The Use of Iodized Salt and Iodine Deficiency Disorders (IDD): The Saudi Arabian Experience

Salt iodization is the universal strategy for elimination of IDD, the quality of iodization program is crucial for achieving this goal. Iodine deficiency (ID) is the world’s leading cause of intellectual deficits and associated with increased prevalence of goiter. In the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) there is an acute scarcity in IDD data across the country. In this concern, the influence of iodine deficiency disorders (IDD) was comprehensively investigated. The study targeted school children aged between 6 to 12 years to establish baseline information for salt iodization and iodine deficiency disorders in the area. Iodine nutritional status of the targeted population was assessed by measuring of urinary iodine concentration (UIC) which was used also to define, indicate, survey and monitor ID. The results reveal that almost 100% of the households in Jazan area use iodized salt, however only 46.9% use it adequately. Therefore, overall median for the measured UIC is very high (420 μg/l), which in turn indicates an occurrence of excessive iodine intake by the targeted population. This situation might lead to adverse health consequences including iodine-induced hyperthyroidism and autoimmune disease if the relatively high national standard for salt iodization of 70 – 100 ppm remains unrevised. [Bani I. The Use of Iodized Salt and Iodine Deficiency Disorders (IDD): The Saudi Arabian Experience. Life Sci J 2014;11(10):286-291] (ISSN:1097-8135). http://www.lifesciencesite.com. 41