Iodine: Important For Fetal Cognitive Development

Yesterday, an “Early Online Publication” of the Lancet concluded that mild iodine deficiency during early pregnancy is associated with a negative effect on child cognitive development. The article stated, “Iodine deficiency in pregnant women in the UK should be treated as an important public health issue that needs attention.”

In a previous post, I explained how a lack of the proper form of iodine made it difficult for me to lose weight after my pregnancy. Weight is so often just a symptom of another problem, and not the problem itself. Without iodine in its natural form, my thyroid lacked nutrients. In that article I explained that mild maternal  iodine deficiency has been associated with attention-deficit and hyperactivity disorders in babies. Iodine deficiency can lead to depression, weight gain, cancer, high cholesterol and undo stress on organs. The thyroid is an integral part of almost every function of our body that is needed for proper health, and it needs iodine to function correctly.

This article in the Lancet got into a lot more detail and the findings are pretty significant.

Children of women with an iodine-to-creatinine ratio of less than 150 μg/g were more likely to have scores in the lowest quartile for verbal IQ , reading accuracy , and reading comprehension than were those children born of mothers with ratios of 150 μg/g or more. When the deficient group was subdivided further, the children’s scores were also worsened proportionately to the worsening deficiency.

How I got my daily dose of Iodine

I could never figure out how to incorporate the right kind of iodine into my diet, so I supplemented. I used a supplement called A. Vogel Bioforce Thyroid Support Tabs. The name sounds clinical, but it contains only sea kelp and an agent used to keep the sea kelp in tablet form.

I was given the recommendation from a co-op I was in. This brand of sea kelp is processed minimally as soon as it is harvested and it retains all its nutrients. Sea kelp contains iodine (as opposed to the fake iodide added to table salt that barely gets us by, and yet we crave) and bromine (as opposed to nothing added to table salt.) Our thyroids can’t use iodine sufficiently if it’s not in its natural pairing with bromine.

If you are considering getting pregnant or are pregnant, ask your health care practitioner about making sure you are getting adequate supplies of iodine.