Testing can only see so much

Some people wonder if testing iodine levels before starting is important, and there are several questions that come up as to how the tests work. This page isn’t to deter anyone from testing, it’s just to share my opinion and some information on the situation.

The most common method used to check iodine levels is an iodine 24-hour urine loading test. This test has us swallow 50mg of iodoral, and collect urine for 24 hours. Then the amount of iodine we urinate is used to estimate how deficient we are.

So, we take a supplement that our body most likely hasn’t seen in a long time, if ever, and assume we’re just going to use what we need, and spit out the rest, all within 24 hours? And even though people running this test have ranging illnesses causing their body to run completely differently, a 24 hour window is enough?

I’ve taken very few medications in my life, but I’ve noticed a few times where some seem to not function the first time, but then they start working the 2nd, 3rd etc. I’ve had the same thing happen with supplements a handful of times. And there are foods I do or don’t like the first time, but then the next time I try the same dish, my preference is the opposite of what it used to be.

Real world example

Imagine the best crime detective ever, better than the best one in your favorite movie. He’s driving down the highway, or main avenue of a city, with who knows how many suspects running through his mind. As he zips past countless buildings on his way to investigate a single detail of a single lead of a single case, he flies right past so many criminals in all of these buildings, each with so much information he needs.

As this detective flies down the highway, it doesn’t matter if one of the criminals he’s looking for is inside one of the buildings he zips past by about 100 feet. He’s doing 60mph with the windows up, the A/C blasting, the radio on, and his mind is barely able to focus on one of the dozens of cases he’s got going on.

Our cells have priority and need to prepare other cells to make various building blocks, which takes time. So just like the detective has priorities, and takes time driving around each day investigating each detail of each case, the cells have things do, and those things take time. A random nutrient that our body has finally figured out how to get through life without, is most likely going to take a bit of time before our cells are able to build up the resources needed, and start using the new nutrient. So is reading our urine for 24 hours really going to give us a good idea how much iodine our trillions of cells want? Wouldn’t that be like judging the detective by his first day on the case, while he’s still trying to figure out what the case even is?

This stuff takes time

According to Dr. Brownstein and others, people can potentially restore their iodine levels with about 6 months of 50mg of iodine per day. I have been taking various doses of iodine for 4 years now and still can’t take 50mg each day without getting mercury symptoms.

If I have been taking iodine, balancing nutrients and feeling better over the course of 4 years, yet still can’t take a dose that most people saturate at, would my 24-hour testing window provide the same information as someone that could saturate in 6 months?

Anti-iodines

The other halides can deter our absorption and usage of iodine. By testing the levels of these other halides, we might be able to get a better idea how to read our iodine levels.

Other things to consider

  • Iodine has been removed from our diet
  • Our soil is deficient
  • Toxins deplete iodine and other nutrients
  • Carbs deplete iodine
  • Our RDA only addresses goiter
  • Mom passes generational toxicities
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September 26, 2020

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