Sara Blackburn, DSc, RD
Sara Blackburn, DSc, RD, is a clinical associate professor in the department of nutrition and dietetics at the School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences at Indiana University-Purdue University in Indianapolis.
My husband came home from the supermarket with salt and said, “Look, it’s ‘non-iodized.’ That’s good, right?” Wrong. “It’s the sodium in salt that’s bad for your blood pressure, not the iodine. We need iodine for lots of reasons,” I told him. OK, so my sweetie is a little clueless about health. But for many people, well-intentioned attempts to cut down on salt have backfired by contributing to iodine deficiency—because iodized salt (table salt to which iodine has been added) is the primary dietary source of this important element. So, basically, by banning salt, they’re throwing out the baby with the bathwater.
Why does it matter? Iodine is necessary for the production of thyroid hormones. Because these hormones regulate so many metabolic functions, problems with them can lead to all kinds of ailments for women, men, children and unborn babies. To discuss these concerns, I contacted Sara Blackburn, DSc, RD, a clinical associate professor of nutrition at Indiana University-Purdue University in Indianapolis. Iodine deficiency can…
Who’s falling short? The recommended daily allowance (RDA) of iodine for people age 14 and older is 150 micrograms (mcg) per day…during pregnancy, it rises to 220 mcg…for breast-feeding women, it’s 290 mcg. Unfortunately, according to the National Institutes of Health, iodine concentrations of less than half the level considered sufficient were found in 9% of Americans age six and older and in 15% of women of childbearing age…and among pregnant women, an alarming 57% had insufficient iodine levels.
How can we protect ourselves? It’s hard to specify the exact iodine content of any given type of food because this varies depending on the soil it grew in or the diet of the animal it came from. Go ahead and check product labels to see if iodine is listed, but also follow these guidelines…