possible link to iodine deficiency & breast cancer

Just thought I'd do a post about a possible link with low iodine levels to breast cancer. I'm from a family that has a number of people either suffering or have suffered from this horrible disease.

My mother (who's free of cancer at the moment, just got over her second bout of it) has just been given an article about this supposed link. She does not know if she is iodine deficient but suspects she is as she hasn't taken iodine since she was a kid, has not eaten iodised salt in many years and ate very little dairy products over the years.

Research has apparently shown that in the US hardly any women used to be low in iodine but these days most women are. Very few women had breast cancer in the days of them not being low in iodine, whereas nowadays the cancer rate is ever increasing in that country, as is the amount of women who are iodine deficient. Hence the possible link.

Basically what the article said was that in general the diet of the average American has changed significantly over the last 50 years or so years to the point that many people iodine deficient. For example back in 1940 the average American diet contained around 800micrograms of iodine. By 1995 this had dropped to just 135 micrograms. People used to eat iodised salt, now they tend to have sea salt. Also contributing to this is that many people have been told by their doctors to avoid adding salt to their food. Iodine is also found in dairy products and eggs but most women don't eat enough of these either, fearing that there's too much fat in them.

Breast cancer rates have always been low in Japan where their diet is rich in kelp which is a good source of iodine, so this also supports this theory.

Women are naturally more prone to iodine deficiency than men.

Iodine deficiency can also cause lack of energy and sleep problems. It often goes undiagnosed as doctors often don't think to test for it. It can also affect your thyroid function which is what regulates your hormones and controls your menstrual cycle (food for thought for those ladies here who don't have regular cycles). The thyroid also helps you stabilize your weight, provides energy and stabilizes cholesterol.

The Australian diet is very similar to the American diet and we have similar high cancer rates.

The article suggested that by eating iodine rich foods and taking an iodine supplement it could be possible to avoid getting breast cancer.

Anyway, just thought I'd share.