Getting the Right Amount of Iodine Helps Regulate the Thyroid

The periodic table of elements can seem like a mystery if you have not been in a chemistry class for more than a decade. Understanding the importance of some essential elements, however, is essential if you want to make sure that you feeling your best. Iodine is one of those elements that is needed if you want to remain healthy and active. Used as everything as a disinfectant to a health supplement, iodine plays an important role in the health of people of all ages.

What Is Iodine?

Known to many by its atomic weight of 53, iodine lands on the non metal side of the periodic table. Used as a nutrient, all of the iodine that is consumed by a person passes through the thyroid. As a result getting the proper amount of iodine in your diet can help you make sure that you have a healthy thyroid, thus regulating your metabolism. If you are not getting the proper amount of iodine in the foods that you eat, it is easy to instead seek iodine supplement benefits to make sure that your thyroid is functioning properly.

One of the results of an iodine deficiency is the appearance of a goiter in the neck. More common in women in the past, most people are able to get the amount of iodine that they need through the use of iodized salt.

What Is Iodine Used For?

In addition to being a nutrient that can help the thyroid function properly, iodine can also be used as an antiseptic. For cleaning wounds or disinfecting a scrape, iodine uses are very common. Consider some of these other facts and figures about the most common needs and uses for iodine:

• 86% of the global population has access to iodized salt.
• Unfortunately, iodine levels have decreased by 50% in the past three decades.
• In fact, the World Health Organization (WHO) states that 72% of the population worldwide has an iodine deficiency.
• 100 to 150 mcg/day is the normal dietary iodine intake.
• By the year 2024, the global market for Iodine is projected to reach 44 thousand metric tons.
• 2.2 billion people, which represents 38% of the world’s population, live in areas with iodine deficiency. As a result, iodine deficiency remains a public health problem in 47 countries.

No one should eat too much salt, but it is important to know that you are getting the proper amount of iodine so that you can have good thyroid health.

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