Link Between Iodine Deficiency and Breast Cancer, The

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Breast Cancer is the second most common type of cancer in women in the US (only non-melanoma skin cancer ranks higher). It is also the number one cause of cancer deaths among Hispanic women, and the second most common cause of cancer death in white, black, Asian and Native American women. Each year in the US, more than 186,000 women are diagnosed with breast cancer, and more than 41,000 die from it.



Fortunately, thanks to greater emphasis on prevention on the part of the medical community, government health agencies, and women’s health groups, today most women are aware of the many things can do on their own to minimize their risk of developing breast cancer. Such preventive measures include eating a healthy diet, regular exercise, avoiding smoking, limiting one’s alcohol intake, maintaining a healthy weight, and getting regular screenings. But there is one other important factor that most women are not being told about: Iodine deficiency.



The Importance of Iodine For Healthy Breasts



While many people are aware that Iodine is essential for the proper function of the thyroid gland, but what most people do not know is that all of your body’s trillions of cells contain and use iodine in order to carry out their many function. The greatest concentration of iodine in the body is within the glandular (endocrine) system. That’s because iodine is necessary for the production of all of your body’s hormones, the primary function of the glandular system. Within this system, by far the highest concentrations of iodine are found in the thyroid gland. But many other parts of a healthy body also contain large amounts of iodine, including the mammary glands of the breast. In fact, next to your thyroid gland, breasts serve as one of your body’s primary iodine storage sites. That’s because iodine is necessary for proper breast development and function, as well as the maintenance of the breasts’ shape and structure.



Iodine Deficiency—A Serious Problem



Despite these facts, few doctors today think to check iodine levels during the course of their patients’ annual checkups, despite research that shows that iodine levels in humans over the past three decades have declined by an average of 50 percent. This dramatic decline, a growing number of researchers suggest, is likely one of the reasons accounting to for the increased rates of a wide variety of serious chronic health conditions, including breast cancer.



One of these researchers is David Brownstein, MD, author of Iodine: Why You Need It. Dr. Brownstein and two of his medical colleagues tested the iodine levels of over 4,000 patients. They found that 96 percent of them had below normal iodine levels and that the results for most of those patients were “below the detectable limits.” Another researcher, Jorge Flescha, MD, conducted screened iodine levels in over 21,000 patients and his results closely matched those of Dr. Brownstein. These findings are supported by studies conducted by the World Health Organization (WHO) that were published more than a decade ago. According to WHO, iodine deficiency is a “significant public health problem” in 129 countries, and more than 70 percent of all people around the world are affected by one or more iodine deficiency disorders.



There are a number of factors that account for the precipitous rise in iodine deficiency around the world. Chief among them are industrial farming techniques that have depleted croplands of their iodine content (as well as the content of many other vital minerals). This, in turn, results in food crops that also lack iodine. Diets lacking in ocean fish or sea vegetables such as kelp, can also lead to iodine deficiency, as can diets that are high in breads and pasta, as well as vegetarian and vegan diets. Other causes include the popularity of low-salt diets (salt contains iodine).



The introduction of various chemicals in our food supply and environment is another important factor, especially halide chemicals such as bromine, which a common ingredient used by the baking industry, as well as fluoride and chloride, both commonly found in our drinking water. (Halide chemicals interfere with the body’s ability to store and use iodine.)



Iodine Deficiency And Breast Cancer



Research suggests that prolonged iodine deficiency can eventually cause or exacerbate breast cancer. Some of the earliest indications that this was so occurred over 40 years ago in animal studies that revealed that the breast tissue of animals with iodine deficiency became cancerous if the deficiency was not corrected. The same studies also showed that the risk of Breast Cancer developing was directly related to the length of time the iodine deficiency existed. The longer the deficiency, the greater the risk of breast cancer. Based on their findings the researchers concluded “that maintenance of the optimum structure and function of the breasts requires the presence of continuous and specific amounts of iodine.”



Human studies back up the animal studies’ findings. For example, studies in Japan have found that Japanese women have one of the lowest risks of developing Breast Cancer compared to women anywhere else in the world. They also consume more iodine-rich food than women in most other cultures (nearly 14 mg per day, primarily from eating seaweed; that’s more than 100 times the U.S. Recommended Daily Allowance for iodine). Additional studies have also established that when Japanese women move to the U.S. and adopt a typical Western diet, within one generation their risk of developing breast cancer is similar to that of other U.S. women.



Other studies have also found that women with breast cancer more often have enlarged thyroid glands compared to women who do not develop breast cancer. This is especially true among women who have goiter, an abnormal swelling of the thyroid gland. This makes sense, given that both the breasts and thyroid glands compete for iodine when iodine deficiencies exist in the human body. Other studies have also shown that women with breast cancer are more likely to also suffer from hypothyroidism (low thyroid function) compared to healthy women.



In his medical practice, Dr. Brownstein has confirmed these findings. More importantly, he reports that iodine supplementation used in conjunction with dietary, nutritional, and other health protocols breast cancer tumor to shrink and die. He also points out that the use of iodine as a treatment for breast cancer was first written about more than 100 years ago in a study published in the medical journal Lancet.



Conclusion



Because of the body of evidence linking iodine deficiency with breast cancer and other types of breast disease (especially fibrocystic breast disease) a growing number of other physicians, including Dr. Brownstein, now recommend that all women be screened for iodine deficiencies and, if they are found, to increase their bodies’ iodine levels through eating iodine-rich foods and iodine supplements. To find out if you are iodine deficient, speak with your doctor. It could be one of the best steps you can take to protect your health.



References:



Beaston, G. Adjuvant use of thyroid extract in breast cancer. Lancet 104(2). 1896.



Brownstein, David. Iodine: Why You Need It 3rd edition. Medical Alternative Press. West Bloomfield, MI, 2008.



Eskin, B.A. Iodine and Mammary Cancer. NY Academy of Sciences. 1970.



Eskin, B.A. Mammary gland dysplasia in iodine deficiency. JAMA. 5; 22. 1967.



Perry, M. Thyroid function in patients with breast cancer. Ann. Roy. Coll. Surg, Engl. 60, 1978.



WHO. IB1D3/27. 12 Nov. 1998.



http://www.cdc.gov/cancer/breast/statistics





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