The Low-Iodine Diet — Summary
The short-term low-iodine diet is another part of preparing to receive radioactive iodine for papillary or follicular thyroid cancer or one of their variants. The diet, recommended by ThyCa Medical Advisors, other thyroid cancer experts, and the American Thyroid Association, increases the effectiveness of the radioactive iodine treatment.
This diet lasts for about 1 to 2 weeks before your radioiodine, and for about 1 to 2 days afterward.
This diet reduces your consumption of regular iodine so that when the radioactive iodine is given for treatment, any remaining thyroid cells, including thyroid cancer cells, will be “hungry” for iodine. These cells will then more readily absorb the radioactive iodine, which will eventually destroy them.
A low-iodine diet has less than 50 micrograms of iodine per day. It is low in iodine, not “no-iodine.” Iodine is not related to sodium, so this diet is different from a “low-sodium” diet. The normal recommended daily allowance for iodine is 150 micrograms per day. Most people in the United States consume much more than 150 micrograms daily.
The foods and beverages you consume will have small amounts of iodine that total less than 50 micrograms each day.
There are slight variations in guidelines from different doctors. The ThyCa diet and guidelines have received input and review by numerous thyroid cancer specialists.