It's in the Salt

CEBU, Philippines - The condition is called cretinism. It is a condition characterized by severe brain damage causing degrees of mental impairment in very early life. What causes this mental retardation is iodine deficiency — a deficiency that can be treated with iodized salt.

Worldwide, there are close to 1 billion people afflicted with goiter owing iodine deficiency. Of this number, 39 babies are born annually unprotected against mental retardation. In the Philippines, there are close to a million babies born unprotected from iodine deficiency disorder.

Iodine is needed in the body for the production of hormones. These hormones are produced in the thyroid gland, a small, butterfly-shaped endocrine gland located at the back of the neck below the Adam’s apple. The thyroid consists of two lobes. The lobes are wrapped around the windpipe. Hormones produced in the thyroid gland control metabolism and influence every organ, tissue and cell in the body. The thyroid gland produces and secretes hormones that control the heart rate, body weight, body temperature, energy levels, muscle strength and menstrual regularity.

Nutrition Issue

The malfunctioning of the thyroid gland is often a nutritional issue caused by deficiency of iodine in the diet. When diet contains insufficient iodine, the thyroid gland cannot make enough to satisfy the body’s needs.

Hypothyroidism occurs when the thyroid gland produces too little amounts of thyroid hormone contributing to heart disease because it increases the amount of LDL (bad) cholesterol circulating in the blood.

Hyperthyroidism occurs when the thyroid gland produces too much hormone causing nervousness, decreased menstrual flow, weight loss, and irregular heartbeat. People with hyperthyroidism may experience problems with infertility and miscarriage.

When the human body is deficient in iodine, the thyroid gland becomes desperate. The thyroid becomes enlarged owing to its desperate efforts to produce the hormone. This enlargement is known as goitre, which is the outward sign of iodine deficiency.

Enlarged goitre can become unsightly and will interfere with respiration. But the real danger of iodine deficiency is brain impairment because the brain is particularly sensitive to iodine deficiency during its formation in early fetal and postnatal life. Also, physical growth and psychomotor development are most severely affected in early life and youth. That is why mental retardation in babies is a potential threat among pregnant women who are iodine deficient. Children who are iodine deficient in their diets are similarly at risk of cretinism or brain damage. The consequences can include poor school performance, reduced intellectual ability and impaired work capacity.

Salt Of The Earth, Food of the Seas

Universal salt iodization is seen as the main strategy for the control and prevention of the frightening disorders of iodine deficiency. In the Philippines, RA 8172 was enacted to promote salt iodization. It comes with the acronym ASIN or an act promoting salt iodization nationwide. Basically it aims to address the broad spectrum of iodine deficiencies including the reduction of intellectual and physical capacity, goiter, mental retardation and cretinism.

Other than salt, iodine diet can be derived from fish, seaweed and seafood. Salt is for seasoning. To the human body, salt is the iodine that produces hormones that get those mental motors running. ?