I use a leave-in hair treatment that contains iodine. As far as I know it's the only product of its kind that contains iodine, so of course I was a little miffed when it wasn't in stock. I looked at some of the other products in the same line and was surprised to see that while the ingredients didn't list iodine, dulse was listed. What is dulse you ask? Gentle reader, dulse is a kind of seaweed that is rich in iodine. I figure now is a good time to talk about the benefits of iodine and sea vegetables as they relate to natural skin care.

Whenever I get stressed my hair gets thin. About ten years ago I was going through a really stressful period at work and developed this really thin patch on my scalp. I tried a lot of products, but the only one that helped was one containing iodine and I've used it ever since.


When I couldn't find my favorite conditioner, I started reading ingredient lists—I do that a lot Apparently, many manufacturers have caught on to the fact that iodine is key to healthy skin and hair and have started adding it to their products.

Iodine via seaweed is a great source of nutrition. Seaweed is not just a rich source of iodine but for many minerals. If all the crops in the world failed, people could remain healthy by eating and making medicine from sea vegetables.

The thyroid gland needs iodine to function properly. Without sufficient iodine, disorders such as goiter, cretinism, and mental retardation will develop. Insufficient iodine in the bloodstream can also cause problems with hair loss, dry skin, lethargy, depression, headaches, body temperature regulation, decreased libido, difficulty losing weight, and painful menstrual periods.

Currently the daily recommended dosage for iodine is 150 mcg a day, but it's been that way since the early 1900s. That amount is enough to keep goiter and cretinism as bay but doesn't take into account the rest of the body's need for iodine. In the 1980s it was decided there was too much iodine in baked goods, so iodine was replaced with bromide; however, bromide is a halide, meaning it is in the same class as fluoride, chloride, and iodine. Since these elements are so similar, iodine receptors quickly fill up with these other elements and iodine is rendered ineffective.

It takes large amounts of iodine to displace halides such as fluoride and chloride. Evidence of this can be seen in the rising levels of thyroid related illness—thyroid cancer and autoimmune thyroid disorders such as breast, prostate, endometrial, and ovarian cancer.

As a recovering Mountain Dew addict it gives me no great pleasure to tell you this, but I must. Certain beverages are goitrogens—that is substances that decrease iodine uptake. Common goitrogens are–

Chlorine in pools
Splenda
Fluoride in water supplies
Bromide in soft drinks (Mountain Dew & Gatorade)
Radioactive testing


So there you have it—the skinny on iodine and natural skin care. Adding iodine to your diet is simple enough. The best natural sources of iodine are sea vegetables and Kelp like nori, kombu, or dulse. In fact, your body will make better use of it if you ingest it through a food source than putting it on topically.