Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with iodine

Approach this question with a grain of salt. Or hell, a whole tablespoon.

curagea — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 14:19:51 -0800

Salty questions: salty drinks, and non-iodized salts and health effects. First question: I'm a salt freak. I can't get enough of it. I also get thirsty fairly often, but then the solution is either water/tea, or sugary drinks, and I'm no sweets fan. So what better solution that salty drinks?

Googling for "salty drinks" revealed results for salty cocktails and spirits, but I don't drink alcohol. Nor is dumping a salt capsule in a water bottle very, uh, savory. So fellow salt-lovers, what non-alcoholic liquidy options do I have besides soups? What can I carry around in a bottle and drink to my pleasure anywhere I go? Restaurant recommendations, simple recipes, and grab-and-go are welcome.

(Yeah, I know the idea of a "salty drink" may seem contradictory, and too much sodium is bad, but damn, drinking plain water/tea gets, well, boring...)

Second question: I researched iodine and its benefits to human health, and wondered if I'm getting enough, or if it's even a concern here in the US. I don't eat out much, so my only prominent sources of salt is homemade stuff, and I only have kosher (non-iodized) salt and soy sauce. I do buy sliced ham/salami and cheese sometimes for making sandwiches, but they're not consumed every day. Maybe once every one or two weeks I'll eat instant ramen, which, as you may all know, tend to contain a bitchload of sodium.

So, am I getting enough iodine? Should this even be a concern? Even my mom uses non-iodized (sea) salt in her cooking starting from maybe 4 years ago, so I can't count on her cooking for this mineral.

Could an iodine deficiency cause sudden weight loss?

Aleatoire — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 17:02:21 -0800

Could my sudden and drastic weight loss (which has so far baffled doctors) possibly be linked to a deficiency in iodine? I am a 20 year old female, 5'3, and in fairly good health -- until recently. Within the last two months, I've lost 14 pounds without any conspicuous dietary changes or eating disorders, dropping from an already-low 104 (my weight for the last three years, right up to my last check-up in May) to a scant 92. On top of my frustration, I feel anxious, have been increasingly absent-minded, and am often unable to sleep despite being exhausted.

Additionally, I've only had two periods since January (in March and April), after having never missed a period in my life. At first, I acknowledged it as my body's way of responding to a spell of heightened stress (academic, familial); however, I now suspect that something else is amiss. When I last visited my physician, she told me that, apart from a very slight incline towards hyperthyroidism (something that they had been monitoring since September), there was nothing apparently wrong with me and sent me off to take a battery of tests which, judging from the lack of results, haven't alerted them to anything of immediate concern.

Today, something occurred to me: might this be all because of an iodine deficiency resulting from a vegetarian (lacto-ovo) diet, coupled with a very small budget as a student that has me almost never eating out and preparing my own meals from scratch? Living in Berkeley, where cheap organic produce is available, I've eschewed processed junk food (soda, chips) in favor of natural snacks (fruits, nuts, and other "whole" foods). I've also been cooking with kosher salt which, unlike table salt, does not supply any iodine.

This website, of unknown authority, tells me that iodine plays an essential role in thyroid functioning:

http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=nutrient&dbid=69

I've never heard of iodine's connection to the thyroid. However, the more that I research online, the more evident it seems that I do indeed have a deficiency. Is an iodine deficiency a likely culprit? What else could be going on? Any ideas? I'd appreciate your input, immensely.

Iodine Solution help?

Independent Scholarship — Tue, 13 Dec 2005 18:11:53 -0800

ScienceExperimentFilter: Iodine Watch.....A science experiment for my daughter is requiring "Iodine Solution" which I know is different from the alcohol-based first-aid "tincture of Iodine" found at the drug store. Where would I go to find a water-based "Iodine Solution?" I would like to find it locally as opposed to the net where I found several places. But what kind of establishment would SELL the solution? Thanks in advance!