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How Iodine was found to be a cure for goiter
Uses of Iodine
Toxicity
REFERENCES
Discovery of Iodine
Iodine is an element with the symbol
“I” and atomic number 53. It is a trace element, which means that it is found
in small amounts in a sample or in the environment. Although land plants such
as cranberries are a good source of iodine, the ocean houses the highest amount
of foods containing iodine. Iodine was discovered by the French chemist Bernard
Courtois in 1811 while extracting sodium and potassium compounds from seaweed
ash. He added sulfuric acid (H2SO4) to further process
the ash but accidentally added too much thus, producing a violet colored gas.
This gas condensed on metal objects in the room, creating solid iodine.
Courtois was trying to manufacture gunpowder for Napoleon’s army when he
discovered iodine. Within a few years, Humphrey Davy, an English chemist proved
that the substance Courtois had discovered belonged to the halogen family and
named it iodine.
How Iodine was found to be a cure for goiter
Goiter, as seen in the image above, is a
swelling of the neck or larynx resulting from the enlargement of the thyroid
gland. This enlargement might be due to insufficient amounts of iodine
(hypothyroidism) or excess secretion of thyroid hormone by the thyroid gland
(hyperthyroidism). Ancient art and science tells us that goiters have existed
for centuries and was believed to be a result of drinking dirty water.
The ancient Chinese were probably the
first people to successfully treat goiters when they realized that large doses
of seaweed and burnt sponge managed the swellings very well. They also treated their patients using dried thyroid
glands of animals such as sheep and pigs although they didn’t understand how
these things were able to cure their patients. A Swiss-German physician by the
name Paracelsus was the first person to point out that there was a correlation
between goiters and lack of minerals, although he thought that this missing
mineral was iron sulphide. It wasn’t until 1821 when the Swiss doctor Jean
Coindet reasoned that the newly discovered iodine could be the ingredient
behind the seaweed and animal thyroid gland’s cure of goiter.
Uses of Iodine
Iodine is used in iodized salts as a
means of preventing goiter.
It can be used to treat and enlarged
thyroid if the goiter is due to lack of iodine
It is used as an ingredient in
disinfectants that may be added to swimming pools and drinking water.
It is also an ingredient in antiseptics
and germicides.
Toxicity
The recommended daily intake (RDI) of
iodine is 150 micrograms. Exposure to high amounts could have terrible effects
on an individual. Short-term exposure to high amounts of iodine may cause
burning of mouth and throat, vomiting and abdominal pain whereas long-term
exposure may result in progression of symptoms to fever, shock and even death.
REFERENCES
Baker (2004)D.H. BakerIodine toxicity and its amelioration,
Experimental Biology and Medicine (Maywood, N.J.), 229 (2004), pp. 473–478
Iodine. (2015). In The Columbia Encyclopedia. New
York, NY: Columbia University Press. Retrieved from http://library.mtroyal.ca:2330/content/entry/columency/iodine
Martinez, A. H., Perez, E. J., & Ebrary Academic
Complete (Canada) Subscription Collection. (2012). Iodine: Characteristics,
sources, and health implications. New York: Nova Biomedical Books.
Rosenhek, J. (2008, May 7). Doctor's Review: Medicine on the
Move. Retrieved April 16, 2015, from http://www.doctorsreview.com/history/goiters-be-gone/
United States. Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease
Registry, & Corporation, S. R. (2004). Toxicological profile for iodine
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