Research

Iodine: The Natural Solution Supplemental Protocol for Total Body Health

Orthoiodosupplementation is the daily amount of the essential element iodine needed for whole body sufficiency. Whole body sufficiency for iodine is assessed by an iodine/iodide loading test. The test consists of ingesting 1 tablet of a solid dosage form of Lugols solution, containing a total of 50 mg iodine/iodide. Then urinary iodide levels are measured in the following 24 hour collection. The iodine/iodide loading test is based on the concept that the normally functioning human body has a mechanism to retain ingested iodine until whole body sufficiency for iodine is achieved. During orthoiodosupplementation, a negative feedback mechanism is triggered that progressively adjusts the excretion of iodine to balance the intake. As the body iodine content increases, the percent of the iodine load retained decreases with a simultaneous increase in the amount of iodide excreted in the 24 hour urine collection. When whole body sufficiency for iodine is achieved, the absorbed iodine/iodide is quantitatively excreted as iodide in the urine. In the U.S. population, the percent of iodine load excreted in the 24 hour urine collection prior to orthoiodosupplementation averages 40% in more than 7,000 loading test performed by Dr. Jorge Flechas.

After 3 months of supplementation with 50 mg LugoTab per day, most non-obese subjects not exposed to excess goitrogens achieve whole body iodine sufficiency, arbitrarily defined as 90% or more of the iodine load excreted in the 24 hour urine collections. Adult subjects retained approximately 1.5 grams of iodine when they reach sufficiency. A repeat loading test following 3 months on orthoiodosupplementation is recommended.

The goal of orthoiodosupplementation is not the treatment of disease, but the supply of optimal amounts of an essential nutrient for whole body sufficiency and for optimal mental and physical performances. Whole body sufficiency for iodine correlates well with overall wellbeing, and some subjects could tell when they achieved sufficiency even before knowing the results of the test. Iodine sufficiency was associated with a sense of overall wellbeing, lifting of a brain fog, feeling warmer in cold environments, increased energy, needing less sleep, achieving more in less time, experiencing regular bowel movements and improved skin complexion. Whole body iodine deficiency, based on the concept of orthoiodo- supplementation, may play an important role in several clinical conditions. Hundreds of physicians and other health care providers are now using the loading test and implementing orthiodosupplementation in their practice, using a tablet form of Lugols solution (LugoTabs). A very good correlation between the results of the loading test and clinical response of their patients to iodine supplementation was reported.

Procedure for the loading test

The test kit contains:

• 50mg LugoTab iodine load tablet
  
• 3 Liter orange urine collection jug
  
• 2 vials for samples
  
• 16 ounce collection cup
  
• shipping material (including a prepaid return mailing label and a zip lock bag with absorption materials to be wrapped around each specimen vial before shipment).

We recommend this general outline for the 24 hour testing procedure:

1. Discard the first morning void
2. Take 1 tablet of LugoTab 50mg
3. Start collection of urine, following instructions contained in the kit;
4. The first void on the following morning should be included in the urine collection
5. If total urine volume is above 3 Liters, follow instructions supplied with the kit.

A suggested plan for the implementation of Orthoiodosupplementation¹

It is recommended that supplementation with the essential element iodine be part of a complete multinutritional program for best results. It is ideal to start this program 2 week before iodine supplementation.

Below are the recommended multivitamin/multimineral formulations:
(You can purchase each supplement individually using the “Hakala Research Product” column or you can purchase our Orthoiodo supplementation protocol and save 10%.)

Supplement Suggestions

According to Dr. Guy Abraham in his Nov. 2004 publication: The Safe and Effective Implementation of Orthoiodo- supplementation In Medical Practice the best results are obtained with a complete nutritional program which includes Iodine. The program suggests the following supplementation plan:

Bromide testing

In addition to the Iodine testing, we also offer Bromide testing to determine if this toxic goitrogen is present in the body. Excessive Bromide levels can lead to decreased thyroid function as well as general body fatigue. Click here for our ongoing list of bromide sources.

Iodine Reference Articles:

• Abraham, G.E., Flechas, J.D., Hakala, J.C., Orthoiodsupplementation: Iodine Sufficiency of the Whole Human Body. The Original internist, 2002.

• Abraham, G.E., Flechas, J.D., Hakala, J.C., Optimum Levels of Iodine for Greatest Mental and Physical Health. The Original Internist, 2002.

• Abraham, G.E., The Safe and Effective Implementation of Orthoiodosupplementation in Medical Practice. The Original Internist, 2004.

• Abraham, G.E., The concept of Orthoiodosupplementation and its clinical implications. The Original Internist, 2004.

• Abraham, G.E., SerumInorganic Iodide Levels Following Ingestion of a Tablet Form of Lugol'sSolution: Evidence for an Enterohepatic Circulation of Iodine. The Original Internist, 2004.

• Abraham, G.E., Flechas, J.D., Hakala, J.C.,MeasurementOf Urinary Iodide Levels By Ion-Selective Electrode: ImprovedSensitivity And Specificity By Chromatography On An Ion-Exchange Resin.. The Original Internist, 2004.

• Flechas, J.D., Orthoiodosupplementation in a primary care practice. The Original Internist, 12(2):89-96, 2005.

• Brownstein, D., Clinical Experience with Inorganic, Non-Radioactive Iodine/Iodide. The Original Internist, 12(3):105-108, 2005.

• Abraham, G.E., Brownstein, D., Evidence that the Administration of Vitamin C Improves a Defective Cellular Transport Mechanism for Iodine: A Case Report. The Original Internist, 2005.

• Abraham, G.E., The Wolff-Chaikoff Effect: Crying Wolf? The Original Internist, 2005.

• Abraham, G.E., Brownstein, D., Validation of the Orthoiodosupplementation Program: A Rebuttal of Dr. Gaby's Editorial on Iodine. The Original Internist, 2005.

• Abraham, G.E. Brownstein, D., Flechas, J.D., The Saliva/Serum Iodide Ratio as an Index of Sodium Iodide Symporter Efficiency. The Original Internist, 2005.

• Abraham, G.E., The Historical Background of the Iodine Project. The Original Internist, 2005.

• Abraham, G.E., The History of Iodine in Medicine Part I: From Discovery to Essentiality. The Original Internist, 2006.

• Abraham, G.E., The History of Iodine in Medicine Part II: The Search for and Discovery of Thyroid Hormones. The Original Internist, 2006.

• Abraham, G.E., The History of Iodine in Medicine Part III: Thyroid Fixation and Iodophobia. The Original Internist, 2006.

• Abraham, G.E, MD, Roxanne C. Handal, BS & John C. Hakala, RPh A Simplified Procedure for the Measurement of Urine Iodide Levels by the Ion-Selective Eleectrode Assay in a Clinical Setting The Original Internist, Sept 2006.

• Abraham, G.E.The Combined Measurement of the Four Stable Halides by theIon-Selective Electrode Procedure Following Their ChromatographicSeparation on a Strong Anion Exchanger Resin: Clinical Applications. The Original Internist, Sept 2006.

• Abraham, G.E., Flechas, J.D., Evidence of Defective Cellular Oxidation and Organification of Iodide in a Female with Fibromyalgia and Chronic Fatigue.. The Original Internist, 2007.

• Abraham, G.E., Brownstein, D.,A Simple Procedure Combining the Evaluation of Whole Body Sufficiencyfor Iodine with the Efficiency of the Body to Utilize Peripheral Iodide:The Triple Test. The Original Internist, 2007.

• Abraham, G.E., Flechas, J.D., The Effect of Daily Ingestion of 100 mg Iodine Combined with High Doses of Vitamins B2 and B3 (ATP Cofactors) in Five Subjects with Fibromyalgia. The Original Internist, 2008.

• Abraham, G.E. Facts about Iodine and Autoimmune Thyroiditis The Original Internist, 2008.

• Abraham, G.E. The Bioavailability of Iodine applied to the Skin The Original Internist, 2008.

Boron Reference Articles

• Boron and Arthritis, Rex E Newnham, PhD, DO, ND. The Arthritis Trust of America Special Report 1994.

• Dietary boron intake and prostate cancer risk Oncology Reports. 11:4, 2004

• Effects of dietary boron on mineral, estrogen and testosterone metabolism in postmenopausal Women. Presented by Forrest Nielsen to the 1987 Joint Meeting of the Minnesota and North Dakota Academies of Science, Moorhead, MN, April 24, 1987.