It’s important to pay attention to your body, especially if you’ve been experiencing symptoms like fatigue, weakness, or unexplained weight gain. These signs suggest that you may have iodine deficiency, which must be addressed immediately to prevent complications that can be fatal.

If you’re diagnosed with iodine deficiency, following a balanced diet can help boost your intake of this crucial trace element and improve your overall well-being.

Why do you need iodine?

Iodine is water-soluble and it can be found in foods like fish and iodized table salt. Alternatively, you can take it as a supplement.

Iodine has a key role in maintaining healthy thyroid function.

Your thyroid gland is the main organ in your body that absorbs iodine. The organ first takes iodine from your diet, which is then turned into thyroid hormones. It then combines the amino acid tyrosine and iodine to make the thyroid hormone.

Two key hormones produced by the thyroid, thyroxine (T4) and triiodothyronine (T3) work together to regulate how your cells, organs, tissues and glands use oxygen and energy. Countless bodily functions require thyroid hormones, like sex drive, digestion, the growth of hair and nails and the function of glands and organs.

Even your brain, heart and metabolism need the right levels of thyroid hormone to function properly. If your thyroid doesn’t produce enough thyroid hormones, you will experience hypothyroidism or a lack of thyroid hormones.

An iodine deficiency limits your thyroid’s ability to produce hormones, which then causes hypothyroidism.

11 Signs of iodine deficiency

Maintain thyroid health and be on the lookout for these signs of an iodine deficiency.

Feeling weak

Do you have trouble lifting things when, in the past, you had no trouble picking up heavy objects? This could be a sign of iodine deficiency, which can make you feel weak.

Iodine deficiency and hypothyroidism slow down your metabolic rate, meaning you burn fewer calories for energy. This leads to you having less energy than you’re used to.

Having less energy means your muscles aren’t working efficiently, resulting in you feeling weak.

Feeling tired

A drop in metabolic rate can also make you feel tired.

Tiredness doesn’t always indicate iodine deficiency, especially if you haven’t been getting enough sleep every night. But if your tiredness is unexplained, it may be a symptom of an iodine deficiency.

Feeling cold

Iodine deficiency causes a lack of thyroid hormones, which can make your metabolic rate slow down. As your metabolism slows down, your body produces less energy.

You need energy to stay warm but if you’re iodine deficient, you may feel cold all the time.

Unexplained weight gain

If you have healthy habits and exercise regularly yet you notice that you’ve been gaining weight, you may be deficient in iodine.

Someone with a healthy metabolism can burn calories to give them energy. Hypothyroidism slows down your metabolism. If your metabolism slows down, calories are more likely to be stored as fat, which can result in weight gain.

Hair loss

Hair falls out naturally, but if you’re healthy, your hair is eventually replaced by new follicles. Hair loss suggests an iodine deficiency since thyroid hormones support the hair follicle renewal.

If you have hypothyroidism, a shortage of thyroid hormones means your follicles stop being renewed. This can aggravate hair loss.

Drying skin

Dry, flaky skin may be another sign of hypothyroidism. Thyroid hormones help your cells renew. A lack of thyroid hormones can make dead skin cells build up, which sometimes causes dry, flaky skin.

Swollen neck

An iodine deficiency can cause swelling or a lump in your neck. This happens because your thyroid gland, which can be found in your neck, is now enlarged.

When the thyroid is deficient in iodine, it will try to absorb more from your blood, but this results in an enlarged thyroid that makes your neck look swollen.

A slow heart rate

An iodine deficiency can make your heartbeat more slowly. If your heart rate slows down, you may feel dizzy or it can make you faint.

Learning or memory problems

Thyroid hormones are essential for brain development.

An iodine deficiency is linked to a shortage of these hormones, which may cause problems with memory and learning new things. One study suggests that people with low levels of thyroid hormones have a smaller hippocampus.

The hippocampus is the part of your brain that affects memory.

Heavy or irregular periods

If you’re a woman who’s generally healthy, you will have regular periods. But if you have low thyroid hormone levels, this may affect the levels of hormones that regulate your periods.

Heavier periods, painful menstruation or less tine between periods suggest an iodine deficiency.

Pregnancy complications

Pregnant women need to get enough iodine because they’re eating for two.

Thyroid hormones also ensure the healthy development of a baby before birth. Aside from stunting growth, a lack of these hormones may prevent a baby’s brain from developing properly.

If you’re pregnant and iodine-deficient, your baby is more likely to be stillborn.

Diagnosis and treatment

If you experience several of the symptoms above even though you have healthy habits, you may be iodine deficienct. Consult a physician and ask about getting a urine test to determine if your condition is caused by a deficiency.

To prevent iodine deficiency, you need to follow a healthy diet. Eating foods rich in iodine is also key to preventing a deficiency. The average adult needs to consume 150 micrograms (mcg) of iodine per day to maintain their overall health.

The National Institutes of Health reports that the following foods are rich in iodine:

• Dried seaweed, like dulce, kelp, or nori (1 sheet, dried) – 11 to 1,989% of recommended daily intake (RDI)
• Cod (3 ounces or 85 g) – 66% of the RDI
• Yogurt, plain (1 cup) – 50% of the RDI
• Iodized salt (1/4 teaspoon or 1.5 g) – 47% of the RDI
• Shrimp (3 ounces or 85 g) – 23% of the RDI
• A large egg – 16% of the RDI
• Canned tuna (3 ounces or 85 g) – 11% of the RDI
• Dried prunes (5 pieces) – 9% of the RDI

Other sources of iodine include:

• Cheese
• Cows milk
• Iodized table salt
• Multivitamins
• Saltwater fish
• Shellfish

Prevent iodine deficiency by eating lots of superfoods like seafood, yogurt, milk, or yogurt.

Sources:

MedicalNewsToday.com

VeryWellHealth.com

Thyroid.org