She explains that iodine deficiency in a pregnant mother can lead to irreversible brain damage for the baby. "Iodine deficiency is the leading cause of preventable mental retardation in the world ...

Testing ruled out their first suspicion. But further tests pinpointed what they — and the boy — had been missing: iodine. A century ago, iodine deficiency affected kids across large swaths of ...

Iodine is crucial for foetal brain development. It's particularly important in the first three months of pregnancy because the growing baby's thyroid action only starts to kick in at about 14 weeks.