mineral
Iodine
Essential for thyroid hormone synthesis.
What it’s good for
Iodine for Chronic Fatigue
Not verified2 studies · 0 supporting · 0 against
8 safety notes
Why it gets suggested: Your thyroid needs iodine to make the hormones that set your metabolic rate.
Dose: 150–300 mcg
Why we could not verify it: Neither of the two cited papers qualifies and neither points toward a wider trial record. DOI 10.1007/s12020-019-01897-4 concerns radioactive iodine-131 (a radiopharmaceutical given to thyroid-cancer patients), not a nutritional supplement. DOI 10.1093/ajcn/nqaa071 is confirmed (PMID 32320029) as a systematic review and meta-analysis of iodine supplementation in mildly-to-moderately deficient pregnant women; it measures thyroid hormone levels, thyroglobulin, and child cognition — not fatigue or tiredness at any point. Broader searches found iodine trials measuring cholesterol (Morocco RCT, 150 µg/day), cognitive scores in schoolchildren (Albania), and thyroid-stimulating hormone in pregnancy
Iodine for Poor Memory
Not verified1 study · 0 supporting · 1 against
8 safety notes
Dose: 150 mcg
Tested as: Potassium iodate, 150 mcg iodine daily
Why we could not verify it: We found 1 study on this. We have not finished reading them yet, so we are not ready to say either way.
Iodine for Thyroid Function
Not verified1 study · 0 supporting · 0 against
8 safety notes
Why we could not verify it: We found the study behind this. We have not finished reading it yet, so we are not ready to say either way.
Iodine for Lack of Focus
Not verified1 study · 0 supporting · 1 against
8 safety notes
Dose: 150 mcg
Tested as: Potassium iodate, 150 mcg iodine daily
Why we could not verify it: We found 1 study on this. We have not finished reading them yet, so we are not ready to say either way.
Iodine for Dry Skin
Not verified1 study · 0 supporting · 0 against
8 safety notes
Why it gets suggested: Thyroid hormones set how fast skin renews itself, and iodine is what they are made from.
Dose: 150–250 mcg
Why we could not verify it: No human clinical trial has measured dry skin or any skin outcome as an endpoint in an iodine supplementation study. PubMed returns zero results for this combination. We cannot stand behind this claim on the evidence we have, so it carries no rating.
Iodine for High Cholesterol
Not verified1 study · 1 supporting · 0 against
8 safety notes
Dose: 200 mcg
Tested as: Potassium iodate tablet. 200 mcg of iodine a day.
Why we could not verify it: We found 1 study on this. We have not finished reading them yet, so we are not ready to say either way.
Iodine for PMS Symptoms
Not verified1 study · 1 supporting · 0 against
8 safety notes
Dose: 1.5 mg
Why we could not verify it: We found the study behind this. We have not finished reading it yet, so we are not ready to say either way.