Lugol's Iodine: Treatment and Side Effects

Recently I tested as anemic. As it turned out, I had a 2.5cm polyp removed from my duodenum. I found that is the area where b12 is absorbed via the gastrointestinal tract.

More to your point, I was low on Iron. We tried oral supplements, and I thought I would never feel good again. We switched IV for a couple of weeks, and I was no longer iron poor, and my stomach returned to normal. The point is, of course, if oral iron supplements are sneaking in, they may be at least part of your distress.

Cheers

Hi Frances ... To convert from 5% to 2% Lugols Iodine do this:

Calculated from mgs per drop. Drop size is the same for both and so is irrelevant.

6.25/2.5

Ratio is 1:2.5

So to convert from 5% to 2% lugols iodine, add one part by volume of 5% LI to a container then add 2.5 parts by volume of water. This will give you a 2% lugols sotution.

Perhaps an easier way to understand it is by drop dose equivalence.

Examples:

1 drop 5% LI = 6.25 mgs iodine
1 drop 2% LI = 2.5 mgs iodine

So 2 drops of 5% LI (12.5 mgs total iodine) is equivalent to 5 drops (12.5/2.5) of 2% LI.

And 8 drops of 5% LI (50 mgs iodine) is equivalent 20 drops (50/2.5) of 2% LI.

I hope this isn't too confusing!

Bill, thank you so much.

Hello Bill, Like many people I'm a bit concerned about starting on Lugols iodine as I've read so much about bad side effects etc. You explain clearly why this is and so I'm wondering if it would be OK to take it as I was told( after a Bioresonance session last month) that I have copper in my kidneys and should take parsley 'tea' every day to clear it. I guess this might explain the dark streaks along my eyelids just on the crease under the brow. They get progressively darker as the day goes on and I've added Dandelion tea to the mix. I take vitamin C in the form of Acerola and eat all organic food ( locally grown -and not supermarket stuff - or from my own garden) . I've been taking my basal temp for 2 years now and can get it to 36.9 with magnesium, mineral supplements and coconut oil on some days but usually about 36.4 so I do have a thyroid problem and am over weight and have some hormonal issues etc. I'd love to start with Lugols iodine but the copper, as a heavy metal, has stopped me so far. Your opinion on any advice on how to proceed would be really appreciated and thank you for all the time you put into the brilliant site to help people. Sending you earth blessings.

Hi Green Augustine...Lugol's iodine(LI) is a wonderful detoxer that will detox lead, mercury, aluminum, cadmium and arsenic. I have never read or heard about LI detoxing copper. If you have high copper then the chances are that you will also have low zinc in your body with poor immune system performance as a result of this problem. Both copper and zinc must be in proper balance in your body and each of these minerals effects the other's mineral concentration in the body. If you are worried about this then perhaps a hair analysis will help. If your copper is high then generally your zinc levels will be low. You know already that you have high copper and so the hair analysis will help you to confirm low zinc if that is the case. If this is the case then you must increase your zinc to at least 50 mgs per day for perhaps one week only. Then cut the zinc down to 50 mgs per week or 10 mgs per day. See if that helps your problem. Taking the extra zinc will also automatically help to reduce the copper load in your body. It will also simultaneously help to perk up your immune system as well.

There can also be other problems if you have low zinc. For instance, if you have very low zinc and very low Vitamin B6 in your body this can also indicate a problem called kryptopyrrolurea or just plain old pyroluria. I can't really advise dosages for this problem, if you have it. Suffice to say that you will have to take massive doses of both vitamin b6 and zinc, as well as other nutrients, in order to correct it. So its best really if you can find a doctor who specializes in treating this problem, if you have it, because your zinc and b6 levels must be monitored quite frequently for dosage safety purposes.

Dear Bill,

I had chronic fatigue for very long time .. I want to use Lugol's Iodine .. what else should I take with it .. it seems you posted too many supplements .. can it all be taken in one pill?

Chad

Hello again Bill.

Well since I asked you about copper toxicity a few months ago, I've been doing quite a lot of research myself with a biochemist and also an orthomolecular doctor. Apparently, taking the birth control pill/HRT releases extra estrogen into the system and makes the zinc bio unavailable to the body this causing the imbalance with copper! So what was considered the great saviour for us baby boomers in the 1970s, is causing health headaches in later life. What a surprise the big Pharmas haven't mentioned this little side effect of birth control tablets and HRT!

Anyway, I've been taking lots of parsley and also nettle and dandelion etc infusions which seem to have helped on a very gentle level. Added to which I've started taking cream of tartar (potassium ) and Celtic sea salt in water three times a day as well as adding a good pinch of sea salt to my drinking water and I can't believe the difference! Instead of waking up feeling lethargic and as if I've not slept for days, I feel full of energy and wide awake. I e also added acidophilus capsules several times a day along with L-Theanine, and my usual coconut oil, natural vit C etc and I no longer feel the need for Betaine nor do I rush to take my Bicarb and lemon after a meal. I do still take it of course, along with liquid magnesium, but even when I forget, I get no acid reflux or digestive problems. And my pH is usually between 7 and 7.5 so I feel very happy.

I'm going to have a hair analysis- done in the US where they have better resources it seems in this area, along with a full iron panel blood test. But I feel so well and not "Tired all the time " as I did before, I can't believe it. Thanks for your advice and I hope some of this feed back may help others who feel tired. I believe the potassium and salt and magnesium really sorts out the adrenals - and Adrenal Fatigue seems to be endemic is most Western countries.

Thank you very much Bill ... how would I know if I lack all the recommended Supplements or Not? .... can I just start with Lugol's Iodine first and I will update you of the outcome as time goes by. I have 2% Lugol's iodine from J. Crow's (60 ml bottle). what do you recommend as a start?

Best Regards,

Chad

Hi Chad...If you want to know what minerals are lacking in your body, you can get a hair analysis done fairly cheaply.

A hair analysis will tell you your mineral and vitamin status and will also reveal any excess heavy metals present in you body.

You can start supplementing with just iodine on its own if you want. But if this isn't working well for you then I would simply take all the minerals and vitamins that are recommended as companion nutrients for iodine.

You can start with a two drop dose of iodine per day. If it's OK for you, I would increase the this dose by two drops every day.

The recommended Lugol's Iodine daily dose is 50 mgs per day.

Since you are taking 2% Lugol's Iodine this means that you will have to take a split dose of 20 drops LI per day to achieve the 50 mgs daily dose.

The daily dose for 5% LI would be 8 drops per day. Please see the Iodine Drop to Mgs conversion chart shown here for more details.

Bill,

What if I have high zinc? Should I still supplement with it, or leave it out?

Thanks, Wendy

Hi Wendy...If you have high zinc then you could have low copper which competes directly with zinc for absorption into the body and cells.

Copper is an important mineral for the body, so what you should do to get a better idea about your general vitamin and mineral status is have a hair analysis done. This will also show you how much excessive heavy metals you have in your body.

To help balance the excess zinc and get it down you should also perhaps regularly supplement copper until proper levels of copper and zinc are reached. But try and get the hair analysis done as this will give you a much wider picture of your health status.

Serum zinc and serum copper would be the tests you'd prefer. Hair is not good for heavy metal or mineral balance.

Hi Bill, Just wondering have l missed something regarding Sea Salt and Magnesium supplements, aren't these the same thing? I thought you make magnesium oil from sea salt? Can you tell me amounts of sea salt to be taken daily and or magnesium please. Thanks heaps.

The online iodine protocol by Dr Stephanie Buist might be useful to you; it confirms what Bill has been suggesting.

http://jeffreydachmd.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/The-Guide-to-Supplementing-with-Iodine-Stephanie-Burst-ND.pdf

Magnesium 'oil' is made from magnesium chloride flakes.

Hello,

How do you find someone to do a hair analysis?

That is a good question I would like an answer too.

To detox mercury with Lugols there are three steps as far as I can put the pieces together afterI did a detox myself.

Make water soluble complex salt:

potassium tetraiodo mercurate (K 2 HgI 4) aka "Nesslers Reagent."Then excrete that via liver.

My guess is that this is done via an sulfur-containing aminoacid, most likely glutathione.

Then excrete via liver and bile. I could feel that it went this way.

In the intestine comes a "pitfall, "
bacteria may convert the ionic mercury to methylmercury. The methylmercury is fat-soluble and gets resorbed.
The result is moving mercury from belly fat to the brain, not advisable.
To bind the mercury, elemental sulfur can get processed in the intestine to some extremely stinky compound that binds mercury.

This is known in Germany as "Schwefelkur nach Dr. Probst" and goes back to Paracelsus. Dr Probst found that in an an ancient textbook.
To my knowledge he gives the empirical description that when "Detox" is needed ther stool will stink and when detox is not needed the stink stops without explaining any chemistry.

Î did a mercury detox with Lugols, supplied Acetylcystein (cough med) and elemental sulfur with every meal.
It took for me about four months to get the mercury out.
Some two weeks after I started Lugols I could feel mercury moving to my liver, then bile and some ten minutes later I went to the throne wher even the king walks. That stuff had to come aut asap.
At the very end of my detox my stool stopped stinking, I stopped sulfur and then I noticed another load of mercury going through the bile.
I could feel it going to my head a few days later.

With taking sulfur for a while I got that mercury out too, since then I felt no need to take sulfur any more.In my opinion as chemical engineer this fits only for mercury especially the resorption again.

How the detox mechanism for the other mentioned metals work I would like to know too.

In this case, I would agree that taking them together - or even mega-dosing Vitamin C - is not a good idea as iodine performs its duties by attaching itself to other elements, being released by oxidation, attaching, being oxidized and so on and so forth so, since Vitamin C is an anti-oxidant...I would say yes. It will interfere with the oxidation of the compounds iodine goes into AND back out of in the course of doing its job until its run its course. Of course, if one is getting enough iodine, one wouldn't need mega-doses of vitamin C.

The best way - or so it appears to me - to get through the detox effects is to lower the dose since you're lowering it anyway, with the anti-oxidants.

Do not take Iodine if you have Hashimoto's.

I have a goiter, may be hypothyroidism. My broth has been diagnosed with hashimoto disease. Pls explain why he should not take lugol solution.

I have always believed moles are viruses. I'd like to know more, but what I do know is that my mother got rid of hers by applying alcohol on them every day for a while.

Hi Jkw...There can be many reasons to get a hyper reactions from supplementing lugols iodine. And if you also have systemic candida, then this will add to your issues. Reasons for your hyper reaction are described below:

* Iodine is wonderful for heavy metal detoxing. It gets rid of aluminium, cadmium, mercury, lead and arsenic from your cells. But it doesn't end there. This means that iodine removes these heavy metals from the cells and just dumps them into your blood thus stressing the liver and causing hyper reactions because of possible re-distribution.

* Iodine can kill large amounts of candida which then break up and release high amounts of waste toxins. This effects the mind(brain fog, lethargy, low energy etc) and body(hyper reaction from the poisons).

* If you have low thyroid or hypothyroid as well then this may be another reason for lethargy, overweight, brain fog etc. The thyroid needs iodine. Be sure to take all components and companion nutrients as advised in The Iodine Protocol.

Your own protocol seems to be bits and pieces from other protocols. Before you take a protocol, you should first learn all about candida behaviour. I urge you to do this to see what you are really up against. You can find out all about candida from the candida posts on EC and other internet sites. I also wrote a book describing candida behaviour in detail and how to cure yourself called Candida: Killing So Sweetly. Here is the main anti-candida strategy that I use against candida from my book:

*Anti-Candida and Anti-Pathogen Protocols

*Anti-Biofilm Protocols

*Alkalizing Protocols

*Neutralize candida toxins in the body

*Essential Detox Protocols

*Liver Support Protocols

*Vitamin and Mineral Support (Immune System Support)

*The Health Defence Diet

The current anti-candida protocol that I recommend you follow is shown here.

Regarding your thyroid issues -- If you get checked again I would advise that you get the proper labwork from your doc. Do not have the doc's TSH/T4 test -- this is highly inaccurate. Get the Free T3/Free T4 test which measures the active hormone in your blood(which is what you want to know). More info on proper labwork here.

I would also advise that you take Chanca piedra tea or capsules for your gallstones. Buy wildcrafted or organic quality Chanca piedra for best results.

To remedy your cravings you should drink Gymnema sylvestre tea 3 or 4 times a day. This will also help to reduce excess sugar in your blood. Supplementing Chromium and Vanadium minerals will also help you here.

Finally the proper way to take betaine and protease enzymes for GERD issues is fully described here.

Thank you so much for your advice Bill.

I really do need to focus my approach. I have purchased your Candida book and will make my aim to be more thorough and consistent. When I first became ill I was grasping and rushing to try anything that seemed like it would help. Preparation for the candiada protocol and better tests will be my first steps.

With dedication, I hope to be able to report back my improvements in a few months.

Hello Jkw.

I've just read your email about iodine and Bill's very comprehensive reply. I have read Bill's book on- Ph balance for life - all about alkalising, which you say you're just getting into. For years I suffered from painful thrush under my breasts and believe it's candida over growth. I tried everything from Milk of magnesia as a deodorant ( brilliant) to coconut oil but nothing helped long term. I've been using Bill and Ted's protocol from the book, lemon juice in water with bicarbonate of soda( baking soda) for about 8 weeks or so 30-60 minutes after meals, and even being in Spain last month where it was 110* in the shade so lots of sweating etc, I never once have had thrush again. And I've had small and large outbreaks very regularly for several years. I've also starting eating less acidic and more alkaline food and it really helps. So I guess it could be. Great for your candida. Good luck.

And Bill and Ted's book is very informative.

Dear Jkw,

I saw an article from the Weston A. Price Foundation that may be useful to you. http://www.westonaprice.org/modern-diseases/the-great-iodine-debate/

Good luck with your health issues! Lots of us can relate :)

Two thirds through the article I saw the following excerpt from Sally Fallon's article:

"Reaction to Iodoral

“Three articles appeared recently in The Original Internist concerning clinical research with the use of iodine/iodide in megadoses. Our medical group, consisting of three MDs and one ND/Acupuncturist decided that we should try to find out whether any one of us was iodine-deficient. Our practice is in the Great Lakes region that was described as the ‘Goiter Belt' by David Brownstein. We therefore followed Brownstein's recommendation for the iodine/iodide loading test. Five individuals within our office took the test and, by the criteria outlined, we were all iodine-deficient.

“Three of us, two MDs and our Laboratory Director, then proceeded to take the 50 mg of Iodoral a day with the intention of repeating the iodine/iodide loading test after three months of treatment. After about six weeks of continuous treatment, I experienced dysphagia [difficulty swallowing], resulting in lower chest pain on swallowing both food and fluids. This was particularly marked with hot fluids, a totally new experience for me. I told the Laboratory Director that I was going to discontinue taking the Iodoral since I had concluded that it was the potential cause. To my surprise, she told me that she had experienced exactly the same symptom and had also discontinued the treatment. The other two MDs who took the treatment did not experience this symptom. Some four weeks after discontinuation of the Iodoral, we both continue to experience the same kind of dysphagia, although it is much milder. We can only conclude that we experienced some esophagitis though this has not been proved by further study.

“If this is indeed a toxic effect of the Iodoral, we concluded that it needed to be drawn to the attention of the CAM medical community. If the conclusions are correct, we should expect to hear that other ‘guinea pigs' have experienced something similar. The question remains in our minds as to whether the test outlined by Brownstein is an accurate determination of chronic iodine deficiency. It may well be that iodine has a sensitive dose relationship like that which is so well known with selenium, for example, and with other minerals. The question, put so eloquently recently by Alan Gaby is whether we are embarking on a strategy that can be toxic for some while beneficial for those sick individuals reported by Brownstein and his co-author, Guy Abraham. Indeed, as Gaby questioned later, of the 4,000 patients treated by the Michigan Clinic, how many were carefully monitored in detail for potential side effects? Since gastroesophageal reflux (GER) is mentioned in a drug commercial as a common affliction, it might be that some patients who are being treated with high-dose iodine would never conclude that GER might be related to the iodine consumption. It might not be recognized as a side effect even by a physician, since it is so remote from any expected or predicted symptom.”

-Derrick Lonsdale MD, FAAP, FACN, Westlake, Ohio The Townsend Letter for Doctors and Patients, April 2006

I am having same reactions to the iodine after three weeks at 25mg. How much salt loading did you do? Its been three days since I stopped the iodine but I still have the heart palpitations. I had anxiety, insomnia, and loss of appetite. Three days since I stopped the iodine and my appetite has returned by about 50% and the anxiety is down. But I did not know about the salt loading till yesterday and tried that a few times...does not seem to have helped very much. Any thoughts?

Suzanne: Amazon

If you can't get your doctor to prescribe Lugol's solution, just get a little devious and go the route like going to an aquarium supply (pet shop) and ask for Lugol's solution for your aquarium. Please note that dosages in Bill's article is written for 5%, but it also comes in strengths up to 15% which is essentially the same as SSKI (saturated solution of potassium iodide). It may still be legal to buy it in 1 ounce bottles at the l5% dosages. If you are lucky enough to get it in 15% solution, divide Bill's dosages by 3 to determine how many drops to take daily.

Another route you can take is going on line and looking for potassium crystals and mixing your own SSKI. Instructions are to use either beer bottle brown or green bottles for mixing and storage. Fill bottle to about 60% full with potassium iodide crystals, then fill to 90% full with distilled water. Cap and shake vigorously for a few minutes. You will know your solution is saturated if a few crystals are left undissolved. Please remember that SSKI is a l5% solution of potassium iodide and adjust dosage as mentioned above.

I am able to get it from the pharmacy without a prescription. I have been using Lugol's iodine for years, about 40 years. I notice a difference when I stop taking it for a while. My Doctor an old Dutch Doctor put me on it at 15 for sore breasts, they were cystic. It works wonders for my breasts when they get tender, good for my hair and skin and also help with going to the bathroom. Help with constipation. I have an underactive thyroid and take this, it will affect your blood readings. My present Doctor is not in agreement with me taking it, but I insist.

You can easily buy online. One place I shop for alot of supplements, great pricing and shipping is cheap or free, is SwansonVitamins.com Probably Lucky Vitamin or Iherb.com has it also and its Lugols.

To Gertie who has taken iodine for 40 yrs, I am wondering if you are less hypothyroid than 40 yrs ago.

I thought long term use of iodine ( iodoral) gradually lessening the amount of armour would cause my thyroid to produce more hormone So that eventually I would need only iodine.

Hi Catlin...I don't think that you need to worry too much about detoxing since lugol's iodine helps to remove mercury, aluminium, cadmium, lead and arsenic from the body. It will also remove bromine and fluorine from the body on its own. And the real reason for taking all the companion nutrients is really to help support the transport, storage and conversion of the iodine into thyroid hormones. The main function of the companion nutrients is therefore not to help you detox but to help support the many many metabolic processes involved in the final and successful production of the thyroid hormones. In this respect, the companion minerals and vitamins act like important cogs in a machine. If these cogs are missing then the machine will not work very well. So I would start by taking all the companion nutrients at their proper dosages as soon as you can.

Because you have goiter, this means -- from the research -- that you have excess hydrogen peroxide free radicals being produced in your thyroid which are not being quenched by the glutathione peroxidase enzyme. This produces corrupted proteins in the thyroid which results in an auto-antibody reaction by the immune system and goiter formation. That's why selenium is so key in this problem because selenium is the main central atom for glutathione peroxidase. If you don't have enough selenium everyday in your diet then you will not be able to manufacture enough glutathione peroxidase to help protect your thyroid against these free radicals which manifests in goiter formation. I describe all the companion nutrients and more in this Google doc. To further help you, here is a document on how to supplement lugol's iodine by Stephanie Buist who follows Dr Brownstein's recommendations on lugol's supplemetation.

Lastly, I would urge you to actively reduce dairy and cruciferous vegetables in your diet. Do not take calcium supplements if you are taking the iodine protocol to recover your thyroid. Both dairy and cruciferous veg contain high amounts of calcium. If you eat too much of these products then excess calcium will build up in your blood and this will act to inhibit the transport and absorption of iodine into the thyroid and the body. This is also why you should also take magnesum(as recommended in the companion nutrients) because magnesium helps to regulate calcium in the body. Magnesium, in an enzyme together with tyrosine, is also responsible for actively storing iodide from the blood as iodine in the thyroid...Like one of many cogs in an important machine.

Hi Bill,

Thanks for such a prompt reply, I am a vegan of 4 months so the only calcium in my diet is what I get from vegetables, I don't eat soy products or fortified processed food, I have to say if I don't eat any cruciferous/calcium rich vegetables I will hardly be getting any calcium and plus I will be missing out on other vital nutrients that these food provide on a vegan diet, does this put me in a dilemma? Is it only for the short term whilst I am correcting my goiter? Should I avoid them like the plague or should I not beat myself up if some slip in? Really don't know what to do for the best, I'm happy to be guided.

When I say I am taking the lower end of the companion supplements these are the amounts (lower figure of selenium, magnesium, vit c)

Selenium: 200 - 400 mcg per day

Magnesium: 400 - 1200 mg per day

Vitamin C: 3,000 - 10,000 mg per day

Vitamins B2/B3 (ATP CoFactors): 100 mg riboflavin and 500 mg no flush niacin, inositol hexanicotinate form, 1-2x per day

Unrefined Salt (Celtic): 1/2 tsp. or more per day

I have based this on the fact that my multi nodular goiter is not very big, it gives me no bother, and I don't take meds. however if you think I should up them then this will not be a problem, obviously I just had to get started and did not want to go blazing into the full dose straight off the bat. also I had a look at dr brownsteins supplements and they are not cost effective here in the uk, but I noticed that in his magnesium supplement he has also included 300mg of PABA which I am also taking.

Is 50mg of lugols a good dosage? I read people take more?

Is this a for life thing? :ets say goiter shrinks, thyroid levels normalise, do I always have to take iodine? if so do I always have to take the companion supplements?

Sorry for so many questions, but as you are probably aware thyroid patients rarely got support from mainstream medics, I'm just looking for a nod to say I'm heading in the right direction. Thanks so much

Caitlin

PS. when you say I should worry too much about the detox does this mean I can ditch the revolting salt loading????? please say yes :-)

Hi Caitlin...I would just reduce your intake of both cruciferous vegetables and soy for now -- there's no need to go to extremes. The magnesium you are supplementing should also help to reduce and regulate any excess calcium in your body.

I would also take the upper dosages of Selenium, magnesium and the B vitamins(including higher dose niacin). Take 3000 mgs Vitamin C in 3 split doses of 1000 mgs per day.

Is 50 mgs of lugols a good dosage? I read people take more?

50 mgs is the normal recommended dose for thyroid problems. If you have uterine fibroids then 50 mgs to 100 mgs LI per day is usually the norm. I've also read about people taking upwards of 200 mgs LI per day for cancer problems.

Is this a for life thing?

Since your thyroid problem is undoubtedly caused by a lack of iodine, anti-oxidants and minerals in the diet -- I think that it would be both wise and advisable to continue the protocol after your thyroid problem has resolved. I've been taking the iodine protocol for about 10 years.

when you say I shouldn't worry too much about the detox does this mean I can ditch the revolting salt loading?????

If you've been detoxing with the salt loading protocol for a while then you can certainly stop this protocol and see how it goes. But if you particularly start to develop skin problems and other excess bromine detox symptoms then I would restart the salt loading protocol.

Hi again Bill. thanks so much for all the info, you don't know how much it means to get some guidance on this matter, here in the UK it impossible to get an NHS doctor to take anything you want to try seriously, unless of course it's meds or surgery, and then it leaves you wondering if you are really doing the right thing by self medicating, so I really do appreciate this correspondence. After your initial reply I immediately started taking the higher end of the scale of all the supplements, I have always been an advocate of vitamin C and very often treat infections etc with 1000mg on the hour every hour so this was no surprise to me, however I only ever saw 1 recommended amount of niacin which was 500mg, should I be taking more?

Regarding the cruciferous veg, I think I'm going to have to make a judgement call, as I said before with me being vegan it really is my only source of calcium, however I've stopped using it in juices and will limit myself to just eating it as the amount I could eat would not be anywhere near what I could consume if juiced, also as a vegan they are just handy vegetables to make tasty meal from, ie. Cauliflower makes a lovely Creamy sauce and also a mayonnaise etc, but I will be mind full of moderation.

And funny you should mention uterine fibroids as a few years ago I started to suffer with these, the solution was a mirena coil that distributes a tiny amount of progesterone to the uterus, this worked great, fibroids gone on an ultrasound, however I never liked the idea of it but it was that or surgery, 5 years on and I am due to have this one removed and another out in, but with this information I might not have the new one put in, increase my iodine dose and see how I get on.

Again so much information I have gained from you, it means a lot, and I'll be sure to keep you posted on my progress in the months to come.

with gratitude (a lot)

caitlin

Hi @Caitlin,

Sorry, I'm not Bill, but on your question about Niacin, you may find the book "Niacin: The Real Story", by the late Dr Abram Hoffer M.D. of interest. He was a pioneer in orthomolecular dosages of Niacin (usually along with Vitamin C), for many aspects of health, e.g. psychological problems and restoring blood lipid levels to normal. For Hoffer, doses like 3g (grams) per day, divided over the day, along with good amounts of vitamin C, were normal. Like Linus Pauling, he lived and was active to a great age.

I'm not sure why Bill prefers the non-flush version; I got the impression from the book that provided people could tolerate the flush, Hoffer preferred the (usually cheaper) straight (flushing) niacin (aka nicotinic acid). It has some physiological advantages (see the book). And you get used to the flush and it is barely noticable when you've been taking orthomolecular doses for a while (as I have). (I am not currently on the iodine protocol, I should add, although I am considering it. I am actually taking most of the co-factors, just haven't started iodine yet, as I'm still monitoring my temperature over time without supplemental iodine, so as to have a good baseline to compare with when I do start supplementing. (I do find temperature monitoring a bit fiddly to be honest, and I'm not always sure I'm doing it right - that's why I'm taking my time over this).

Gyda llaw, dw i'n dysgu Cymraeg. Ydach chi'n siarad Cymraeg?

Hwyl, :-)

Mike

Hi Mike, thanks for the extra info. I will definately look into it further, I'm coming to the end of my original purchase of niacin so I'll explore all options. I've been doing the iodine protocol now for around 3 months and I'm sure my goitre has reduced in size, I have an ultra sound in a month so it will be interesting to see the results, although my consultant was less than cooperative when I wanted to explore natural methods of healing so I'm unsure whether I will discuss this with him, so sad our NHS is not more supportive, it only big pharma they seem to support.

Kind Regards, Caitlin

Hi Caitlin,

Do not worry about calcium. Firstly, all foods contain some calcium. Cruciferous vegetables aren't even the best source. Secondly, those on a plant based diet need far less calcium than meat eaters. 600mg a day is absolutely ample (400mg is enough on a low-sodium diet, but you aren't doing that), compared with 1000mg for a meat eater.

Sources of calcium per 100g of food:

(the first 2 listed are not realistic to eat 100g - more like 10g. Also, if possible, for maximum nutrition it is always best to soak and sprout seeds, legumes etc. It makes them easily digestible and increases absorption of zinc and iron by 400%)

Dill seeds - 1516mg

Poppy seeds - 1438mg (soak to remove opiates if you eat a lot! )

Whole sesame seeds - 975mg (but these are high in oxalates so less well absorbed)

Chia seeds - 613mg (also high in omega 3! But soak and sprout them first to get rid of the gel that forms when they contact water)

Flaxseeds (aka linseeds) - 255mg (another source of omega 3! )

Carob flour - 348mg

Soya beans - 277mg

Kidney beans - 195mg

Black turtle beans - 160mg

Moth beans - 150mg

Haricot beans (of baked beans fame) - 147mg

Mung beans - 132mg

Pigeon peas - 130mg

Chickpeas - 105mg

Peanuts - 92mg

(all legumes are good sources of calcium, especially if you buy the dried ones and soak and sprout them to remove the phytic acid)

Vegetables that are not cruciferous (not including spinach, chard, parsley etc because oxalates may make the calcium harder to absorb)

Dandelion greens - 187mg

Romaine (aka Cos) lettuce - 33mg

Lambs' lettuce - 38mg

Butternut squash - 48mg (but a whole squash is about 1kg, so if you had half a roast squash that would be 240mg)

Grains:

Teff (of injera bread fame) - 180mg

wholewheat - 34mg

Brown rice - 23mg

(Most grains have small amounts of calcium like wheat and rice do, but considering that 30mg is 5% of what you need in a day, it soon contributes a significant proportion to your calcium intake.)

Fruit:

Dried figs - 162mg

Oranges - 43mg (or 60mg/medium fruit. So one orange is 10% of your calcium! )

Dates - 64mg

Papaya - 24mg (or 73mg per medium fruit)

There are many other foods that contain significant calcium, but I'm not going to list them all :D Trust that all food contains some calcium, and it will easily add up to what you need in a day, provided you eat a varied whole foods diet with plenty of legumes, seeds, fruit and veg. Don't let anyone scaremonger you into thinking that it's some terrible challenge to live on a plant based diet! From all the BS out there, anyone would think that vegans are at imminent risk of dropping dead from malnourishment every second of every day if they don't this, that or the other.

If you want to supplement calcium, there are supplements made from seaweeds that naturally are extremely rich in calcium. Most seaweeds are a good source of calcium, but I can't be bothered to find the facts write now, so you'll have to look those up yourself if you're interested :D

Just so you know I have been a vegan for 10 years, a vegetarian all my life, and have never had a filling, tooth removed, or any broken bones, so my calcium is fine.

By the way, my vegan brother, for OCD + ideological reasons, once spent several months only eating banana and butternut squash. He developed a goiter, which went down immediately upon eating brazil nuts, and was quickly cured by continuing to eat them along with kelp. The moral of the story is, make sure you get enough selenium.

I did the iodine protocol in 2014, and it gave me huge benefits for the first 6 weeks, which so far are permanent, but it plateaued quickly and gave me no additional benefits after that (but also didn't cause any harm). I had definitely been deficient in iodine and it cured my lifelong slow-transit constipation (TMI, sorry! ) and Raynaud's. I occasionally top up with a bit of iodine and selenium now and then to keep myself going (since I don't like seaweed or brazil nuts). I am now absolutely fine with eating cruciferous vegetables and soya beans, as is my brother. A healthy person should be able to eat these foods with no trouble, you don't have to avoid them once your goitre is healed.

Good luck, Vicky :)

Hi,

TSH always goes up with iodine supplementation.
NSA needs TSH, as the body makes TSH, which in turn makes NSA that feeds the body.

Without TSH, we have low NSA.

The TSH drops when the body has sufficient NSA and that's usually 6 months, so I am reliably told.

Having just gone through the same.

Leslie, take less. Bill's recommendations are guidelines. But every body is different.

Yes, I think you are right. I will try taking about a 1/4th of what I am taking now. I am doing several of the Candida kill methods so things should still progress along. Thanks!

I was wondering the same.

Are you referring to the nebulizer protocol? I have used this and feel it was critical with my pneumonia.