Iodine correlation?

[selectivefocus]

Just looking for insight or info or experiences. I have read on here quite a few times that iodine can worsen DH and keep a flare going longer. Does anyone know why this is? I cannot tolerate yogurt because of histamine intolerance, but my daughters like it. They both have DH as do I. My 5 year old has had a heck of time though, and it definitely flares or gets worse when she eats yogurt (which is high in iodine) so I took her off it. Does anyone know what the mechanism is with iodine and DH?

[apprehensiveengineer]

I've tried to do some reading on this in scientific literature, AFAIK no one knows why iodine makes the rash worse. Celiac disease receives relatively little attention in the medical science community (relative to its frequency/severity), and DH even less. Most medical textbooks have about 3 sentences on the condition, and few scholarly papers focus on it outside of dapsone studies. It does seem to be understood that iodine makes the rash worse, but does not cause it (ie. if perfectly gluten-free for sufficiently long to have healed, iodine won't cause problems).

Biologically, one of the roles of iodine (an essential nutrient) is to be used to make certain thyroid hormones. These thyroid hormones affect your metabolism and have a complicated/far-reaching influence on your various body systems. There is also some indication that higher iodine intake reduces the risk of certain cancers through higher rates of apoptosis (your immune system flagging and destroying cells deemed problematic). So, one of the effects of higher iodine intake could be upregulated/more aggressive immune function.

It might be plausible to speculate that this is what is causing problems for people with DH. The problem is just that our immune systems are not just getting excited about destroying cancerous cells, but rather the deposits in our skin left over from previous gluten consumption. If this is what's happening, eating lots of iodine would cause increased/worsened DH if there are still deposits in the skin, but not do much if you've been strictly gluten-free for long enough to get rid of them. 

Based on other people on this board, there seems to be a lot of variability in how much iodine can be tolerated before a flare occurs. I can handle eggs and dairy, but stay away from iodized salt and seafood as much as possible. I am also very careful with my diet - don't eat many processed gluten-free alternative foods as the trace amounts of gluten in some of those is too much for me. 

 

[Wheatwacked]

On ‎1‎/‎14‎/‎2018 at 12:56 AM, apprehensiveengineer said:

apoptosis (your immune system flagging and destroying cells deemed problematic)

Apoptosis is the body killing off old or defective cells. Iodine is its main tool. Insufficient iodine causes slow healing.  Working Theory; As a celiac you have malabsorbtion syndrome also, so you are even more likely than the typical American to be iodine deficient. Among other things it will cause slow healing, low T3 and low T4 and high TSH and poor energy. When you increase iodine to functional levels it may be killing off your bad cells faster than you can dispose of the byproducts. It is like hiring a lot of new garbage men without enlarging the landfill. You get backed up.  Increase slowly. I found that one sheet of roasted sushi seaweed a day has the right amount. right in the midrange of the recommended daily intake. Within days I noticed a change in muscle tone and a very bad sebaceous cyst that would not heal, began to. Notice the smooth wrinkle free skin of a Japanese not eating an American style diet. They have a diet many times higher in iodine than ours.

Also, consider low vitamin D important to immune system and zinc for cell wall integrity (that's why Cold-Eze works).

Many doctors tend to treat this as a failure of the thyroid and prescribe Thyroxine as a hormone replacement, when the trouble is really not enough iodine. You can't make it if you don't have the raw ingredients so the thyroid overexerts ineffectually.  Dr Brownstein seems to be the expert.  Open Original Shared Link

Quote

Signs and symptoms of thyroid malfunction are
many, and include the following:
• Fatigue
• Weight gain
• Headaches
• Cold hands and feet
• Dry skin
• Constipation
• Hair loss
• Poor eyebrow growth
• Mood problems
• Brain fog or poor brain function
• Joint pain
• Muscle aches
• Loss of libido
• Elevated cholesterol
• Swelling under the eyes
Those over age 50 are at highest risk for thyroid

 

[apprehensiveengineer]

A quick perusal of Dr. Brownstein's website outs him quite quickly as a purveyor of pseudoscience. Though he may be an MD, he appears to have abandoned evidence in favour of selling stuff people don't need by making them afraid, using his authority as a doctor. Like all such individuals, what he says has some basis of truth (eg. hypothyroid disorders are quite common, the average North American has a terrible diet), but he twists it to create fear and take advantage of those who are less scientifically literate.

Conspiracy theories abound to be found at:

Open Original Shared Link

Here is a criticism of his work:

Open Original Shared Link