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