Experts say Beijing residents consume adequate iodine

Residents of Beijing take in an appropriate amount of iodine, most of which comes from iodized salt, the city's health and family planning commission said on Wednesday.

The commission said a survey showed that under current dietary patterns and cooking methods, Beijing residents take an average 250 to 300 micrograms of iodine a day, of which 70 percent comes from iodized salt.

Monitoring by the city's center for diseases prevention and control on the urinary iodine of residents showed that in 2013, the nutritional iodine status was good for women of childbearing age, adult males, children aged 8 to 10 years old, and pregnant women.

The center monitors the iodine intake for these "key groups" of people every year by testing urine samples, according to Pang Xinghuo, deputy director of the center.

For example, "in order to test children aged 8-to-10-years-old, we select students at fourth grade randomly in every district," she said.

The environment of Beijing lacks iodine, and people can meet their needs by consuming iodized salt, the commission said.