By Chioma Umeha
To reduce growing incidence of thyroid diseases,
Nigerians have been advised to eat foods fortified with iodine.
Giving the advice was Dr. Bolanle Olajumoke
Okunowo, an Endocrinologist, who explained that iodine is a micronutrient that
is essential for the production of thyroid hormones.
She further said that the body does not make
iodine, so it is an essential part of diet. Iodine is found in various foods.
If you do not have enough iodine in your body, you cannot make enough thyroid
hormone. Thus, iodine deficiency can lead to enlargement of the thyroid,
hypothyroidism and to mental retardation in infants and children whose mothers
were iodine deficient during pregnancy.
Dr. Okunowo, spoke at the maiden edition of a
sensitisation programme, organised by Layi Erogbgbo Foundation (LEF) to mark
this year’s World Thyroid Day with the theme, ‘Check your neck, know your thyroid’
in Lagos.
According to her, thyroid gland contribute to all
the activities in the body and when it is not working well it affects different
vital organs in the body, thereby making it to malfunction or under-function.
The primary source of iodine is the diet via
consumption of foods that have been fortified with iodine, including salt,
dairy products and bread, or that are naturally abundant in the micronutrient,
such as seafood.
Dr Okunowo who is a senior registrar at the Lagos
State University Teaching Hospital LASUTH noted that endemic thyroid problems
all over the world is been recorded at 2.2 billion and Nigerian is one of the
goitrous zones in the world, that is where endemic goiter occurs probably due
to iodine deficiency. “This iodine we are talking about is mainly from the food
we eat and that’s why we are advocating for supplementation of food and it can
only be done by taken iodized foods.”
Recommended daily iodine intake is 150 µg in
adults who are not pregnant or lactating.
About 500 students, teaching and non-teaching
staff from both public and private schools in Lagos State weekend, benefitted
from the awareness campaign.
Mr. Goriola Erogbogbo, the founder of LEF, said
that the event targets students and teachers in public and private schools in
the State to enlighten them about the disease and related issues.
He also said that the vision of the foundation is
to protect and enhance the health of the less privileged through surgical
operations for about 100 patients annually besides meeting their medical needs
through community outreaches to over two million Lagosians.
“It is our belief that health management approach
will help us achieve our aims of preserving and enhancing the lives of the less
privileged families for their well-being and success,” he remarked.
Stating the objectives of the Foundation,
Erogbogbo said that LEF, a non-profit organization is dedicated to providing
support with highly subsidized access to surgery, pre-surgery tests and
treatment to tackle Goitre disease, raising awareness to promote knowledge in
respect of preventive measures against the occurrences of the diseases among
the citizenry while also advocating positive lifestyle to reduce the
manifestation.
He said the organisation intends partnering with
the Lagos State Ministry of Education to carry out free awareness campaign for
public and privately-owned secondary schools in the State on the importance of
optimal functioning of the thyroid gland in childhood, during pregnancy and
throughout adult life.
He said the decision to take the campaign to
schools is anchored on the fact that the youths are the most vulnerable group
due to their unhealthy lifestyle and ignorance of the consequences.
He noted that the World Thyroid Day is dedicated
to thyroid patients and all professionals including those who are committed to
the study and treatment of thyroid diseases worldwide.
Answering the question on how the foundation funds
its activities to achieve its objectives, Erogbogbo stated that funds are
raised from the founder’s equity contributions, donations from corporate
organisations and public spirited individuals that share the vision of the
foundation.
Advising the participants on the significant of
the IEC materials distributed at the event, he charged them to utilize them and
spread the knowledge they have acquired about the disease to others, especially
family members, friends and colleagues to further drive home the campaign
amongst the citizenry.
Topics delivered at the program include Basic
steps to reduce family risk factors, Preventive measures and control of thyroid
disease, Signs and symptoms of thyroid disease as well as food and healthy living.
