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Comment by phkahler | Hacker News Reader

I was diagnosed with asthma in my mid 40s after my first major attack. "Your lungs are those of an 84 year old". After dealing with standard treatments and the side effects for a while, I started searching and found something.

Magnesium (200mg) and Iodine (1mg). After several months on just that: "Your lungs are better than average for your age".

Your mileage may vary. I doubt there is one size fits all solution, but this has served me well for years.

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Did you get any tests after standard treatment and before taking Magnesium and Iodine? Is it possible that the standard treatment worked well, even if it had side effects? I am just a curious ignorant layperson.

The standard treatment was working but had side effects. It's also something you have to do for the rest of your life, which is why I wanted to stop it. I was off that and on my other stuff for at least 3 months before testing my new normal.

What kinds of magnesium and iodine did you use? Do you live in a goiter belt?

1mg == 1000 micrograms. RDA for iodine is about 150mcg for teens and adults, 220mcg for pregnant women and 290mcg for lactating women. I think the Japanese diets contain 1000-3000mcg (1-3mg).

RDA for Iodine is kind of low. The upper limit is actually quite high and the Wolff-Chaikoff effect seems to be either temporary or not even real. But have your thyroid checked if you're going to supplement Iodine just to be sure.

My understanding is the RDA is the bare minimum to avoid obvious symptoms of deficiency, and that everyone does better with 500 to 1000mcg. I think there's a case to be made for being cautious about getting too much supplemental iodine - I've read reports on /r/iodineprotocol of people who started taking mega-doses and aren't doing so well.

I take 400-600mcg of iodine every other day. This is 2-3 drops in water. The carrier is ethanol. Pure iodine doesn't dissolve in water, so the drops become a cloud when dispensed into water.

Which salts of those minerals specifially do you take?

Magnesium glycinate - more recent because glycine is good for you too.

I started with kelp tablets for the iodine 150mcg x6. But not I just use Lugols solution in my morning caffeine drink.

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