My Doctor told me that because of my thyroid, I have to avoid Seafood because of the Iodine.
Well, Paul & I use sea salt at home.
My question is, what about stuff like crackers or cereal where salt is an ingrediant? What kind of salt do they use in stuff like that anyway? Iodized? Non-Iodized?
He just mentioned seafood. But if Iodine is 'bad' for me, do I need to stop eating any food that has salt as an ingrediant?
Thanks- Heather
Posts: 2422 | Location: I live where I live and that's where I live. | Registered: 06-03-02
It's almost impossible to avoide iodine in your diet because it's a "hidden" ingredient in so many items. Besides being found in iodized salt, it's present in many medicines and is a component in multi-vitamins. The richest source of iodine can be found in kelp, seaweed, iodized salt, dairy products, fish, processed meats, pudding mixes, candies, frozen dinners, fast food and foods containing artificial colorings.
These foods should be avoided if you have Grave's Disease: Dairy—including ice cream, cheese, pudding, milk and milk products, sour cream. Protein—luncheon meats, bacon, sausage, frankfurters. Fish—all fish, including shellfish, sardines, and canned tuna. Grains—all processed foods including egg noodles, packaged cookies and pastries. Fruits—canned or dried fruit, Tang, Hi-C, canned fruit juices. Vegetables-canned or frozen vegetables with sauces, pickles, sauerkraut, canned tomato and pasta sauces. Snack foods-pretzels, salted chips, corn chips, crackers. Miscellaneous-Carnation instant breakfast and slender bars, meat tenderizers, Figurine diet bars, Bouillon cubes, canned soups, salted peanut butter, butter, margarine, commercial salad dressings, cocoa mix, garlic salt, onion salt, ketchup, mustard, olives, candy. Graves’ disease patients who have been rendered hypothyroid are able to ingest iodine in amounts greater than 150 mcg, but when they ingest amounts greater than 1,000 mcg (the amount of iodine in the average American fast food diet), their symptoms of hypothyroidism may be exacerbated. This has also been observed by excess selenium, in amounts greater than 800 mcg daily.
There's so much stuff you can't eat, it's probably easier to remember what you can eat!
Fresh fruits and vegetables, salads with homemade dressing, meat cooked with pepper and other spices -- basically, unprocessed food.
Avoid processed (canned, packaged, pre-cooked), or food that comes with accompaniments e.g. take-out or restaurant food.
Chinese style cooking is a good option. MSG has no iodine that I know of. Some people have a problem with it, though. Don't use pre-processed rice dishes. Make most things from 'scratch'.
That's by far the healthiest food, anyhow.
Neither my husband nor I have high blood pressure, but I have always avoided a lot of salt. When we married I cooked without added salt. The salt shaker was handy, in case my husband wanted it. He soon got used to it, and soon after that he got to prefer it!
We've used less and less until I suddenly realized we had had the same salt box in the pantry until the cardboard cover was yellow with age!
You can buy uniodized salt, but you may have to get it at a drugstore or health-food store.
Posts: 6335 | Location: British Columbia, Canada | Registered: 06-11-02
There's a trace of iodine naturally present in sea salt.
" Sea salt is a broad term that generally refers to unrefined salt derived directly from a living ocean or sea. It is harvested through channeling ocean water into large clay trays and allowing the sun and wind to evaporate it naturally. Manufacturers of sea salt typically do not refine sea salt as much as other kinds of salt, so it still contains traces of other minerals, including iron, magnesium, calcium, potassium, manganese, zinc and iodine. "
