Just Ask Terry

Terry is happy to provide his opinion on diet and nutrition, supplements and lifestyle choices. This information is for educational purposes only. It is not meant to replace the advice of your physician and is not to be considered medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Should you have any concerns please contact your physician directly.

Q. Dear Terry, “After reading several reports on low thyroid, I believe I have the majority of the symptoms that would indicate hypothyroidism. It also indicated that I should first try iodine as iodine is the critical mineral for proper thyroid function. Seeing that I am 6 months pregnant do you think it’s okay to try iodine for my thyroid function?” Jean H., Owensboro, KY A. Dear Jean, I do agree with you that iodine is the critical nutrient for thyroid function and without iodine there is no thyroid function. If you are concerned about your thyroid function, you may want to ask your physician to check this out, as healthy thyroid function is very important for pregnant women and their babies. From all the scientific reports I’ve seen, iodine is a very safe mineral, up to 100,000 times safer than the recommended daily allowance of iodine. However, we never know the outcome of a new change of dietary nutrients. You are carrying one of God’s greatest gifts and I hesitate to recommend you make any changes without your physician’s advice or at least his or her awareness of what choice you make in your dietary changes. I would proceed cautiously and with professional advice. You might seek a professional opinion of an integrative physician or a naturopathic doctor who works more closely with nutritional supplements.