Unfortunately the occurrence of Ovarian cysts and Fibrocystic breasts is on the rise lately. This increase has also led to increased instances of surgical removal of ovaries. What most people do not realise is the fact that, ovarian cysts and fibrocystic breasts could be fixed easily through your regular diet.
Cysts occur in ovaries and breasts due to one major reason, and that is increase in the oestrogen levels. There are three different types of oestrogen’s normally present in our body and they are
- Estrone, otherwise called as E1
- Estradiol, otherwise called as E2
- Estriol, otherwise called as E3
Primary form of oestrogen or Estrone is commonly found in fat cells, and it can be covered to either Estradiol or Estriol. Estradiol or E2 is a very powerful type of oestrogen which is believed to be responsible for what is called as estrogenic symptoms such as in PMS, and menopause. Under certain unfavourable conditions Estradiol can be converted or metabolised into 16-hydroxyestrogen, which is a carcinogen and responsible for several types of cancer in women.
E3 or Estriol on the other hand is found to reduce the risk of cancer that is triggered by Estradiol and 16-hydroxy oestrogen. It is also found to reduce the risk of Ovarian cysts and Fibrocystic breast.
Our body needs sufficient levels of Iodine in order to maintain healthy levels of oestrogen in favour of Estriol.
Role of Iodine
Iodine is mainly stored in four major areas in women’s body, thyroid gland, ovaries, breasts, and prostate. Major portion of the iodine is stored in thyroid. When your body runs short of it, thyroid glands take the extra effort to absorb whatever is available. This can lead to increase in size of thyroid glands, and also make the other parts such as ovaries, breasts, and uterus run short of iodine.
Lower levels of iodine can keep the oestrogen levels unchecked and can lead to increase in the levels of Estradiol or E2 thus leading to complications such as ovarian cysts, and fibrocystic breasts, and increased risk of certain types of cancer as well.
Why are we running short of Iodine?
Real question is why are we running short of iodine lately, after all it is found in our salt? Source of the problem could be our diet. Most of the prepackaged or restaurant cooked foods or bakery items contain bromine and other iodine blockers.
Another problem could be our drinking water. Fluoride present in drinking water also reduces or inhibits the absorption of iodine.
Poor soil conditions where our crops and food grains grow could also be another reason for poor levels of iodine in your body. Iodine is a trace mineral and most of our farming lands run short of it due to the increased use of chemical fertilisers and pesticides.
Iodine found in our common salt is generally a reduced form or iodine called iodide, which will only be absorbed by our thyroid glands. Other organs like ovaries, breasts, and prostate do not get iodine supply from our common salt. This potentially cripples table salt to be an effective source of iodine.
What are the best sources of Iodine?
Fortunately you can source high quality iodine through your foods. Cruciferous foods such as cauliflower, broccoli, cabbage, etc.. (make sure to wilt them before consumption). Second good source of iodine is sea kelp. They are a great source of high quality iodine that turns the production of oestrogen in favour of estriol. Make sure all of your foods are organically grown and are free of insecticides and pesticides. Else, you will be working towards making your condition worse.
Sources:
https://www.drlaurendeville.com/articles/iodineestrogen-connection/
https://www.drlaurendeville.com/conditions-treatments/halide-toxicity-bromine-fluorine/
http://iodineresearch.com/hormones.html
https://reset.me/story/why-iodine-is-one-of-the-most-crucial-supplements-for-womens-health/
