Toxic Bromine In Our Food Supply

Toxic peanut butter?  A research study in Environmental Health Perspectives reported on the contamination of 46 food items purchased from a Dallas grocery store (Environ Health Perspectives:-. http://dx.doi.org/10.1289/ehp.1204993; 2012).  The scientists were assaying the food samples to determine if they were contaminated with flame retardants made with bromine (hexabromocyclododecane).  The food sampled included different types of fish, deli meat, and peanut butter.  Fifty percent of the food items tested positive for bromine contamination including the peanut butter.

I have written extensively about bromine in my book,  Iodine:  Why You Need It, Why You Can’t Live Without It as well as my Natural Way to Health monthly health newsletter (http://w3.newsmax.com/newsletters/brownstein/bromine.cfm?PROMO_CODE=8988-1).  Bromine is a toxic substance with no known value in the human body.  It is in the family of halides which includes iodine, chlorine and fluoride.  Each of these halides can competitively inhibit the other halides.  That means that too much bromine can cause the body to excrete iodine and replace iodine with bromine.  For example, if the body has too much bromine and not enough iodine, thyroid hormone can be brominated instead of iodinated.  Studies have shown that the breasts and other tissues that normally store iodine can accumulate bromine instead of iodine. 

Unfortunately, every one of the more than 600 patients that I have tested for bromine has tested positive.  This includes sick as well as healthy patients.  I found myself to have an extremely high level of bromine. 

Where is the bromine coming from?  Bromine is used as part of a family of fire retardants.  It can be found in many consumer items such as furniture, clothing, mattresses, baby furniture, and computers.  Furthermore, bromine is also found in many sodas as brominated vegetable oil.  This includes Mountain Dew and some Gatorade products.  Now, with this study, we can add peanut butter, deli meat and fish to the growing list of contaminated consumer products.

What can you do?  As I explain in my book, it is essential to maintain optimal iodine levels.  Our continued exposure to bromine requires the daily supplementation with iodine.  Over the last 30 years, due to our increasing exposure to bromine, our iodine requirements have increased.  A health care practitioner knowledgeable about iodine and bromine can test your levels and guide you on proper iodine supplementation. My experience has shown that the RDA for iodine (150ug/day) is woefully inadequate to compensate for the excess bromine toxicity we are facing.  My clinical research has found that, for the vast majority of patients, 6-50mg of a combination of iodine and iodide (Lugol’s iodine, Iodoral, or Iodizyme HP) is the appropriate dose to help the body maintain sufficient iodine levels.  This dose is also necessary to aid the body in excreting excrete excess bromine.

Finally, limit your exposure to bromine.  Do not ingest food that contains bromine including food that is made from brominated flour and brominated vegetable oil.  Ingest adequate amounts of unrefined salt—Selina's Celtic Brand Sea Salt or Redmond’s Real Salt—as this also aids the body in eliminating bromine.  Liver detox is also helpful.  Total Liver Control (TLC) is a liver detoxifying product that I (and my partners) have developed.  You can order this product from my website at:  http://www.chm-natural-supplements.com/index.php?main_page=advanced_search_result&search_in_description=1&keyword=TLC.  

Following the holistic principles that I outline in my books and newsletters can help you overcome illness and achieve your optimal health.