Iodine and the Ocean in Hawaii

We have always been drawn to the ocean and mesmerized by the crashing waves.  Living in Hawaii, we look forward to our daily walks along the Kohala Coast; after the walk, we sit close to the crashing waves and feel invigorated and revitalized as the salty mist covers our bodies and fills our lungs.  Our recent research into iodine has given us new insight into our addiction to ocean surf.  The ocean’s mist contains iodine, which affects the body’s metabolism (which the thyroid gland located in your neck controls). A shortage of iodine causes cold feet, hair loss, constipation, depression, dry skin, fatigue, poor memory, throat pain, muscle weakness, cysts, and worse in adults. In babies and children, iodine deficiency is catastrophic to the brain’s development.

In his book Iodine: Why You Need It, Why You Can't Live Without It, Dr. David Brownstein, claims up to 40% of Americans have thyroid disease from lack of iodine, which every cell, muscle, and organ in the body depends upon.  A minimum amount of iodine was added to table salt to prevent goiter (the swelling of the thyroid) and mental retardation in babies.  However, iodine deficiencies in the US population has been increasing dramatically with low-salt diets and the use of bromine (in flour and soft drinks) and fluorine (in toothpaste and drinking water) which both block iodine absorption in the body.

In 1829, a French physician Jean Lugol discovered that a solution of potassium iodide and iodine treated infections and numerous other ailments.  Different tissues and glands in the body require iodide or iodine or both, for example, the thyroid needs iodide (which was the form added to salt to prevent goiter) whereas the breast and prostate glands require iodine.  "Lugol's Solution" was a major breakthrough in the medical world and widely prescribed by physicians before being replaced by prescription drugs.  The use of iodine to treat breast cancer dates back to 1896.  It has been known for 5 decades that low iodine levels result in cysts and ultimately cancer in the breasts, ovaries, uterus, and prostate where iodine is concentrated.  Iodine is also required by the gastrointestinal tract, salivary glands, bones, and body fluids.  Without sufficient iodide, the thyroid won’t stimulate the mitochondria to produce energy (ATP) and muscle soreness, fatigue, and brain fog takes over.

Our discovery about iodine explains why we feel so wonderful after our daily pilgrimage to the Kohala Coast.   The ocean is unique in that it has both iodine and iodide in the mist, both of which are needed by the body and are absorbed by the skin. There are lots of ideal places under coconut trees further from the surf,  but our favorite place is out on a point where the waves crash around us. Though we are getting iodine and iodide from the ocean, seafood, and even local grass-fed beef, we have found new levels of energy and concentration since starting supplements of J.CROW'S® Lugol's Solution of Iodine 2%.