Iodine deficiency diseases are a group of diseases that are or can be caused by the lack of iodine in the body. Iodine is a dark violet non-metallic element that belongs to a group of halogens but is less reactive than the other halogens. It has a boiling point of 13.5ºc and a melting point of 183ºc, when heated a violet vapor is given out. It can be extracted from seawater, seaweeds, and oil well brines. It is also concentrated in the thyroid gland as a part of the thyroid hormone. Iodine can be found in water more than it can be found on land this is because iodine cycling is very slow and incomplete in most regions so it takes a long time for the soil to regain the iodine (Michael Zimmermann & Creswell J. Eastman, 2009), which is washed out of the soil by processes such as leaching and ongoing erosion. So crops grown on such soil becomes iodine deficient. The iodine washed away usually ends up in seawater hence the high iodine (World Health organizations, 1995) areas and areas of frequent flooding, but can also occur in coastal regions (Michael Zimmermann & Creswell J. Eastman, 2009). Iodine is needed for growth and development even for the fetus. Lack of iodine is also known as an iodine deficiency and can cause abortion stillbirth, mental retardation, growth retardation and goiter. Human being needs a very small amount of iodine to prevent deficiencies (World Health organizations, 1995).
According to WHO’s book humans need only a 250 micrograms of iodine, which is just a quarter of a milligram (World Health organizations, 1995). This small amount is able to sustain humans and help them to have a healthy. The tables underneath show the recommended daily intake of iodine per day.
Table 1: World health organization’s recomme...
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The human body requires small amounts of nutrients in microgram or milligram quantities in our diet because it cannot synthesize the necessary amounts on its own. These nutrients are considered micronutrients. Micronutrients are a combination of water, vitamins, and minerals. Vitamins are organic compounds that do not provide energy, but are essential to the body in helping “aid in metabolism, as well as the growth, development and maintenance of body tissues” (Byrd-Bredbenner, Moe and Beshgetoor 402). Vitamins are broken down into two groups, water-soluble and fat-soluble. The water-soluble vitamins are the B-vitamins, and vitamin C. The fat-soluble vitamins are A, D, E, and K. Minerals are needed in even smaller amounts, however these inorganic substances are necessary for “cell metabolism, nerve impulse transmission and growth and development” (Byrd-Bredbenner, Moe and Beshgetoor 485). Minerals can be categorized into major or trace minerals. The major minerals include Sodium, Potassium, Chloride, Calcium, Phosphorus, Magnesium, and Sulfur. Trace minerals are Iron, Zinc, Copper, Manganese, Iodine, Selenium, Chromium, Fluoride, Molybdenum and Ultratrace minerals.
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