How much iodine is needed for breast health?

Most women assume they get enough iodine in a day. However, the RDA of 150 mcg is grossly insufficient according to Dr. Flechas, an expert in the field. In Japan, where the average person consumes 13,800 mcg of iodine per day, they have a longer life expectancy and a lower rate of breast cancer.

Dr. Flechas explained on my Blog Talk Radio Breast Health Exposed radio show that the majority of doctors believe that 150 mcg is sufficient. And it is! If we don’t want to have goiters or hypothyroidism, 150 mcg is enough iodine for the body to avoid these two dreadful conditions. But it is NOT sufficient iodine to achieve optimal health. There is a lot more iodine needed by the body for the thyroid, the breasts, the ovaries, the heart, and every other organ of your body. A large part of our iodine is stored in our skin and Dr. Flechas stated that dry skin or the inability to perspire can be a sign of low iodine.

Although, we are almost all iodine deficient, many people still want to know how they can get proper testing to check the iodine levels in their body. The lab in North Carolina that I used is FFP Laboratory. Their phone number is 1-877-900-5566. For about $120 you can have both a spot and a loading test of your iodine levels. The spot test determines through first morning urine the amount of iodine in your body. After collecting that first morning urine specimen, you take 50 mg of iodine. Then you collect every urine sample for the next 24 hours. This is called the loading test and will determine how much of the iodine you keep in your body.

Based on the lab’s analysis, they will determine if you are deficient or not in iodine. After completing the test, I was found to be deficient so am now taking iodine supplements on a daily basis. I am currently on a 50 mg dosage per day which is what was recommended after my consultation with Dr. Flechas.

As it is virtually impossible to get an adequate amount of iodine in our body through food products alone, supplementation is necessary. However, after hearing the tremendous benefits to every organ of my body, including my breasts, I knew that for approximately $1 per day, it was ridiculous to be without enough iodine. This is a tip for healthy breasts, you want to pay attention to!