses, and the extra-thyroidal functions of iodine are almost completely ignored. |
 This particular study leads to what Dr. Abraham called "medical iodophobia". To the attention of doctors, pharmacists, as well as anyone who might want to know more on this topic. Read Dr. G. E Abraham's comprehensive account of the Wolff-Chaikoff effect (1948): here |
| According
to Dr David Brownstein, there is a chemical and
environemental reason behind modern iodine deficiencies.
Iodine belongs to the subgroup of "halogens", halogens are
a subgroup of the Mendeleiev's table that includes
fluorine, bromine and chlorine. How do halogens chemically behave in the body ? Iodine is the heaviest of all halogens: which means it has the highest atomic mass (53). In a 1: 1 ratio, the lightest elements take the place of the heaviest. This phenomenon is becoming problematic when the environnement is flooded by high quantities of other halogens such as fluorine, chlorine and bromine. These elements all end-up competing with iodine for receptor sites throughout the body. Fluorine and bromine are undesirable and toxic elements that are known to interfere in particular with the endocrine system (see below). Bromine is added to a variety of foods, mainly cereal products. Fluoride sources in water and toothpastes provide an important daily dosage. A few decades ago in the United States, iodine was added to bread. Thus a few slices of bread were enough to give the recommended daily intake of iodine. This practice was stopped in the early 1980s and iodine was replaced with potassium bromate. We all had a typical modern lifestyle eating lots of processed food, swimming in chlorinated water, drinking fluoridated water and cleaned our teeth every day with fluoride toothpastes and mouthwashes. Today, that's part of the typical lifestyle of millions of people. The body knows how to collect the good elements and reject the unwanted ones, but in the presence of such an abundance of light halogens coupled with insufficient daily iodine intake, the fight can not be won. Studies have shown that the Japanese population consumed an average of 13 to 43 mg of iodine per day via their diets. The government's recommendations for the daily intake of iodine in the United States are 150 micrograms (at least 100 times lower). Which is a quite low when a dish of seaweed and seafood exceed this number a hundredfold. |
| Now
that we have discussed the problem of iodine deficiency
related to the halogens competition, what are the
solutions ?
The first thing is to ensure that all sources of bromine, chlorine and fluoride intake are removed. Fluoride can be permanently removed without disturbing everyday's life, simply by getting a fluoride-free toothpaste and opt for mineral water instead of public fluorinated water. Bromine compounds are mainly used in bakery products. Refer to the list of ingredients. Secondly, as we mentioned before, the chemical behavior of halogen elements imply that increasing the ratio of one element will remove the latter. This means that high doses of iodine taken on a regular basis will gradually lead to the extraction and replacement of the undesirable elements. Note that this process duration can vary depending on each individuals. For this reason, the Brownstein protocol recommends a duration of 3 months of iodine supplementation. More details about the Brownstein's protocol can be found in the HOW TO USE section. |
| The
problem of iodine deficiency is affecting both developed
countries and underdeveloped countries. Because of a
decrease in the consumption of iodine through the diet and
due to the invasion of competitive elements, all of the
organs having a significant concentration of iodine
including the thyroid, chest, prostate, ovaries, stomach,
are functionally impaired by this phenomenon. The scientific and medical establishment opinion and fears about iodine are mainly based on three reasons. First are erroneous or obsolete research data (see medical iodophobia), second, a frequent confusion between different types of iodine, eadible, toxic or radioactive. Third, a disinterest for the issue of toxic metals accumulating in the body and environemental polution in general. Iodine's extra-thyroidal functions are tremendous. Yet they still have to be fully recognized. Dr Guy Abraham who made an inestimable contributions in that field passed away in 2013. During his lifetime, he was fully aware of the importance of his work for the human specie as a whole. There is a need for properly funded research programs on iodine, may they be public or private. As it makes no doubt extensive studies are needed. There is most likely much more to find and future research could go far beyond what Dr Abraham found himself during his lifetime. For this to be achieved, we have to challenge the actual statu-quo. |
These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.