Avoiding iodine for dermatitis herpetiformis

[Bev in Milw]

While looking for info on low iodine foods (my grand cat is on Rx  + low-iodine  diet  for equivalent of Graves’ disease), I serendipitously found site on low-iodine diet at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.
   Info is  regarding the need to avoid iodine before getting of one of newest imaging procedures which utilizes radioactive iodine & x-rays.  Procedure is SAFE alternative to MRI for those with implanted devices made from ferromagnetic metals or unsourced materials... Pre-MRI, no one realized that info would be critical for use with new technology!  (SIL has had a clip in brain since age 12 when tumor on optic nerve was removed. 50 years later, ‘undocumented’ clip prevented  her drs from using MRI surveillance after breast cancer dx & treatment.)  

I’m sharing because MSKCC’s list of iodine sources is longest I’ve seen.  While I don’t have dermatitis herpetiformis, I thought list  could be helpful to dermatitis herpetiformis suffeters who are supper sensitive & at a loss to track down what’s causing  outbreaks.  Hope info can help someone!
   Body can eliminate the IgA deposits in skin that cause itching when triggered by iodine but it usual requires years of avoiding both gluten & iodine… Bev

Link:  www.mskcc.org                    Search—  Patient and community education , Low-iodine Diet

>>Foods, Drinks, and Other Items Containing Iodine

Before you eat or drink something, read the ingredient list on the Nutrition Facts label to check if the food or drink contains added iodine.

The following things contain added or natural iodine. Don’t eat or use:

Iodized salt (such as Morton® Iodized Salt or any commercial salt that has “iodized” on the product label)

Seasoning mixes made with iodized salt (such as adobo)

Onion salt, celery salt, garlic salt, or seasoned salt made with iodized salt

Seaweed (such as kelp, nori, kombu, and wakame)

Any food that has these listed in its ingredients:

Iodates

Iodides

Algin

Alginates

Carrageenan

Agar-Agar

Commercial (store-bought) breads and bakery products made with iodate bread conditioners. Read the ingredient list on the Nutrition Facts label to check if the product contains “calcium iodate” or “potassium iodate.”

Milk (except for 1 ounce per day) and dairy products (such as cheese, yogurt, and cream)

Egg yolks (the yellow part at the center of an egg)

Most seafood (except freshwater fish)

Vitamins and dietary supplements that have iodine. If you aren’t sure if a vitamin or supplement contains iodine, don’t take it.

Food, pills, or capsules with food dyes that contain Red Dye #3

Restaurant and processed foods (such as fast food, frozen meals and TV dinners, and sugar-sweetened drinks)

Soy products, such as edamame, tofu, and soy burgers (BOCA® burgers)

Antiseptics (liquid used to kill germs and bacteria), such as iodine (Betadine®) that you put on minor cuts, scrapes, and burns

Medications that have Red Dye #3 listed in its ingredients

Liquid nutritional supplements and commercial (store-bought) protein shakes, such as:

Ensure®

Boost®

Glucerna®

Nutrament®

Orgain®

If you’re getting tube feeding formula, ask your clinical dietitian nutritionist or healthcare provider what to do.

 

 

[Scott Adams]

Thanks for sharing, as iodine may trigger DH symptoms in some people. This article may also be helpful as it offers some basic DH info as well as various ways to relieve the itch: