Contents:
- Medical Video: Pregnant Moms May Need Iodine Supplements - Seattle Mama Doc 101
- What is iodine?
- Why is consuming iodine so important?
- When to consume iodine
- Other sources of iodine
Medical Video: Pregnant Moms May Need Iodine Supplements - Seattle Mama Doc 101
Iodine adequacy is important for pregnant women, because iodine is a mineral that is very influential in fetal neurological development.
What is iodine?
Iodine is a mineral that the body needs to form thyroid hormones. The thyroid is a gland in the neck that forms a hormone that helps the body use and store energy from food. You need iodine during pregnancy to help your baby's brain and nerves develop. The nervous system (brain, spinal cord and nerves) helps your baby to move, think and feel something.
Why is consuming iodine so important?
Iodine plays an important role in regulating the thyroid gland and metabolism, the moment when your body uses the most energy.
In pregnancy, iodine also helps your baby's brain and nervous system develop. Iodine deficiency is a major cause of intellectual disability and brain damage that occurs throughout the world. Iodine deficiency during pregnancy has also been associated with an increased risk of miscarriage, premature birth, and stillbirth.
When to consume iodine
You do not have to fulfill all the total RDA from iodine one day. Alternatively, you can repay the fulfillment of iodine intake to fit the average number of recommendations in a few days or per week.
During pregnancy, you need 220 micrograms of iodine every day. Not all prenatal vitamins contain iodine, so make sure you eat foods that contain iodine. Ask your doctor if you need to take iodine supplements.
Other sources of iodine
Iodine is found in dairy products, eggs, vegetables, seafood (especially sea or salt water), and yeast. (The amount of iodine in various types of food varies according to the amount of iodine in the soil or water where it grows).
Sea vegetables contain a lot of iodine - sometimes too much for regular consumption. Sea vegetables contain 1,986 mcg of iodine per tablespoon, which is above the level of intake above tolerance, while the maximum amount considered safe by Food and Nutrition Board from Institute of Medicine is 1,100 mcg per day.
Good foods containing iodine include:
- 3 ounces of cod: 99 mcg
- 1 cup of low-fat yogurt: 87 mcg
- 1 tablespoon of wakame (sea vegetables): 82 mcg
- 1 medium roasted potato with skin: 60 mcg
- Milk 1 cup: 56 mcg
- 1 sheet of nori (sea vegetables used in various types of sushi): 40 mcg
- 3 ounces of shrimp: 35 mcg
- 2 fish sticks: 35 mcg
- 3 ounces of turkey, roast: 34 mcg
- 1/2 cup cooked navy beans: 32 mcg
- 2 ounces of mozzarella cheese: 20 mcg
- 3 ounces of tuna, canned in oil: 17 mcg
- 1/2 cup strawberries: 6 mcg
(For comparison, 3 ounces of meat or fish is equivalent to the size of a deck of cards.)
