Iodine Supplement Benefits – Know Why Taking Iodine Supplements is Good For You

The human body is generally designed to be homeostatic. Most of the essential nutrients it needs can be produced by the body, given that it has sufficient sources of energy. However, the substances that the body needs are not created out of thin air; it requires the intake of several vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients in order to synthesize the important substances required by the body. These substances needed for the body’s synthetic process are not naturally produced by the human body. They have to be taken from outside sources and one of them is iodine, the most essential element in the functioning of the thyroid gland. Thus, if you eat only foods that do not contain any iodine at all, then your body’s thyroid gland will not work at its best since you have no source for it other than the food you eat, or the supplements you take.

Iodine Supplement Benefits for the Thyroid Gland

Iodine is a necessary substance for the production of thyroid hormones, all which are required for the regulation of the body’s growth and metabolism. The thyroid is the storage of almost 80% of all of the body’s iodine supplies, the rest are circulated around the body. If you have examined your diet and have noticed that they are very low on iodine, chances are you are experiencing fatigue, dryness of the skin, and weight gain. This is because without enough iodine in the body, the thyroid cannot efficiently carry out its function in the body’s metabolic and growth processes. One of the benefits of iodine supplements is that it ensures you that your body has enough iodine supplies, which in turn, also ensures that your metabolism will function properly.

Iodine Supplement Benefits for Women

Perhaps somewhere, you have already learned that in case of exposure to radiation, taking iodine supplements is a good way to offset its possible effects. This is because, as some studies say, iodine is a very good anti-oxidant that prevents free radicals from causing the mutation of cells. Furthermore, the health benefits of iodine supplements extend even better for women because studies have shown that iodine is very important for the maintenance of a healthy mammary gland. Iodine is also found to prevent both non-cancerous and cancerous tumors and cell clusters in the breasts.

Iodine Supplements Benefits for Babies

Taking iodine supplements is very highly recommended during periods of pregnancy. This is because a developing fetus relies only on the mother’s production of thyroid hormones, which are very essential to the development of the baby’s brain as much as it is important for the later developments of the brain during early childhood. If the mother fails to have enough storage of iodine needed for her and her child, she might suffer hypothyroidism along with her child suffering irreversible brain damages. This can result to a child having speech problems, hearing difficulties, along with the child having low intelligence. Thus, in order to avoid such consequences, a pregnant woman should take a good dose of iodine supplements.