Hormone Health Hub: Expert Insights on Testing, Balance & Better Living — urinary iodine

By Tracy Tranchitella, ZRT Laboratory.   Important research and safety context: This article describes laboratory experiments, animal studies and preliminary clinical research. These findings do not establish that iodine supplements prevent or treat cancer, COVID-19 or other infections. Experimental doses and concentrations below are not instructions for personal use. Do not ingest antiseptic iodine, prepare home-made nasal or mouth solutions, or use high-dose iodine based on this article. Excess iodine can disrupt thyroid function. People receiving cancer treatment should discuss any supplement with their oncology team and must not replace or delay established care. At the most fundamental level, the...

By Tracy Tranchitella Reading and testing limitations: This article includes historical treatment accounts, older population estimates and proposed links with cancer and other conditions. These are not recommendations to use iodine to treat or prevent those conditions. Population urinary iodine thresholds are not individual diagnostic cut-offs. A urine result alone cannot establish tissue iodine stores, explain symptoms or determine a safe supplement dose. Excess iodine can disrupt thyroid function; discuss supplementation with a qualified healthcare professional, especially during pregnancy or with thyroid disease. The use of iodine dates back to 4th century China where seaweed and burnt sea sponge were...

Iodine deficiency is a significant and underappreciated global health problem, with urinary iodine levels in many Western populations having fallen substantially over recent decades. As an essential component of thyroid hormones, iodine deficiency impairs thyroid function, promotes goitre, and has wide-ranging consequences for metabolism, cognitive development, breast health, and reproductive health. Women of childbearing age are particularly vulnerable. This article explains the causes and consequences of iodine deficiency, who is most at risk, and how at-home dried urine testing using ICP-MS analysis can accurately confirm your iodine status.