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Adding iodine to salt played a role in cognitive improvements: research (2013)

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Re: Adding iodine to salt played a role in cognitive improvements: research (2013)

#71
post #5

Burger King continued to use iodized salt consistently, while McDonalds, Wendys etc have switched to flakier salts for their fries which cuts total sodium overall by being flatter instead of grainy, but without any iodine added to it. The downward trend in fast food began in the 70s, once sodium was seen as bad, so more salty tasting thin crystals were preferred. [1] - https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20634172/ (on re…

> downward trend ... sodium was seen as bad

Excess sodium intake is associated with cardiovascular disease and heart failure. Salt is also an opportunistic carrier for iodine supplementation. So to call it good or bad, you'd need to either come up with an epidemiological study of the two diseases relative to each other, or maybe propose an alternative carrier for the iodine supplementation.

Re: Adding iodine to salt played a role in cognitive improvements: research (2013)

#72

See also: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3800113/ TL;DR: hookworm eradication in the American South substantially improved school attendance and educational outcomes in children, and may have had a nontrivial positive effect on the overall economy of the region. (In case you don't see the connection, some children had such severe hookworm infestations that they were too anemic to focus in school, or even to…

Hookworms and the Myth of the "Lazy Southerner"

https://www.pbs.org/video/gross-science-myth-laziness/

Re: Adding iodine to salt played a role in cognitive improvements: research (2013)

#73

In Japan, iodized salt is banned as a food additive. because we can take it from see weeds like kombu.

Why would that be a reason to ban iodized salt?

Too much iodine can lead to thyroid problems, and this has been a problem in some subgroups in Japan: https://academic.oup.com/jcem/article/107/6/e2634/6516999

Re: Adding iodine to salt played a role in cognitive improvements: research (2013)

#74

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Our bodies can synthesize several inorganic compounds, and other organisms can synthesize even more. There are biological sources of $H_{2}O$, $NH_{4}^{+}$, $NO$, $HCO_{3}^{−}$, $HPO_{4}^{2−}$, and (traditionally considered inorganic despite having carbon) $CO_{2}$. Iodine is an element, not a compound, and can only be synthesized through nuclear processes, not chemical ones.

The definition I remember from my chemistry class is that organic compounds are those having at least one C-H bond.

It's a reasonable definition, especially when classifying biochemicals, but there are always edge cases.

For example : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carborane that definitely do have C-H bonds but are mostly B-B, B-C, B-H.

Re: Adding iodine to salt played a role in cognitive improvements: research (2013)

#75
post #48

Iodine is also found in seafood and dairy and eggs, which may have been less common in the American diet a century ago, especially among the poor, but are widespread today. Americans no longer need iodized salt. (Not sure about vegans.)

Vegans should already be extremely watchful of their nutrition, as there's for example B12 in a lot of animal products, where a B12 deficiency means you are getting nerve damage.

Re: Adding iodine to salt played a role in cognitive improvements: research (2013)

#76
post #29

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I also prefer cooking with the flakier stuff because I can grab a pinch of it and sprinkle it in a controlled way. I try to use iodized salt when it’s convenient: when salting pasta water, in baking, etc… but I wonder if my family is getting enough.

When my wife's doctor recommended more iodine in her diet, I was surprised how hard it was to find iodized flaky salt. I only found one brand I could order, and it was extremely expensive and didn't have a great texture for cooking with. I keep iodized table salt around and sometimes use it for salting soup, stock, or pasta water, but 99% of the time I reach for plain old Morton kosher salt.

It might just be easier and cheaper to take iodine supplements. Humans need about 150mcg/day, just make sure not to overdose on it. Vitamin companies love selling you huge doses you don't need, but if you know what dosage you're looking for you can usually find appropriate ones.

Re: Adding iodine to salt played a role in cognitive improvements: research (2013)

#77
post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Iodized salt is quite the norm in Germany. You can buy the non -iodized version which is better for bread baking. But most everyone I know has iodized salt at home. Also doesn't water fluoridation cost a few IQ points? In the end I could imagine the effects cancelling each other out.

> Also doesn't water fluoridation cost a few IQ points? Yes https://ntp.niehs.nih.gov/whatwestudy/assessments/noncancer/...

“ It is important to note that there were insufficient data to determine if the low fluoride level of 0.7 mg/L currently recommended for U.S. community water supplies has a negative effect on children’s IQ.”

Re: Adding iodine to salt played a role in cognitive improvements: research (2013)

#79
post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Iodized salt is quite the norm in Germany. You can buy the non -iodized version which is better for bread baking. But most everyone I know has iodized salt at home. Also doesn't water fluoridation cost a few IQ points? In the end I could imagine the effects cancelling each other out.

> Also doesn't water fluoridation cost a few IQ points? Yes https://ntp.niehs.nih.gov/whatwestudy/assessments/noncancer/...

That's not what the link claims.

The combination of flouridated water, tooth paste, and other sources, etc can lead to levels that can cause problems, but it's not as simple as "fluoridated water bad".

Re: Adding iodine to salt played a role in cognitive improvements: research (2013)

#80

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Our bodies can synthesize several inorganic compounds, and other organisms can synthesize even more. There are biological sources of $H_{2}O$, $NH_{4}^{+}$, $NO$, $HCO_{3}^{−}$, $HPO_{4}^{2−}$, and (traditionally considered inorganic despite having carbon) $CO_{2}$. Iodine is an element, not a compound, and can only be synthesized through nuclear processes, not chemical ones.

I feel your use of TeX (or whatever that notation is precisely ...) is far too clear. Possibly use InChI instead, so instead of "$HPO_{4}^{2−}$", use "InChI=1S/H3O4P/c1-5(2,3)4/h(H3,1,2,3,4)/p-2". Or, more concisely, just use the key, which is "NBIIXXVUZAFLBC-UHFFFAOYSA-L". :) (from : https://www.ebi.ac.uk/chebi/searchId.do?chebiId=43474 )

Or just unicode. Standard digraphs ftw (xcompose, wincompose...). It's even typed in the same way (_4 ^+ etc) - and maybe there's tex tools that output unicode these days where possible?

H₂O, NH₄⁺, NO, HCO₃⁻, HPO₄²⁻

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