By Reed Mangels, PhD, RD
The USDA, FDA, and NIH’s Office of Dietary Supplements recently developed a database of the iodine content of about 425 foods, including some vegan foods. The amount of iodine is given for a serving size of food and for 100 grams of foods.
Iodine is an essential mineral that is needed for the thyroid gland to work properly. An iodine deficiency can cause thyroid problems and poor growth and development in infants and children. Many people get iodine by using iodized salt. A quarter teaspoon of iodized salt provides about half of the Daily Value for iodine. You can read more about iodine in the vegan diet here.
The RDA for iodine for adults is 150 micrograms a day. According to the USDA, FDA, and ODS-NIH Database for the Iodine Content of Common Foods, Release 2,
- A 2 ounce soy-based veggie burger has 5.4 micrograms of iodine
- 3 cups of raw spinach also has 5.4 micrograms of iodine
- A cup of canned black beans has 2.4 micrograms of iodine
- A cup of almond milk has 0.9 micrograms of iodine
- 2 Tablespoons of nori has 116 micrograms of iodine
You can check some of your favorite foods here by downloading a zipped folder that contains an Excel file with iodine values per serving and another with per 100 gram values. You can read more about the database here.
To read more about iodine see:
Perchlorate Controversy Calls for Improving Iodine Nutrition