Iodine And Dh

[JandMs Mommy]

I suspect my daughter to have DH and we have been gluten-free for about 6 weeks. Her skin is looking loads better, but still has flair ups every so often. I am just reading implications of iodine. Can anyone help with that? What do I need to know about this as it pertains to the healing of her DH??? Thanks!

[itchy]

There are contrasting views on this. I'll give you the version I support and you will doubtless hear a different option from others.

Iodine doesn't cause DH, but apparently is necessary in some way in the formation of the lesions. In some instances avoiding or minimising iodine in the diet will help clear up the lesions more quickly (much more quickly perhaps).

BUT, iodine is also vital to our good health, and lack of it contributes to several deficiency diseases. In my opinion it is just too risky to eliminate iodine from the diet to combat DH. I've opted to ignore iodine as a factor, and concentrate on gluten elimination. My DH is disappearing. Slowly.

[cahill]

There are contrasting views on this. I'll give you the version I support and you will doubtless hear a different option from others.

Iodine doesn't cause DH, but apparently is necessary in some way in the formation of the lesions. In some instances avoiding or minimising iodine in the diet will help clear up the lesions more quickly (much more quickly perhaps).

BUT, iodine is also vital to our good health, and lack of it contributes to several deficiency diseases. In my opinion it is just too risky to eliminate iodine from the diet to combat DH. I've opted to ignore iodine as a factor, and concentrate on gluten elimination. My DH is disappearing. Slowly.

Since being gluten free my DH has gotten somewhat better but if my iodine intake is above a certain amount it exacerbates my DH .

the twist is I also have thyroid issues (hypothyroid and hashimotos ) and need iodine for my thyroid health and function.

I have thur trial and (painful)error found what amount of iodine I can consume so it is helpful to my thyroid and does not aggravate my DH.

yeah it is like walking a VERY fine line

[eatmeat4good]

Shellfish is high in iodine and caused my DH to go crazy. I used uniodized salt for about 3 months to heal my DH. Iodine is necessary for health, but the amount we need is very small. If I get glutened accidentally my sores will flare for several weeks, so during that time of healing I don't use iodized salt. I asked the endocrinologist if it was ok to limit it say for 3 months. He didn't think that would be harmful. So that is what I did. It is a very fine line as stated above. During my intial healing, I noticed dairy that contained carageenan would cause my sores to flare. The carageenan is a seaweed and it irritated my DH possibly due to the iodine content.

[JandMs Mommy]

Thanks! Very helpful! I am so anxious to get the results of her test!! But I suppose it doesn't really matter since we are def gluten-free since her skin looks so much better. But I also read that Gluten and Dairy can cause atopic dermatitis as well so that may be why she is healing too.

[dilettantesteph]

I agree with itchy. I eat a diet free from processed foods. I think that I was very low in iodine. When I started supplementing I felt an amazing increase in well being. It was like I had taken a euphoric drug. That just lasted a couple of days. Now I that good feeling has become normal again. Iodine is necessary for good health.

[tarnalberry]

Iodine doesn't cause DH but is require for the irritating deposits in the skin. You don't have to permanently avoid iodine, though. You can just reduce extra sources of iodine for a few months while the DH heals (on a gluten free diet) and then remain gluten free but reintroduce iodine.