Iodine Global Network (IGN)

Iodine in the global news

23. September 2013

New attention to iodized salt quality in Bangladesh salt mills

Dhaka. The government will take legal actions against the salt mills failing to maintain adequate iodine proportion in their salt production after August 31, said officials of Bangladesh Small and Cottage Industries Corporation (BSCIC) on Thursday. The...

23. September 2013

New WHO publication on promoting healthy growth and preventing childhood stunting

As part of the work on implementing the project “Promoting healthy growth and preventing childhood stunting”, the World Health Organization has worked with various experts to prepare nine papers for a supplement of the Maternal and Child Nutrition ...

31. July 2013

Mild iodine deficiency increases thyroid disorders in pregnant women in Belgium

The prevalence of thyroid dysfunction in this national Belgian pregnancy cohort was surprisingly high, with 7.2% having elevated serum TSH values. This was likely due, at least in part, to mild iodine deficiency. The first-trimester median urinary iodine...

31. July 2013

Adding iodine to salt may have helped boost America's I.Q.

A new study published at the National Bureau of Economic Research concludes the iodization of salt in the United States in the early 1900s raised the I.Q. scores of some populations by as much as 15 points – a full standard deviation – in the span of ...

26. June 2013

Thai health ministry observes National Iodine Day

June 25 was National Iodine Day in Thailand and featured public education events sponsored by the Department of Health. Health authorities noted that 20 percent of the Thai population still do not consume iodine-fortified products.

26. June 2013

Ghana conducts iodine stakeholders meeting

Ghana's trade and industry ministry is joining in the public health campaign to boost use of iodized salt. It conducted a workshop in Accra recently and reported backsliding in the country's iodine status; now only 32.45 percent of the population is...

19. June 2013

PR push for Adelaide study

Three months ago, Nutrition Journal published a study showing that requiring iodized salt in bread in South Australia, mandatory for the past three years, is insufficient to protect expectant mothers from iodine deficiency. The study was co-authored,...

14. June 2013

New report out on global iodine market

Global Industry Analysts, Inc. has produced a new $4,950 report on the global iodine industry including market trends, issues and drivers. Among the drivers is the need for iodine (in the form of potassium iodate or potassium iodide) to iodize salt to...

13. June 2013

Major Ukrainian salt producer launches iodized salt for consumers

Crimean Soda Plant, part of Ukrainian producer Group DF, has entered the small retail market for iodized salt, producing 20 tons monthly of half-kilo bags. Previously, the company produced iodized salt, but only in wholesale-sized packages. The company...

05. June 2013

American Thyroid Assn cautions on overconsumption with supplements

The American Thyroid Association today released a statement advising against the ingestion of iodine and kelp supplements containing in excess of 500 mcg iodine daily. Recommended daily allowances for iodine intake are 150 mcg for non-pregnant a...

02. June 2013

Filipino nutrition agency pushes use of salt in processed foods

The Food and Nutrition Research Institute of the Philippines' Department of Science and Technology conducted studies of the performance of iodized salt in processed food products, primarily meats and found the iodized salt contributes to consumer...

01. June 2013

Ethiopian survey finds low availability of iodized salt

An August 2012 survey of 810 residents of Gondar town in northwest Ethiopia documented availability of adequately-iodized salt at only 28.9%, primarily due to inappropriate consumer purchasing and storage practices. Public education is recommended.

22. May 2013

Mild iodine deficiency creates IQ risk

Mild iodine deficiency during early pregnancy was associated with an adverse effect on child cognitive development, according to a new study in The Lancet. Children born to iodine-deficient mothers suffered impaired verbal IQ and scored lower on reading...

07. May 2013

50,000 Filipino newborns mentally deficient due to iodine deficiency - annually

Only a quarter of food salt is iodized in the Philippines with resulting significant iodine deficiency, health authorities told a stakeholders group recently. Iodine deficiency impairs the mental capacity of 50,000 Filipino newborns every year according...

30. April 2013

Prenatal iodine deficiency handicaps children's literacy achievement

An article to be published soon in The Endocrine Society's Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism (JCEM) finds that even mild iodine deficiency in pregnant women results in impairing their children's literacy testing outcomes at age 9. "'Our...

23. April 2013

Campaigning Indian chief minister pledges subsidized iodized salt for poor

On the campaign trail for re-election, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan promised to subsidize the consumer price of iodized salt (also wheat and rice) for poor citizens. India's national government is considering a similar policy.

14. April 2013

Expectant mothers need better nutrition knowledge

A new Australian study shows many expectant mothers, concerned about inadequate iodine intakes, are buying supplements when simple dietary improvements would be sufficient. They need more nutrition education, the researchers conclude.

06. April 2013

Price, tradition impede progress in Ghana

For a front lines perspective of the tug of tradition and the concern for higher consumer prices of iodized salt, see this account of the campaign in Ghana.

05. April 2013

Mannar to step down at MI

Venkatesh Mannar, longtime ICCIDD director and current member of the Executive Committee and, for nearly 20 years, President of The Micronutrient Initiative, will step down as President of MI at the end of 2013, MI announced today. He will continue with...

04. April 2013

Philippines hosts consultative workshop with salt industry

The Philippines FDA and National Nutrition Council met today with salt producers to discuss how to improve the country's current high levels of iodine deficiency. Today, 19 percent of Filipino children, 26 percent of expectant mothers and 34 percent of...

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