In message  <[log in to unmask]> Thyroid writes:
> > You should be aware that kelp is loaded with iodine.  High intake of =
> > dietary iodine in an individual with mild autoimmune thyroiditis (the =
> > most common cause of hypothyroidism) can lead to far more severe =
> > hypothyroidism and growth of goiter.
>
>     That's odd...
>
>     As I recall, low iodine is the primary cause of goiter.  My uncle
> started to come down with goiter during WW II down in the land locked
> Bavarian farm lands, I think.  The locals said that was perfictly normal,
> everyone had that swelling.  Grandma managed to get some sea weed, and
> used that to cure him.

I think the confusion may come from the word "goitre", because different kinds
of goitre can occur with HYPO and HYPER thyroid.  Graves' Disease (hyper) also
has a kind of diffuse goitre.  But I do agree - I had always read that high
iodine intake was associated with HYPER, not HYPO thyroid.  Indeed, I asked my
endo about this - about whether I should all but eliminate iodine from my diet
(I have Graves'), and he said that it couldn't hurt to cut back if I tend to eat
a lot of high-iodine foods (I'm a big sushi and Japanese food nut, so you can
imagine what my iodine intake was like).

KM