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Iodine in pregnancy

Two hundred micrograms a day, up from 150 — a third more, and one of the largest pregnancy increases in the table. The reason is blunt: for the first months, fetal brain development runs entirely on the mother thyroid hormone.

Note EFSA sur cette ligne :élevé d’un tiers pour le développement cérébral fœtal

Ce sont des valeurs de référence de population publiées, pas un diagnostic ni une prescription. Un apport de référence décrit ce qui couvre un groupe en bonne santé ; il ne peut pas dire votre propre statut, et aucune page ne le peut. Grossesse, maladie chronique, médicaments et malabsorption changent le tableau — posez ces questions à un médecin, une sage-femme, un pharmacien ou un diététicien.

The timing is the whole argument

The fetal thyroid does not begin producing hormone until partway through pregnancy. Until then, every bit of thyroid hormone reaching the developing brain comes from the mother, and thyroid hormone is built around iodine atoms. Maternal iodine supply in early pregnancy is therefore an input to fetal neurodevelopment in a very direct sense.

The window opens before most women know they are pregnant, which is the same structural problem as with folic acid. It is one reason iodine sufficiency is treated as a matter for women of childbearing age generally, not only for those already pregnant.

Why this is a live issue in the Nordic and Baltic countries

Iodine intake in this region has been a recurring public-health concern, and women of childbearing age have repeatedly been the group closest to the line. The mechanisms are ordinary. Sea salt and rock salt are usually not iodised, so the shift away from iodised table salt removes iodine. Salt-reduction advice, which is correct on its own terms, reduces the vehicle. And dairy, another significant carrier, is often reduced or replaced without a fortified substitute.

None of that is an argument for eating more salt. It is an argument for buying iodised salt when you buy salt, and for knowing where else your iodine comes from.

Where it comes from, and the one to avoid

Iodised salt, milk and dairy, sea fish and eggs are the practical sources in this region. The site food database does not carry iodine values, so this page describes sources rather than ranking them — inventing numbers would be worse than leaving the table out.

Seaweed is the exception that needs a warning rather than a recommendation. Kelp products can carry thousands of micrograms per gram, enough to exceed the 600 microgram adult upper level many times over in a single serving, and both too little and too much iodine disturb the thyroid. Kelp supplements are not a sensible way to cover pregnancy iodine.

This one belongs with your midwife

Thyroid function in pregnancy is monitored clinically where there is reason to, and thyroid disease in pregnancy is managed by specialists. Iodine supplementation in pregnancy is recommended in some countries and handled through diet in others, and the right answer depends on the local food supply as much as on the individual.

Ask at your antenatal appointment. It is a one-sentence question with a locally correct answer, which is more than any reference table can give you.

Comment cela se compare à chaque autre groupe

Aliments ordinaires contrethe 200 µgchiffre pourgrossesse

L’instantané de composition alimentaire derrière ce site ne porte pas deiodevaleurs, donc il n’y a pas de tableau calculé sur cette page. Inventer des chiffres serait pire que de les omettre ;les sections ci-dessus décrivent d’où il vient à la place.

Tout le nutriment, pas seulement ce groupe

The Iodepage d’apport de référence porte le tableau complet d’âge et de sexe, le niveau supérieur, et ce que le type de valeur signifie.

Pages liées

Sources :valeurs nutritionnelles de référence EFSA · Règlement (UE) n° 1169/2011, annexe XIII · USDA FoodData Central SR Legacy (composition des aliments) · Avis scientifique de l’EFSA sur les valeurs de référence nutritionnelles pour l’iode (2014) · Ligne directrice de l’Organisation mondiale de la santé sur la carence en iode et l’iodation du sel· vérifié2026-09-06

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