Pregnant women need iodine to avoid risk of stillbirth

KARACHI: The deficiency of iodine causes more than 30,000 stillbirths in Pakistan annually and 120,000 children are born mentally challenged due to the lack of iodine intake by expecting mothers. Some 36.5 percent of mothers with children less than five years old have a serious iodine deficiency while 22.9 percent of school children have difficulty in learning caused by iodine deficiency, which causes a decline of at least 15 Intelligence Quotient (IQ) points, CDGK District Officer Health (Curative) and spokesman for Universal Salt Iodination (USI) Dr Zafar Ejaz told Daily Times.

Iodine deficiency has affected more than 50 million people around the globe and has caused various health problems such as thyroiditis and impaired learning in children at school and a lack of reproduction, early abortions and stillbirths in women. There are 566,000,000 thyroiditis patients, 50 million mentally challenged and two billion generally affected people in the world, informed Ejaz.

In Pakistan, only 17 percent of the population uses iodized salt, while 20 percent of world’s population is without iodized salt. Various brands available in city lack the required admixture of iodine and salt and only 17 percent of salt producers add the 50 parts per million (ppm) of iodine as is necessary for health.

There is no law that could govern the use and sale of iodized salt in country. Iodized salt does not vary in taste from non-iodized salt, but is pivotal for good health. It is necessary that the government promulgates a law requiring iodination of salt and people be advised to use iodized salt. Places of congregation such as mosques should be asked to play a role in promoting the use of iodized salt. Consumers should ask shopkeepers to sell only iodized salt.

The government provides iodine at the subsidized rate of Rs 350 per kg and one kg of iodine is enough for 20,000 kg of salt, CDGK Health Education Officer and Sindh USI extender Shakeel Ahmed told Daily Times. An adult needs 150 micrograms of iodine per day, while nursing and expecting mothers require 200 micrograms per day. There is no budget allocation for USI programmes at the federal or provincial levels, but the CDGK extends support by bearing promotional expenses and supplying manpower. The USI programme was first launched in Switzerland in 1922 and western countries have overcome iodine deficiencies.

Courtesy: Daily times