In clinical practice, the number of women readily identifiable as thyroid deficient has increased to epidemic proportions. Many have been to their doctors, have undergone the standard test; they are sure they are fine, but they are not. It seems that the test is not reliable. Dr. David Brownstein in his book; “Iodine, why you need it, why you can’t live without it,” quotes from an NHAES study showing that iodine levels in the US have dropped by 50% over the thirty years since 1970 to 2000. Iodine plays a key role in thyroid health. Scarier, he also notes that low iodine levels in pregnant women have increased by 690%. Something is wrong, and we have to ask what!

Despite the massive spending on healthcare; money that goes mainly to pharmaceuticals, overall health is declining. It is true that acute disease has decreased significantly, but chronic disease has increased. Perhaps many of the things that they tell us are beneficial to us are not! As a population, we have been misinformed, but why? Most people have never heard of Georgia’s guide stones. The structure, also known as “The American Stonehenge,” is located in Elberton, Georgia. The central group of stones was erected in 1980; the site is dedicated to “The Age of Reason”. Ten guidelines are written on the tablets in eight different languages. The first principle says: “Keep humanity below 500,000,000 in perpetual balance with nature.” Today, the world population is just over seven billion; to reach five hundred million requires sacrificing six thousand five hundred million. Conspiracy theorists tell them that this is the intent of the Illuminati or the New World Order. When considering the drastic consequences of ill health, it seems that conspiracy theorists might be right after all!

We were told that the thyroid problem was solved with the introduction of iodized salt in the 1920s. The women, who lived far from the iodine-rich soil, which is generally found near the life-giving influence of the sea, suffered from enlarged thyroid. Because the deficient gland had to work excessively, it increased in size, producing a strangling goiter. They found that adding a 5% potassium iodine solution to table salt provided enough iodine to prevent goiter growth, but not enough to remedy more subtle thyroid dysfunctions. Unfortunately, refining also removed most of the minerals from sea salt. Table salt is now widely found throughout the world. Seventy-nine percent of households in Thailand, for example, use it.

Until 1950, an underactive thyroid was treated with iodine supplements. No, this is not the product you buy at the pharmacy to give yourself a few touches on wounds! This form is poisonous because it contains alcohol that should never be ingested. Instead, iodine and its relative iodide are available in liquid and tablet form. The popularity of iodine slammed into a brick wall when the “Wolff-Chaikoff” study emerged from the University of California, Berkeley in 1947. It collided with contemporary thinking; claim that any iodine intake greater than 2 mg was excessive and potentially harmful. They claimed that larger amounts caused hypothyroidism. This was not a scientific fact because hormone levels were never measured to support the argument. This warning later entered the annals of medical knowledge. So doctors stopped prescribing iodine for thyroid conditions.

The other successful treatment option is by protomorphogens, this results in a substance extracted from an animal source, usually porcine. Armor Labs has been producing its animal-derived extract since the 1930s. When pharmaceutical companies began producing synthetic thyroid extract in the late 1950s, they flooded the market. Doctors stopped prescribing natural thyroid extract – it is now quite difficult to find.

At the same time, the intake of bromide has increased enormously. Bromide is an antagonist of iodine. It is found in soda, white bread, toothpaste, fluoridated drinking water, beauty products, and hair dyes. Until the 1970s, potassium iodide was added to bread, thanks to Wolff-Chaikoff the practice ceased; it was replaced by potassium bromide. It’s no wonder the thyroid problem has exploded like a balloon. Oh, I haven’t mentioned the increased radiation levels either! There is also the issue of adding fluoride and chlorine to drinking water. These halogens are also iodine antagonists!

In view of all this information, everyone needs to increase their iodine intake. Eating Wakame seaweed is an excellent remedy, as is eating mussels and shellfish. But you need a lot, since the RDA to prevent low thyroid and excessive radiation would be in the region of 30 mg. If you are in any doubt, it is never recommended that you prescribe yourself, but go to see your doctor, who will check the problem for you.