Hormone Health Hub: Expert Insights on Testing, Balance & Better Living — Iodine & Selenium Deficiencies

By Tracy Tranchitella, ZRT Laboratory. At the most fundamental level, the beneficial actions of iodine derive from its ability to function as both an antioxidant and an oxidant. These basic qualities also support its effects as an antimicrobial, anti-proliferative and anti-cancer agent. How iodine functions within the human body is determined by its form, the tissue in which it resides and the overall physiological context. Iodine’s role as an antioxidant is determined by its ability to donate electrons and quench free radicals thereby reducing tissue damage and oxidative stress that may lead to chronic disease. As an oxidant, iodine can...

By Tracy Tranchitella The use of iodine dates back to 4th century China where seaweed and burnt sea sponge were effectively used to treat goiter. It was not until 1811 that iodine was isolated as a specific element that exhibited properties similar to the other halogens of bromine, chlorine, and fluorine. In 1829, Jean Guillaume Auguste Lugol, MD, introduced potassium iodide as an effective treatment for the effects of tuberculosis, and John Murray, MD, used iodine to treat croup, asthma, consumption, and other respiratory diseases [1]. Tincture of iodine has been a staple in every first aid kit for the...

Environmental pollutants are in the food we eat, the air we breathe and the water we drink — and in excess, they can profoundly disrupt thyroid hormone synthesis and action. This article explains how iodine and selenium deficiencies develop, how antagonists like bromine, arsenic and mercury exacerbate thyroid dysfunction, and why urine testing for these five elements can reveal the hidden environmental drivers of thyroid symptoms that standard blood tests miss.