GLOSSARY

Iodine Status describes adequacy in the body, with marker validity and the meaning of deficiency assessed for the particular element.

For example, interpret a post-race iodine result with sampling time, drinking and recent illness; one value alone is not a supplement prescription.

Much absorbed iodine is excreted in urine, making urinary concentration useful for population assessment. A single random sample depends strongly on recent intake and urine dilution and does not definitively establish one person's long-term adequacy. Thyroid tests answer related but different questions. For a fatigued athlete, assigning every symptom to iodine or relying on a skin home test does not provide a sound supplement indication.

Iodine forms part of thyroid hormones; iodide is a common ionic form in absorption and food sources. Iodized salt, some seafood, dairy and eggs contribute variable amounts depending on region and production. Sea or pink salt is not necessarily iodized, so read labels. Adequate iodine does not mean indiscriminately increasing salt; dietary planning can coordinate suitable iodized-salt use with overall sodium goals.

Intake, absorption and body status are distinct. An apparently adequate food record can coexist with poor uptake from intestinal disease or medicines, while one low-intake day does not establish clinical deficiency. Interpret repeated food records, longer-term patterns, symptoms and suitable markers together. Fatigue after one training session is not a specific diagnostic test for an individual mineral.