http://curezone.com/forums/fm.asp?i=1008438#i


i absolutely do not think so. each time i have upped my intake(been doing 600mg for about two weeks now), i have reached a new level of detox.

here is the problem. a study of the halogens reveals some very fundamental chemical characteristics. take a look at the periodic table:





the halogens(salt makers - column 17) are of different atomic weights. they are, from lightest to heaviest - fluorine(19), chlorine(35), bromine(80), and iodine(127).

in a 1:1 ratio, a lighter halogen will displace a heavier one. here is a great tutorial which allows you to do a virtual laboratory exercize.


http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/chemistry/periodictableandgroups/gr...


granted, our bodies are not test tubes and the body has active processes which help it collect the right halogen, iodine, and reject the bad ones. but lets not get too complicated with this. you can see that in the presence of an abundance of the lighter halogens and a dirth of iodine, the lighter halodens will take the place of iodine. even with a small amount of iodine, say what the gov RDA calls for, the battle is lost in the presence of so much bromide and fluoride in our environment and diets. this has created demonstrable halogen imbalance in most people.

the body has a need for the halogen Iodine in many organs, glands, enzymatic processes - in fact, iodine is needed in every cell of the body. recent studies have put the body burden of a sufficiently iodinated person at about 1500mgs, or 1.5 GRAMS. it would be a miracle if someone has accidently reached full sufficiency in the modern societies. the japanese probably come the closest with a daily intake in their diets of from 13-43mgs per day, depending on what study you go by. this is 100's of times the USRDA.

given no choice, the body will use whatever halogens it has available. it is the fluoride and bromide taken up and used by the thyroid gland that is causing so many metabolism problems. and that is just one gland. the rest of the body is in the same dire straights. "lack of iodine is a promoter of cancer in the human body." dr. jorge flechas, md

to reverse this situation reqires two things. first is the avoidance of the bad halides fluoride and bromide. the "-ide" is the salt of the free element, "-ine". the terms get used interchangeably on this forum, the difference being of little clinical consequence(with exceptions, of course). clinical means basically the same thing as "in vivo"(in living) and as opposed to "in vitro" which is in a laboratory test tube and refers to the actual actions observed in a living subject. fluoride and bromide in high serum levels in the body produce pronounced effects on the brain as they are able to cross the blood brain barrier easily. they can also chemically displace heavier halides and be displaced by lighter halides(except that nasty fluorine, of course). bromide in the kidneys can be easiliy displaced by chloride, which is the reason for the salt pushes. chloride is also not nearly the problem that fluoride and bromide are because the body has other mechanisms for dealing with it. free chlorine is not so easily handled and can bind quickly with fat in the blood when inhaled and create plaque in the arteries in an astonishingly short amount of time, almost immediately, in fact.

the second thing that it takes to reverse or correct halide imbalance is a greater than 1:1 ratio of the heavier iodine. remember the chemistry of displacement in a 1:1 solution? this displacement of a heavier halogen with a lighter one can be mitigated by increasing the ratio in favor of the heavier halide. if a much higher concentration of iodine is in the body compared to that of fluoride and bromide, this chemical gradient can be stopped or even reversed. in conjunction with the body's biological preference for iodine, higher doses of iodine facilitates the displacement of lighter halides in the tissues of the body.

as i alluded to earlier, it appears that some tissues are easier to correct than others. bromide is easier to displace than fluoride. the thyroid is easier to correct than brominated stored fat. fluoride has a love affair with calcium, so it will be in the bone and teeth where higher concentrations over time are definitely needed. brominated fat seems to need the liquifying influence of iodine and the call for burning more calories than is taken in to break it apart and release the bromide stored there.

there are other reasons for getting up to the 50-100mg range of supplementation, but when it comes to plane jane full body sufficiency, it is necessary at first. in fact, "low dosing", as it is called, can actually do more harm than good. if you have organification or symporter problems you will never know it and your halogen picture will remain the same or become worse over time while youre thinking you are taking care of it.

Halogen Imbalance Syndrome (HIS)

HIS is a real phenomenon, which deals not only with whether we are short in Iodine (which most are), but rather with a more holistic view that the body is more healthy when there is a proper balance of iodine, bromine, chlorine and fluoride in the body.

People believe they're well informed and somethimes even hung up on calcium, magnesium, potassium supplements, etc. as relieving them from leg cramps, insomnia, etc. ; yet they completely ignore the four halogens in their lives, which reside on the other side of the periodic table. The main reason for this is that most people are programmed how to think by the Big Media moguls, who control what is printed and broadcast.

Ca, Mg & cet. are all electropositive elements, whereas the halogens Fluorine (F), Bromine(Br), Chlorine (Cl), Iodine ( I ) are all electronegative, with fluorine being the most electronegative, and most reactive) of all elements in the periodic table. Every day people drink tons of fluoride, bromide, and chloride in this country and globally. Yet, there is an iodine shortage. And chlorine, bromine, and fluorine can all take up residence in body tissues where iodine is normally supposed to be, because they are in the same element family in the periodic table, and have identical outer electron structures.

To ignore the electronegative elements and focus only on the electropositive may be a huge mistake.

Consuming elevated quantities of iodine in the short term may flush out excesses of fluorides, bromide, and chloride that are present in many body tissues. It can in many cases be desirable to eliminate the overpopulation of undesirable halogens, and put back the iodine where it needs to be. Once this is done, one only needs avoid excessive amounts of fluoride and bromides, and continue on maintenance amounts of iodine.


The following is taken from Iodine4Health:


http://iodine4health.com/special/halogens/halogens.htm


IODINE AND OTHER HALOGENS

Iodine belongs to a class of elements called "halogens".
In addition to Iodine, the common halogens are fluorine (F), chlorine (Cl), and bromine (Br). Halogens form a single column of the periodic chart and all require exactly one additional electron to fill their outer electron shells.
The halogens are diatomic molecules in their natural form; e.g., molecular iodine (I2), fluorine (F2), chlorine (Cl2), and bromine (Br2).
Halogens are often found in salts. A salt is a compound that forms positive and negative ions when dissolved in water. The halogens have a tendency to form single negative ions when dissolved. The negative ion is called a halide ion; e.g., Iodide(I-), fluoride (Fl-), chloride (Cl-), and bromide (Br-).
Halogens share many characteristics. For example, they are highly reactive and can be harmful or lethal in sufficient quantities. Fluorine is said to be the most reactive element in existence.
Similarly, chlorine and iodine are both used as disinfectants for such things as drinking water, swimming pools, wounds, and medical equipment. They kill bacteria and other potentially harmful microorganisms.
Halogens can combine with a variety of elements. Many synthetic organic compounds contain halogen atoms.
Chlorine is by far the most abundant of the halogens, and the only one needed in relatively large amounts (as chloride ions) by humans.
Iodine is needed in trace amounts for the production of thyroid hormones and for other purposes presently being discovered.
On the other hand, it appears that neither fluorine nor bromine is essential for humans.
In the body, the various halogens often seem to compete or affect each other. For example, Abraham and Brownstein have discussed how iodine is effective in detoxing fluorine and bromine.
Similarly, perchlorate (a chlorine compound) blocks the NIS receptor for iodide.