Iodium
- VERMEULEN Frans
Iod.
Act quickly, think slowly.
[Greek proverb]
Signs
Iodine.
CLASSIFICATION Iodine is a member of the the halogen group of elements [group 17 of the periodic table, formerly group VIIa], along with fluorine, chlorine, bromine, and astatine. Discovered in 1811 by Courtois, iodine is classed among the rarer elements. It occurs sparingly in the form of iodides in seawater from which it is assimilated by seaweeds, in Chilean saltpetre and nitrate-bearing earth, known as caliche in brines from old sea deposits, and in brackish waters from oil and salt wells. Its worldwide soil distribution is extremely variable, resulting in areas where the element is lacking. These areas include the American Midwest and Great Lake area [described as the goitre belt], the English Midlands and South West England, as well as certain parts of China, Central Africa, Continental Europe [the Alps], Russia, the Himalayas, and South America [Andean countries]. In many developing countries iodine deficiency is endemic.
HALOGENS The halogens form diatomic molecules that are gases at normal temperatures and pressures and therefore are mobile and play significant roles in the the atmosphere, hydrosphere, and biosphere. Most of the halogens are found in relatively small amounts in the Earth's crust, with the exception of astatine, which does not occur naturally because it consists exclusively of short-lived radioactive isotopes. The halogens, particularly fluorine, are highly reactive, so that they never occur uncombined in nature. They were given the name halogen from the Greek hals, salt, and gen, to produce, because they all produce sodium salts of similar properties, the best known being sodium chloride, table salt. The halogens also combine readily with potassium. Each halogen atom carries seven electrons in its outermost orbitals and needs an electron to complete its octet. Potentially, the halogen atoms can hold one additional electron; in acquiring such an electron the atom acts as an oxidizing agent and in the process assumes an electrical charge and becomes an ion. Halogen elements exist in their salts as halide ions, which are very stable. Of the halogen elements, fluorine is prepared in the free state with the greatest difficulty and iodine with the least. There is no chemical way to prepare fluorine in the free state - since no chemical can take an electron from fluorine; it can only be accomplished with electricity of sufficiently high voltage. Of the halogens, fluorine is the most reactive, and iodine the least. Fluorine combines with almost any other element, but not with oxygen. With fluorine the hydrogen affinity is predominant, with iodine it has become very slight. An increasing affinity for oxygen exists in a series from fluorine to chlorine, to bromine, to iodine.
PROPERTIES Iodine is a bluish-black, shiny, non-metallic solid which volatilizes at ordinary temperatures into a blue-violet, corrosive gas. It forms compounds with many elements, but is less active than the other halogens. Iodine, as a halogen, needs an electron to complete its octet, but it is continually losing its shared electron because all of the natural halogens can and do replace iodine from almost any molecule. The result is that iodine constantly seeks an electron with little hope of ever maintaining it once it is acquired. Its chief sources are brines, which may have 50 ppm of iodide, and the Chilean nitrate deposits which contain up to 0.3% calcium iodate. Some iodine is also extracted from seaweed or sponges. It is only slightly soluble in water, but dissolves readily in chloroform or carbon disulphide to form beautiful purple solutions. Forty-two isotopes and isomers are recognized. Only one stable isotope exists [I-127], which is the one found in nature. There are five radioactive isotopes.
USES Iodine is used as a disinfectant and germicide; to reduce friction of hard surfaces, including stainless steel and glass; in pharmaceuticals, food supplements, dyes, catalysts, and photography. In the USA, Canada, Switzerland, New Zealand and some South American countries sodium or potassium iodide or potassium iodate is added to table salt to prevent lack of iodine in the general population. In the UK salt is not iodized. The radioactive isotope iodine-131, which has a half-life of 8 days, is employed in medicine to monitor thyroid gland functioning, to treat goitre and thyroid cancer, and to locate tumours of the brain and of the liver. It is also used in investigations to trace the course of compounds in metabolism. Several iodine compounds are used as contrast mediums in diagnostic radiology.
PHYSIOLOGY Iodine is essential to many species, including humans. It is excreted in the urine and in smaller amounts in saliva, milk, sweat, and bile. The functions of iodine reside solely in its presence in the thyroid hormones triiodothyronine and thyroxine. These hormones determine the level of metabolism in the body, i.e. essentially the rate at which we live. They are necessary for converting food into energy and the way that energy is dissipated. In addition, iodine calms nerves and improves the quality of hair, skin, nails, and teeth. The adult contains between 20 and 50 mg iodine, most of which is concentrated in the thyroid, while the rest is found, respectively, in the liver, bone, muscle and blood. Lack of iodine gives rise to goitre; underactive thyroid; cretinism. Lack of thyroid hormone [when iodine is adequate] gives rise to myxoedema. Deficiency of iodine can be caused by reduced dietary intakes, or by excessive intake of anti-thyroid foods, such as raw vegetables of the brassica family [broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, kale, cauliflower, turnip]. 1 These foods contain so-called goitrogens, substances which inhibit the absorption of iodine. Goitrogens are also present in such vegetables as spinach, lettuce, beets, and cassava, but are destroyed in cooking. Lithium, aminosalicylic acid [anti-tuberculosis drug] as well as some sulphur compounds also interfere with the metabolism of iodine and inhibit the synthesis of thyroid hormone.
FOOD Some of the best natural sources of iodine are kelp, seaweeds, haddock, shellfish, sunflower seeds, pistachios and onions. Milk may be a good source if it comes from dairy cattle encouraged to lick salt blocks that contain iodine. There is a general upward trend in the iodine content of most diets due to the overuse of iodized salt, the use of iodine-containing antiseptics on dairy farms, traces of which get into the milk, and the use of iodine-containing compounds as bread dough conditioners in the baking industry. 2
TOXICITY Iodine in its elemental form is toxic. Potential symptoms of overexposure include irritation of eyes, nose and lungs; lachrymation; headache; tight chest; skin burns, rash; cutaneous hypersensitivity. Ingestion of the liquid results in burning pain in mouth and oesophagus; severe corrosive gastroenteritis evidenced by vomiting, abdominal pain and diarrhoea; hypotension, tachycardia, cyanosis, and other signs of shock; headache, dizziness, delirium, collapse, and stupor; death may be due to circulatory collapse, asphyxiation from oedema of glottis, aspiration pneumonia, or pulmonary oedema; late oesophageal and pyloric stenosis have been reported. Its name comes from Gr iodes, violet, and refers to the vapour it gives when heated. Exposure to iodine-131 as a by-product of nuclear reactions can cause thyroid cancer as shown conclusively by the 1986 nuclear accident in Chernobyl, which resulted in high level exposure for many people.
IODISM Iodism is hypersensitivity to iodine itself or, more rarely, iodides after prolonged oral administration. Symptoms include severe coryza; headache; pain in the salivary glands; watery eyes; weakness; conjunctivitis; fever; laryngitis; bronchitis; skin rashes; exacerbation of acne.
THYROID The word thyroid derives from Gr thyra, a door, and eidos, form. Located as it is, in what Plato calls the isthmus between the body and the head, the thyroid, spiritually, is the mediator between the emotions and the thoughts, and the common denominator of the animal and intellectual life. Its removal always causes death, since it is the link between connecting spirit and personality or 'the passageway between the higher and lower natures of man. The thyroid is a regulator of energy in adapting one to one's environment. Termed in occult anatomy "the flower that blooms in the throat", the thyroid's spiritual secretion is considered to aid in "developing the larynx as a centre of power wherefrom the spoken word becomes a healing and a blessing."3 Also, the thyroid is occasionally referred to as the vanity gland, because functional disorders of it have a tendency to produce disproportion in the parts of the body and destroy the pleasing aspects of the personality.
HYPOTHYROIDISM An underactive thyroid can cause symptoms such as obesity, rapid pulse, goitre, hypothermia, constipation, general weakness, excessive menstruation, slow speech, deep hoarse voice, nervousness, irritability, and low resistance to colds and infections. Iodine deficiency can also increase the risk of breast and uterine cancer. Lithium has been reported to have a striking inhibitory effect on thyroid hormone release. The widespread use of lithium carbonate in the treatment of manic states occasionally results in the development of goitre with either euthyroidism or occasionally hypothyroidism in human patients. An increased risk for deficiency exists during adolescence as well as pregnancy and lactation. Hypothyroidism is 10 times more common in women than in men. According to the [American] Thyroid Society, one out of five women over the age of 57 have Hashimoto's thyroiditis, the most common cause of hypothyroidism.
HYPERTHYROIDISM In hyperthyroidism there is excessive activity of the thyroid hormones resulting in a high metabolic rate, an increase in temperature and sweating and a marked sensitivity to heat. Nervousness, tremor, tachycardia, frequent bowel movements, fatigue and muscle weakness, exertional intolerance and despond, decreased menstrual flow, impaired fertility, increased appetite associated with loss of weight, and changes in vision, photophobia, eye irritation, and diplopia may also occur. There are several types of hyperthyroidism of which two are common: diffuse toxic goitre [also called Graves' disease or exophthalmic goitre] and toxic nodular goitre. The latter does not usually have concomitant exophthalmos, and may develop in patients with long-standing simple goitre. Graves' disease is linked to other autoimmune conditions, such as Hashimoto's thyroiditis, premature grey hair, diabetes mellitus, arthritis and vitiligo.
PROVINGS •• [1] Hahnemann - 6 provers; method: unknown.
•• [2] Jörg - 6 provers, 1824; method: repeated doses of tincture, ranging from 1 to 18 drops. •• [3] Hering - self-experimentation with 5-10 drops of tincture.
[1] Mervyn, Vitamins and Minerals. [2] Silvermann, The Vitamin Book. [3] Heline, The Role of the Ductless Glands in Spiritual Attainment; Santa Monica, 1964.
Affinity
GLANDS [THYROID; testes; mesenteric; mammae]. MUCOUS MEMBRANES [LARYNX; lungs [r. apex or base]. HEART. Blood vessels. Skin. Nerves. Connective tissue. * Left side. Right side.
Modalities
Worse: HEAT [ROOM; air; wraps]. Exertion [ascending; talking]. Fasting. Night. Rest. Lying on painful side. Touch. Pressure.
Better: COLD [AIR; bathing]. Motion. Eating. Milk [constipation].
Main symptoms
M EXCITEMENT and intolerable RESTLESSNESS.
Restlessness < in room and while sitting. • "Iodum subjects are consumed by activity, and leave no space for contemplation in their lives. In Judeo-Christian mythology, this remedy takes us to the myth of Cain [the 'case of iodine']. Cain, the labourer, spends his time working the earth, disregarding any possibility whatsoever of contemplation, to the contrary of his brother, Abel, the shepherd. Cain feels rejected by God, becomes malicious and kills his brother. Afterwards, he is overcome with remorse and flees, distraught ... Iodum comes from the Greek word for 'violet.' In fact, this element gives off violet-coloured vapours when it burns. Violet, a mixture of red and blue, is the incarnation of temperance, red representing impulsive force and blue the calm of the sea and the sky. Violet is the symbol of a spiritual transfusion; it is the colour of submission and obedience. Iodum has forgotten temperance and is consumed in the flames of excess." [Grandgeorge] • "There is [in iodism] a very distressing nervous condition which the patients can hardly describe, an internal agitation like that which bad news will cause, or like the disturbance which follows a regretted quarrel or a remorse; it is impossible to fix the attention on one's reading, drawing, etc.; there are tears of impatience at the least contradiction." [Hughes] M Want to execute or express all their ideas and thoughts AT ONCE. LOQUACITY. HURRY. • "Remarkably lively and talkative, no one else is able to get in a word." [Hahnemann] • "Talking increases the excitement, which is often accompanied by red spots on face and throat, and sweat on the face."1 Constantly BUSY, but not in an organized way. [Forgetful, of purchases, goes off and leaves them. Feels constantly as if he had forgotten something]. M FRIGHTFUL, persistent thoughts DURING REST [or when forced to sit]. Anxiety during rest. Sudden dreadful impulses [e.g. sudden impulse to KILL]. > If BUSY, eating and walking in open air.
• "Must do something, keep in constant motion or go insane." [Mathur]
M OCCUPATION and ACTIVITY >.
[restlessness, dreadful impulses, anxiety]
Impulse to run.
• "Zealous, restless, often literary, feeling that if it stopped its active brain would go mad, at the same time over-careful, exigent, impulsive, a great driver of itself even more than of others." [Wright Hubbard]
• Is constantly busy but complains about exhaustion and weight loss. The physician's strong suggestion to take things a bit easier, however, results invariably in the response that the present situation compels one to work so hard. In their compulsive industriousness these people have brought loads of obligations on themselves; they have managed to become the driving force everywhere. Aid and assistance are declined. 2
M Feeling as of having forgotten something.
• "He always feels as if he should think of something, he knows not what, and nothing comes to his mind." [Hering]
M Ritualistic behaviour.
[probably to restrict the restlessness, forgetfulness and impulses].
M Easily angered or insulted; always intent on revenge. [Mezger]
G VERY WARM; always TOO HOT.
• "Wants a cool place to move, think, or work in." [Nash]
• [After taking 6 drops of 10%-tincture at 8 a.m.] "At 8.30 fell into a peculiar condition; felt whole body seized with a peculiar quaking feeling, proceeding from stomach towards periphery, and causing sensation as if he would begin to tremble or to sweat all over. Whole body became actually warmer, the feeling being as if heat were greatest in region of stomach and spread thence over rest of body. A few minutes later this was accompanied by pressing feeling in cardiac region and weight at chest, whereby breathing was embarrassed." [Hughes]
c It should be noted that the drug picture of Iodum, in particular the generalities, are based upon [a] experiments solely with the tincture, [b] intoxications from substantial doses of the tincture in people with goitres, [c] clinical symptoms of hyperthyroidism.
Mezger points out that while two-thirds of the relevant rubrics regarding the body temperature relates to feelings of heat, still one-third includes such symptoms as chilliness, local coldness, etc. "Hands that are cold, blue, and often sweaty too, as if belonging to a frog, as it were, as well as cold, blue, sweaty feet and coldness of the skin all over the body, are often valuable indications for Iodum."3
G > EATING.
> Eating to satiety.
Always hungry. Even dreams of eating.
• [After taking 4 drops of 10%-tincture at 9 a.m.] "At 11 a.m. felt greatest desire for food and was obliged to satisfy it. Bowels acted a second time during evening, contrary to custom. After 5 drops taken as before felt after 45 minutes head slightly confused, and pains in whole frontal region. This lasted 1 hour and was followed by acute feeling of hunger, relieved only by midday meal. Felt obliged to eat again during afternoon, and in evening ate again ravenously. Same train of symptoms followed doses of 6, 7, 8, 10, and 11 drops." [Hughes]
G Weakness from hunger.
G Sexual desire increased or absent.
• "He told me that at night he had erections so constant and violent that he could have satisfied the desires of twenty-five women." [In a man who for a large goitre had taken a considerable quantity of tincture.] [Hughes]
G Walking in OPEN AIR >.
• Strong desire for fresh air - due to the increased oxygen need of the organism. Anxiety and faintness in narrow, stuffy, or crowded places; stays always close to exit or door. Gets into a vicious circle of anxiety and cardiac disturbances. The cardiac anxiety / arrhythmias / sensations improve by moving about in the open air and by eating. 4
G < Becoming HEATED. > Becoming COLD.
Faintness / weakness / nervousness on warm days or from exposure to sun. [Mezger]
[Jörg got pressing occipital headache from walking in the sun.]
G < Spring and Autumn. [Mezger] G < At seaside. [Mezger] G Swollen and indurated GLANDS. Followed by atrophy [thyroid, ovaries, mammae, uterus, prostate, lymph glands, tonsils, adenoids]. Or: • "Hypertrophy of all glands except mammary, which dwindle; while body withers, glands enlarge." [Nash] G Pains and constricting sensation. G Discharges increased [esp. nasal mucus, saliva, and urine]; thin, excoriating. P Basedow's disease and cardiac disturbances. 1-4 Mezger, Altes und Neues über Jod und Fluor; Allg. Hom. Zeitung, 1962/7. Rubrics Mind Anger, when touched [1]. Anxiety, in a crowd [1M], > after eating [1], when hungry [2], during rest [1], in a room [1M], > walking in open air [2]. Aversion to company, avoids the sight of people [2], avoids intimate friends [2], aversion to the presence of strangers [2]. Destructiveness [1]. Discontented with everything [1]. Eating > mental symptoms [1]. Exertion, mental < [1], physical > [2]. Feels constantly as if he had forgotten something [2]. Sudden impulse to kill [1]. Occupation > [2]. Restlessness while sitting [2]. Desire for travelling [2].
Head
Constriction, forehead, as from a band, from laughing [1/1]. Pain, > binding head [1], > closing eyes [1], > washing in cold water [1], from fasting [1]; forehead, from noise [2]; occiput, when walking in sun [1H].
Vision
Colours, red [1H]. Hemiopia, right half lost [1]. Polyopia [1]. Curved rays shooting from visual axis [1/1].
Ear
Opening and closing sensation like a valve [2].
Nose
Coryza, sudden attacks [2].
Throat
Pain, burning, at seaside [1/1]. Sensation of swelling [1H], tonsils [1H].
External throat
Goitre, painful, during menses [1/1]. Swelling, before menses [1/1], when speaking loud [1/1].
Stomach
Heat, extending over body [1H]. Sinking sensation after eating [2].
Rectum
Diarrhoea, > eating [1], after milk [1], < warm room [2]. Male Swelling, testes, from unrequited sexual passion [2/1]. Female Menses, absent, molimen only [1H]; increased during stool [1]. Pain, bearing down, uterine region, during stool [1]. Respiration Difficult, when lying on back [2], during menses [2], in warm room [2]. Chest Palpitation, > cold bath [2/1], > eating [1M], > motion [1M].
Limbs
Trembling, hands, when carrying something to mouth [1H].
Sleep
No need of sleep [1].
Dreams
Soiling himself with excrements [1]; wading in excrements [mud] [1/1].
Perspiration
When talking [2].
Skin
Skin becomes thick after scratching [2].
Generals
Room full of people < [1]. Weakness, from heat of summer [3], in warm room [2]. * Repertory additions: [H] = Hughes; [M] = Mezger. Food Aversion: [1]: Milk; sweets. Desire: [2]: Alcohol. [1]: Meat; refreshing; sour; stimulants. Worse: [3]: Heavy food. [2]: Alcohol. [1]: Fruit; fruit, juicy; milk; rich food. Better: [1]: Cold milk.
Iod.
 |
| Iodium |
[Greek proverb]
Signs
Iodine.
CLASSIFICATION Iodine is a member of the the halogen group of elements [group 17 of the periodic table, formerly group VIIa], along with fluorine, chlorine, bromine, and astatine. Discovered in 1811 by Courtois, iodine is classed among the rarer elements. It occurs sparingly in the form of iodides in seawater from which it is assimilated by seaweeds, in Chilean saltpetre and nitrate-bearing earth, known as caliche in brines from old sea deposits, and in brackish waters from oil and salt wells. Its worldwide soil distribution is extremely variable, resulting in areas where the element is lacking. These areas include the American Midwest and Great Lake area [described as the goitre belt], the English Midlands and South West England, as well as certain parts of China, Central Africa, Continental Europe [the Alps], Russia, the Himalayas, and South America [Andean countries]. In many developing countries iodine deficiency is endemic.
HALOGENS The halogens form diatomic molecules that are gases at normal temperatures and pressures and therefore are mobile and play significant roles in the the atmosphere, hydrosphere, and biosphere. Most of the halogens are found in relatively small amounts in the Earth's crust, with the exception of astatine, which does not occur naturally because it consists exclusively of short-lived radioactive isotopes. The halogens, particularly fluorine, are highly reactive, so that they never occur uncombined in nature. They were given the name halogen from the Greek hals, salt, and gen, to produce, because they all produce sodium salts of similar properties, the best known being sodium chloride, table salt. The halogens also combine readily with potassium. Each halogen atom carries seven electrons in its outermost orbitals and needs an electron to complete its octet. Potentially, the halogen atoms can hold one additional electron; in acquiring such an electron the atom acts as an oxidizing agent and in the process assumes an electrical charge and becomes an ion. Halogen elements exist in their salts as halide ions, which are very stable. Of the halogen elements, fluorine is prepared in the free state with the greatest difficulty and iodine with the least. There is no chemical way to prepare fluorine in the free state - since no chemical can take an electron from fluorine; it can only be accomplished with electricity of sufficiently high voltage. Of the halogens, fluorine is the most reactive, and iodine the least. Fluorine combines with almost any other element, but not with oxygen. With fluorine the hydrogen affinity is predominant, with iodine it has become very slight. An increasing affinity for oxygen exists in a series from fluorine to chlorine, to bromine, to iodine.
PROPERTIES Iodine is a bluish-black, shiny, non-metallic solid which volatilizes at ordinary temperatures into a blue-violet, corrosive gas. It forms compounds with many elements, but is less active than the other halogens. Iodine, as a halogen, needs an electron to complete its octet, but it is continually losing its shared electron because all of the natural halogens can and do replace iodine from almost any molecule. The result is that iodine constantly seeks an electron with little hope of ever maintaining it once it is acquired. Its chief sources are brines, which may have 50 ppm of iodide, and the Chilean nitrate deposits which contain up to 0.3% calcium iodate. Some iodine is also extracted from seaweed or sponges. It is only slightly soluble in water, but dissolves readily in chloroform or carbon disulphide to form beautiful purple solutions. Forty-two isotopes and isomers are recognized. Only one stable isotope exists [I-127], which is the one found in nature. There are five radioactive isotopes.
USES Iodine is used as a disinfectant and germicide; to reduce friction of hard surfaces, including stainless steel and glass; in pharmaceuticals, food supplements, dyes, catalysts, and photography. In the USA, Canada, Switzerland, New Zealand and some South American countries sodium or potassium iodide or potassium iodate is added to table salt to prevent lack of iodine in the general population. In the UK salt is not iodized. The radioactive isotope iodine-131, which has a half-life of 8 days, is employed in medicine to monitor thyroid gland functioning, to treat goitre and thyroid cancer, and to locate tumours of the brain and of the liver. It is also used in investigations to trace the course of compounds in metabolism. Several iodine compounds are used as contrast mediums in diagnostic radiology.
PHYSIOLOGY Iodine is essential to many species, including humans. It is excreted in the urine and in smaller amounts in saliva, milk, sweat, and bile. The functions of iodine reside solely in its presence in the thyroid hormones triiodothyronine and thyroxine. These hormones determine the level of metabolism in the body, i.e. essentially the rate at which we live. They are necessary for converting food into energy and the way that energy is dissipated. In addition, iodine calms nerves and improves the quality of hair, skin, nails, and teeth. The adult contains between 20 and 50 mg iodine, most of which is concentrated in the thyroid, while the rest is found, respectively, in the liver, bone, muscle and blood. Lack of iodine gives rise to goitre; underactive thyroid; cretinism. Lack of thyroid hormone [when iodine is adequate] gives rise to myxoedema. Deficiency of iodine can be caused by reduced dietary intakes, or by excessive intake of anti-thyroid foods, such as raw vegetables of the brassica family [broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, kale, cauliflower, turnip]. 1 These foods contain so-called goitrogens, substances which inhibit the absorption of iodine. Goitrogens are also present in such vegetables as spinach, lettuce, beets, and cassava, but are destroyed in cooking. Lithium, aminosalicylic acid [anti-tuberculosis drug] as well as some sulphur compounds also interfere with the metabolism of iodine and inhibit the synthesis of thyroid hormone.
FOOD Some of the best natural sources of iodine are kelp, seaweeds, haddock, shellfish, sunflower seeds, pistachios and onions. Milk may be a good source if it comes from dairy cattle encouraged to lick salt blocks that contain iodine. There is a general upward trend in the iodine content of most diets due to the overuse of iodized salt, the use of iodine-containing antiseptics on dairy farms, traces of which get into the milk, and the use of iodine-containing compounds as bread dough conditioners in the baking industry. 2
TOXICITY Iodine in its elemental form is toxic. Potential symptoms of overexposure include irritation of eyes, nose and lungs; lachrymation; headache; tight chest; skin burns, rash; cutaneous hypersensitivity. Ingestion of the liquid results in burning pain in mouth and oesophagus; severe corrosive gastroenteritis evidenced by vomiting, abdominal pain and diarrhoea; hypotension, tachycardia, cyanosis, and other signs of shock; headache, dizziness, delirium, collapse, and stupor; death may be due to circulatory collapse, asphyxiation from oedema of glottis, aspiration pneumonia, or pulmonary oedema; late oesophageal and pyloric stenosis have been reported. Its name comes from Gr iodes, violet, and refers to the vapour it gives when heated. Exposure to iodine-131 as a by-product of nuclear reactions can cause thyroid cancer as shown conclusively by the 1986 nuclear accident in Chernobyl, which resulted in high level exposure for many people.
IODISM Iodism is hypersensitivity to iodine itself or, more rarely, iodides after prolonged oral administration. Symptoms include severe coryza; headache; pain in the salivary glands; watery eyes; weakness; conjunctivitis; fever; laryngitis; bronchitis; skin rashes; exacerbation of acne.
THYROID The word thyroid derives from Gr thyra, a door, and eidos, form. Located as it is, in what Plato calls the isthmus between the body and the head, the thyroid, spiritually, is the mediator between the emotions and the thoughts, and the common denominator of the animal and intellectual life. Its removal always causes death, since it is the link between connecting spirit and personality or 'the passageway between the higher and lower natures of man. The thyroid is a regulator of energy in adapting one to one's environment. Termed in occult anatomy "the flower that blooms in the throat", the thyroid's spiritual secretion is considered to aid in "developing the larynx as a centre of power wherefrom the spoken word becomes a healing and a blessing."3 Also, the thyroid is occasionally referred to as the vanity gland, because functional disorders of it have a tendency to produce disproportion in the parts of the body and destroy the pleasing aspects of the personality.
HYPOTHYROIDISM An underactive thyroid can cause symptoms such as obesity, rapid pulse, goitre, hypothermia, constipation, general weakness, excessive menstruation, slow speech, deep hoarse voice, nervousness, irritability, and low resistance to colds and infections. Iodine deficiency can also increase the risk of breast and uterine cancer. Lithium has been reported to have a striking inhibitory effect on thyroid hormone release. The widespread use of lithium carbonate in the treatment of manic states occasionally results in the development of goitre with either euthyroidism or occasionally hypothyroidism in human patients. An increased risk for deficiency exists during adolescence as well as pregnancy and lactation. Hypothyroidism is 10 times more common in women than in men. According to the [American] Thyroid Society, one out of five women over the age of 57 have Hashimoto's thyroiditis, the most common cause of hypothyroidism.
HYPERTHYROIDISM In hyperthyroidism there is excessive activity of the thyroid hormones resulting in a high metabolic rate, an increase in temperature and sweating and a marked sensitivity to heat. Nervousness, tremor, tachycardia, frequent bowel movements, fatigue and muscle weakness, exertional intolerance and despond, decreased menstrual flow, impaired fertility, increased appetite associated with loss of weight, and changes in vision, photophobia, eye irritation, and diplopia may also occur. There are several types of hyperthyroidism of which two are common: diffuse toxic goitre [also called Graves' disease or exophthalmic goitre] and toxic nodular goitre. The latter does not usually have concomitant exophthalmos, and may develop in patients with long-standing simple goitre. Graves' disease is linked to other autoimmune conditions, such as Hashimoto's thyroiditis, premature grey hair, diabetes mellitus, arthritis and vitiligo.
PROVINGS •• [1] Hahnemann - 6 provers; method: unknown.
•• [2] Jörg - 6 provers, 1824; method: repeated doses of tincture, ranging from 1 to 18 drops. •• [3] Hering - self-experimentation with 5-10 drops of tincture.
[1] Mervyn, Vitamins and Minerals. [2] Silvermann, The Vitamin Book. [3] Heline, The Role of the Ductless Glands in Spiritual Attainment; Santa Monica, 1964.
Affinity
GLANDS [THYROID; testes; mesenteric; mammae]. MUCOUS MEMBRANES [LARYNX; lungs [r. apex or base]. HEART. Blood vessels. Skin. Nerves. Connective tissue. * Left side. Right side.
Modalities
Worse: HEAT [ROOM; air; wraps]. Exertion [ascending; talking]. Fasting. Night. Rest. Lying on painful side. Touch. Pressure.
Better: COLD [AIR; bathing]. Motion. Eating. Milk [constipation].
Main symptoms
M EXCITEMENT and intolerable RESTLESSNESS.
Restlessness < in room and while sitting. • "Iodum subjects are consumed by activity, and leave no space for contemplation in their lives. In Judeo-Christian mythology, this remedy takes us to the myth of Cain [the 'case of iodine']. Cain, the labourer, spends his time working the earth, disregarding any possibility whatsoever of contemplation, to the contrary of his brother, Abel, the shepherd. Cain feels rejected by God, becomes malicious and kills his brother. Afterwards, he is overcome with remorse and flees, distraught ... Iodum comes from the Greek word for 'violet.' In fact, this element gives off violet-coloured vapours when it burns. Violet, a mixture of red and blue, is the incarnation of temperance, red representing impulsive force and blue the calm of the sea and the sky. Violet is the symbol of a spiritual transfusion; it is the colour of submission and obedience. Iodum has forgotten temperance and is consumed in the flames of excess." [Grandgeorge] • "There is [in iodism] a very distressing nervous condition which the patients can hardly describe, an internal agitation like that which bad news will cause, or like the disturbance which follows a regretted quarrel or a remorse; it is impossible to fix the attention on one's reading, drawing, etc.; there are tears of impatience at the least contradiction." [Hughes] M Want to execute or express all their ideas and thoughts AT ONCE. LOQUACITY. HURRY. • "Remarkably lively and talkative, no one else is able to get in a word." [Hahnemann] • "Talking increases the excitement, which is often accompanied by red spots on face and throat, and sweat on the face."1 Constantly BUSY, but not in an organized way. [Forgetful, of purchases, goes off and leaves them. Feels constantly as if he had forgotten something]. M FRIGHTFUL, persistent thoughts DURING REST [or when forced to sit]. Anxiety during rest. Sudden dreadful impulses [e.g. sudden impulse to KILL]. > If BUSY, eating and walking in open air.
• "Must do something, keep in constant motion or go insane." [Mathur]
M OCCUPATION and ACTIVITY >.
[restlessness, dreadful impulses, anxiety]
Impulse to run.
• "Zealous, restless, often literary, feeling that if it stopped its active brain would go mad, at the same time over-careful, exigent, impulsive, a great driver of itself even more than of others." [Wright Hubbard]
• Is constantly busy but complains about exhaustion and weight loss. The physician's strong suggestion to take things a bit easier, however, results invariably in the response that the present situation compels one to work so hard. In their compulsive industriousness these people have brought loads of obligations on themselves; they have managed to become the driving force everywhere. Aid and assistance are declined. 2
M Feeling as of having forgotten something.
• "He always feels as if he should think of something, he knows not what, and nothing comes to his mind." [Hering]
M Ritualistic behaviour.
[probably to restrict the restlessness, forgetfulness and impulses].
M Easily angered or insulted; always intent on revenge. [Mezger]
G VERY WARM; always TOO HOT.
• "Wants a cool place to move, think, or work in." [Nash]
• [After taking 6 drops of 10%-tincture at 8 a.m.] "At 8.30 fell into a peculiar condition; felt whole body seized with a peculiar quaking feeling, proceeding from stomach towards periphery, and causing sensation as if he would begin to tremble or to sweat all over. Whole body became actually warmer, the feeling being as if heat were greatest in region of stomach and spread thence over rest of body. A few minutes later this was accompanied by pressing feeling in cardiac region and weight at chest, whereby breathing was embarrassed." [Hughes]
c It should be noted that the drug picture of Iodum, in particular the generalities, are based upon [a] experiments solely with the tincture, [b] intoxications from substantial doses of the tincture in people with goitres, [c] clinical symptoms of hyperthyroidism.
Mezger points out that while two-thirds of the relevant rubrics regarding the body temperature relates to feelings of heat, still one-third includes such symptoms as chilliness, local coldness, etc. "Hands that are cold, blue, and often sweaty too, as if belonging to a frog, as it were, as well as cold, blue, sweaty feet and coldness of the skin all over the body, are often valuable indications for Iodum."3
G > EATING.
> Eating to satiety.
Always hungry. Even dreams of eating.
• [After taking 4 drops of 10%-tincture at 9 a.m.] "At 11 a.m. felt greatest desire for food and was obliged to satisfy it. Bowels acted a second time during evening, contrary to custom. After 5 drops taken as before felt after 45 minutes head slightly confused, and pains in whole frontal region. This lasted 1 hour and was followed by acute feeling of hunger, relieved only by midday meal. Felt obliged to eat again during afternoon, and in evening ate again ravenously. Same train of symptoms followed doses of 6, 7, 8, 10, and 11 drops." [Hughes]
G Weakness from hunger.
G Sexual desire increased or absent.
• "He told me that at night he had erections so constant and violent that he could have satisfied the desires of twenty-five women." [In a man who for a large goitre had taken a considerable quantity of tincture.] [Hughes]
G Walking in OPEN AIR >.
• Strong desire for fresh air - due to the increased oxygen need of the organism. Anxiety and faintness in narrow, stuffy, or crowded places; stays always close to exit or door. Gets into a vicious circle of anxiety and cardiac disturbances. The cardiac anxiety / arrhythmias / sensations improve by moving about in the open air and by eating. 4
G < Becoming HEATED. > Becoming COLD.
Faintness / weakness / nervousness on warm days or from exposure to sun. [Mezger]
[Jörg got pressing occipital headache from walking in the sun.]
G < Spring and Autumn. [Mezger] G < At seaside. [Mezger] G Swollen and indurated GLANDS. Followed by atrophy [thyroid, ovaries, mammae, uterus, prostate, lymph glands, tonsils, adenoids]. Or: • "Hypertrophy of all glands except mammary, which dwindle; while body withers, glands enlarge." [Nash] G Pains and constricting sensation. G Discharges increased [esp. nasal mucus, saliva, and urine]; thin, excoriating. P Basedow's disease and cardiac disturbances. 1-4 Mezger, Altes und Neues über Jod und Fluor; Allg. Hom. Zeitung, 1962/7. Rubrics Mind Anger, when touched [1]. Anxiety, in a crowd [1M], > after eating [1], when hungry [2], during rest [1], in a room [1M], > walking in open air [2]. Aversion to company, avoids the sight of people [2], avoids intimate friends [2], aversion to the presence of strangers [2]. Destructiveness [1]. Discontented with everything [1]. Eating > mental symptoms [1]. Exertion, mental < [1], physical > [2]. Feels constantly as if he had forgotten something [2]. Sudden impulse to kill [1]. Occupation > [2]. Restlessness while sitting [2]. Desire for travelling [2].
Head
Constriction, forehead, as from a band, from laughing [1/1]. Pain, > binding head [1], > closing eyes [1], > washing in cold water [1], from fasting [1]; forehead, from noise [2]; occiput, when walking in sun [1H].
Vision
Colours, red [1H]. Hemiopia, right half lost [1]. Polyopia [1]. Curved rays shooting from visual axis [1/1].
Ear
Opening and closing sensation like a valve [2].
Nose
Coryza, sudden attacks [2].
Throat
Pain, burning, at seaside [1/1]. Sensation of swelling [1H], tonsils [1H].
External throat
Goitre, painful, during menses [1/1]. Swelling, before menses [1/1], when speaking loud [1/1].
Stomach
Heat, extending over body [1H]. Sinking sensation after eating [2].
Rectum
Diarrhoea, > eating [1], after milk [1], < warm room [2]. Male Swelling, testes, from unrequited sexual passion [2/1]. Female Menses, absent, molimen only [1H]; increased during stool [1]. Pain, bearing down, uterine region, during stool [1]. Respiration Difficult, when lying on back [2], during menses [2], in warm room [2]. Chest Palpitation, > cold bath [2/1], > eating [1M], > motion [1M].
Limbs
Trembling, hands, when carrying something to mouth [1H].
Sleep
No need of sleep [1].
Dreams
Soiling himself with excrements [1]; wading in excrements [mud] [1/1].
Perspiration
When talking [2].
Skin
Skin becomes thick after scratching [2].
Generals
Room full of people < [1]. Weakness, from heat of summer [3], in warm room [2]. * Repertory additions: [H] = Hughes; [M] = Mezger. Food Aversion: [1]: Milk; sweets. Desire: [2]: Alcohol. [1]: Meat; refreshing; sour; stimulants. Worse: [3]: Heavy food. [2]: Alcohol. [1]: Fruit; fruit, juicy; milk; rich food. Better: [1]: Cold milk.
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