Deanne, so sorry to hear you have to deal with the A Fib, but glad that I posted this info now. I often come across things I think might be interesting here, and if I don't stop and post right away, I get distracted and forget. But something today just made me want to put this here, and I just looked up the guide link on Stephanie's blog, so you can download if you want to take a look and see the protocol for using iodine in her practice, well actually the practice of Dr. Brownstein, since he's her mentor and good friend.
http://steppingstonesliving.com/theguide/It took me a while to "get it", and wish I hadn't waited so long, esp. with regards to my daughter, since it sounds like iodine is essential element for having a healthy, intelligent child. With the first child, unless the mother is supplementing, or lives in an area that is naturally iodine rich, the growing child takes all the iodine away from the Mom. And whatever is left, is literally sucked away during nursing. Sorry for the graphic description, but it's true. So that if more pregnancies follow, there can be a serious deficiency of iodine, and the hormones that are dependent on sufficient iodine supply to be produced in the fetus and the mother. It's mind blowing to me, how the medical community can consider this life giving element, toxic!!! Just another serious faux pas, that is causing serious medical issues in people.
… for example, folks in Japan ingest approx. 13.8 mg of iodine daily, in their diet. While our RDA is measured in MCG! After Fukushima, the government in Japan was handing out 1000 mg iodine/iodide supplements to the folks living close by. We all should be taking at least 12.5 mg a day, and some of us much, much more, to combat all the toxic halides we are bombarded with daily in this world.
One thing I would like to mention, it seems that the more congested the liver is, the more problems can happen during detox. Detox will happen for almost everyone, esp. in the US> taking iodine will push out bromide and fluoride, and other toxic things that are clogging the iodine receptors in the body and unless your liver is functioning pretty well, it won't be flushing out these halides, but they will recirculate and cause havoc in the body. That's probably where the medical community came to the conclusion that iodine was causing the problems, when supplemented in larger doses, but it's not the iodine, it's the stuff it sets free, and believe me it's no picnic. I have had some of those detox symptoms, they are different for everyone, and can be headaches, lower back pain, acne, moodiness, dark thoughts, so not something to play around with. The best way to detox is by using salt flushing, it's all described in the Guide To Supplementing above, but just wanted to make sure you're aware that the protocol really does need to be followed. It's not rocket science, but does need a bit of studying to make sure it's all remembered. Most of the supplements I already took, and some I added.
Wishing you the best, and hope this helps you stay off that medication, we all know what I think of all those meds and their side effects!