Iodine affects a sensitive gland in called the thyroid, which regulates the metabolic rate of the human body. The presence or the absence of a small amount of the substance can be the difference between an overactive thyroid or under active one. Iodine itself is in turn sensitive, and can be inadvertently purged out of the body based on a person’s dietary choices or lifestyle. This can lead to iodine deficiency symptoms which can include extreme fatigue, goiter, mental slowing, depression, excess weight gain, and low basal body temperatures.
Episodes of hypothyroidism are the results of an iodine deficiency, symptoms of which are all the above. This also leads to enlargement of the thyroid gland, which increases in size in order to produce more thyroid hormones to make up for the lack of iodine. This condition is called “goiter” and may be hard to reverse once it sets in. Additional signs of the deficiency are low levels of energy, scaly, yellowish or dry skin, personality changes, anemia, heavy and prolonged menstruation periods in women, numbness or tingling in the extremities, depression and forgetfulness.