Trouble Focusing and Concentrating
Iodine is essential to brain health, and a deficiency can lead to trouble concentrating. To understand the possible problems of iodine deficiency, it’s essential to know a little about how the brain works. The brain uses a lot of energy and needs plenty of fuel sources to keep running smoothly. One of its primary sources is glucose (sugar), which comes from food a person eats, and ketones are produced when they don’t have enough glucose available.
Glucose is transported through the blood-brain barrier by an enzyme called GLUT-1, which requires selenium as part of its structure. If there isn’t enough selenium around or if the GLUT-1 enzyme isn’t working correctly due to lack of iodine, this can cause problems with the ability to focus and concentrate.
Along with this, memory may suffer too. This is because the brain uses glucose as its primary energy source, and if there isn’t enough around, the ability to think clearly will suffer. The good news is that selenium and iodine deficiency is rare in developed countries. However, they can be more common in people with specific health issues, such as Crohn’s disease or celiac disease.
