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This is a reader-friendly overview of Iodine. For more details, see our health professional fact sheet on Iodine.

What is iodine and what does it do?

Iodine is a mineral found in some foods. The torso needs iodine to make thyroid hormones. These hormones control the body's metabolism and many other important functions. The body also needs thyroid hormones for proper bone and brain evolution during pregnancy and infancy. Getting enough iodine is important for everyone, especially infants and women who are pregnant.

How much iodine do I need?

The amount of iodine you lot need each solar day depends on your historic period. Average daily recommended amounts are listed below in micrograms (mcg).

Life Stage	Recommended Corporeality
Birth to 6 months	110 mcg
Infants 7–12 months	130 mcg
Children 1–8 years	ninety mcg
Children 9–13 years	120 mcg
Teens xiv–18 years	150 mcg
Adults	150 mcg
Meaning teens and women	220 mcg
Breastfeeding teens and women	290 mcg

What foods provide iodine?

Iodine is found naturally in some foods and is also added to common salt that is labeled equally "iodized". You tin can go recommended amounts of iodine by eating a multifariousness of foods, including the following:

Fish (such as cod and tuna), seaweed, shrimp, and other seafood, which are mostly rich in iodine
Dairy products (such as milk, yogurt, and cheese), which are major sources of iodine in American diets
Iodized common salt, which is readily available in the U.s. and many other countries*

*Processed foods, such as canned soups, near never comprise iodized salt. In addition, specialty salts, such as sea salt, kosher salt, Himalayan salt, and fleur de sel, are not unremarkably iodized. Product labels will indicate if the salt is "iodized" or provides iodide.

What kinds of iodine dietary supplements are available?

Iodine is bachelor in dietary supplements, commonly in the class of potassium iodide or sodium iodide. Many multivitamin-mineral supplements contain iodine. Dietary supplements of iodine-containing kelp (a seaweed) are also bachelor.

Am I getting plenty iodine?

Most people in the United States become enough iodine from foods and beverages. Nevertheless, certain groups of people are more likely than others to have trouble getting enough iodine:

People who do not use iodized salt. Adding iodine to common salt is the most widely used strategy to control iodine deficiency. Currently, about 88% of households worldwide apply iodized salt.
Pregnant women. Women who are pregnant need about fifty% more iodine than other women to provide enough iodine for their babe. Surveys show that many pregnant women in the United States may non get quite enough iodine, although experts do not know whether this affects their babies.
People who follow a vegan diet or who eat few or no dairy products, seafood, and eggs. Seafood, eggs, milk, and milk products are amidst the all-time sources of iodine. People who don't eat much of these foods or don't eat them at all might not get enough iodine.
People living in regions with iodine-scarce soils who eat mostly local foods. These soils produce crops that have low iodine levels. Amongst the regions with the nearly iodine-poor soil are mountainous areas, such equally the Himalayas, the Alps, and the Andes regions, as well as river valleys in South and Southeast Asia.
People who get marginal amounts of iodine and who as well consume foods containing goitrogens. Goitrogens are substances that interfere with the way the body uses iodine. They are present in some plant foods including soy, and cruciferous vegetables such as cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower and brussels sprouts. For nigh people in the U.s.a. who get adequate amounts of iodine, eating reasonable amounts of foods containing goitrogens is not a concern.

What happens if I don't get enough iodine?

Iodine deficiency is uncommon in the The states and Canada. People who don't get enough iodine cannot brand sufficient amounts of thyroid hormone. This can cause many issues. In pregnant women, astringent iodine deficiency can permanently harm the fetus past causing stunted growth, intellectual disability, and delayed sexual development. Less severe iodine deficiency tin cause lower-than-boilerplate IQ in infants and children and decrease adults' ability to work and call back conspicuously. Goiter, an enlarged thyroid gland, is often the showtime visible sign of iodine deficiency.

What are some effects of iodine on wellness?

Scientists are studying iodine to understand how it affects wellness. Hither are some examples of what this research has shown.

Fetal and infant development

Women who are pregnant or breastfeeding demand to get enough iodine for their babies to abound and develop properly. Breastfed infants get iodine from breast milk. However, the iodine content of breast milk depends on how much iodine the mother gets.

To brand acceptable amounts of iodine available for proper fetal and infant development, several national and international groups recommend that pregnant and breastfeeding women and infants take iodine supplements. The American Thyroid Association recommends that women who are pregnant, planning to get meaning, or breastfeeding take a daily supplement containing 150 mcg iodine as potassium iodide. The American University of Pediatrics has like guidance. Yet, only about one-half the prenatal multivitamins sold in the U.s.a. incorporate iodine.

Cognitive function during babyhood

Severe iodine deficiency during childhood has harmful effects on the development of the brain and nervous system. The furnishings of balmy iodine deficiency during childhood are more difficult to measure, but mild iodine deficiency might crusade subtle bug with neurological development.

Giving iodine supplements to children with mild iodine deficiency improves their reasoning abilities and overall cognitive office. In children living in iodine-deficient areas, iodine supplements seem to ameliorate both physical and mental development. More study is needed to fully empathise the effects of mild iodine deficiency and of iodine supplements on cognitive function.

Fibrocystic chest disease

Although non harmful, fibrocystic chest disease causes lumpy, painful breasts. It mainly affects women of reproductive age simply can also occur during menopause. Very high doses of iodine supplements might reduce the pain and other symptoms of fibrocystic breast affliction, but more written report is necessary to confirm this. Check with your healthcare provider before taking iodine for this condition, especially because iodine tin can be unsafe at high doses.

Radiations-induced thyroid cancer

Nuclear accidents can release radioactive iodine into the environment, increasing the risk of thyroid cancer in people who are exposed to the radioactive iodine, especially children. People with iodine deficiency who are exposed to radioactive iodine are specially at risk of developing thyroid cancer. The U.Southward. Food and Drug Administration has approved potassium iodide equally a thyroid-blocking agent to reduce the run a risk of thyroid cancer in radiation emergencies.

Can iodine exist harmful?

Yep, if you lot get likewise much. Getting high levels of iodine can cause some of the same symptoms as iodine deficiency, including goiter (an enlarged thyroid gland). High iodine intakes can also cause thyroid gland inflammation and thyroid cancer. Getting a very large dose of iodine (several grams, for case) tin crusade called-for of the oral fissure, throat, and tum; fever; stomach pain; nausea; airsickness; diarrhea; weak pulse; and coma.

The daily upper limits for iodine include intakes from all sources—food, beverages, and supplements—and are listed below. These levels do non apply to people who are taking iodine for medical reasons under the intendance of a md.

Life Stage	Upper Limit
Nascence to 12 months:	Not established
Children 1–3 years:	200 mcg
Children 4–8 years:	300 mcg
Children 9–13 years:	600 mcg
Teens 14–18 years:	900 mcg
Adults:	one,100 mcg

Does iodine interact with medications or other dietary supplements?

Yeah. Iodine supplements can interact or interfere with medicines that you have. Here are several examples:

Iodine supplements might collaborate with anti-thyroid medications such equally methimazole (Tapazole®), used to care for hyperthyroidism. Taking loftier doses of iodine with anti-thyroid medications could crusade your torso to produce as well little thyroid hormone.
Taking potassium iodide with medicines for high claret pressure known as ACE inhibitors could raise the amount of potassium in your claret to an dangerous level. ACE inhibitors include benazepril (Lotensin®), lisinopril (Prinivil® and Zestril®), and fosinopril (Monopril®).
The amount of potassium in your blood can also get also high if you take potassium iodide with potassium-sparing diuretics, such every bit spironolactone (Aldactone®) and amiloride (Midamor®).

Tell your doctor, chemist, and other healthcare providers nearly any dietary supplements and prescription or over-the-counter medicines y'all have. They can tell you if these dietary supplements might interact with your medicines. They can also explain whether the medicines you take might interfere with how your trunk absorbs or uses iodine or other nutrients.

Iodine and healthful eating

People should become most of their nutrients from food and beverages, co-ordinate to the federal government'due south Dietary Guidelines for Americans. Foods contain vitamins, minerals, dietary fiber, and other components that do good health. In some cases, fortified foods and dietary supplements are useful when information technology is not possible to encounter needs for one or more nutrients (e.m., during specific life stages such as pregnancy). For more information about building a healthy dietary design, see the Dietary Guidelines for Americans and the U.S. Department of Agriculture's MyPlate.

Where tin I find out more than about iodine?

For full general information on iodine:
For more communication on choosing dietary supplements:
- Function of Dietary Supplements Ofttimes Asked Questions: Which brand(s) of dietary supplements should I purchase?
For information about building a healthy dietary design:

Disclaimer

This fact sail by the National Institutes of Wellness (NIH) Office of Dietary Supplements (ODS) provides information that should not take the place of medical communication. We encourage you to talk to your healthcare providers (doctor, registered dietitian, pharmacist, etc.) about your involvement in, questions near, or use of dietary supplements and what may be best for your overall health. Whatsoever mention in this publication of a specific product or service, or recommendation from an organization or professional society, does non represent an endorsement by ODS of that product, service, or expert advice.

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Source: https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/Iodine-Consumer/