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Is iodine for white spots on the skin

Posted By Francisca (Michelbach-le-bas, Alsace, France) on 07/12/2010

This is a question especially for Ted or Bill but also for anyone else who might have an answer. Like other people here I suffer from these unsightly spots (I am 53) especially on the legs and arms but they are a bit everywhere and they get bigger every year. The worst ones are on the legs being a Mediterranean type you see them quite a lot. As I said here I consulted a natural doctor in Portugal a little while ago and he gave me a liquid based on iodine. For the time being I don't see any difference. My question is based on the iodine: someone told me that in the old days she used to add a few drops of iodine to coconut oil to use on the beach because one seems to tan better with the iodine tincture. A few days later this doctor gives me the solution with iodine so I started wondering if adding a few drops to the coconut oil which I use anyway would maybe be a good idea. I would like your opinions before I try as I don't want to make a bad mistake. All doctors, natural or not, who have had a look at my spots say that it is not vitiligo. The natural ones tend to say that it is a fungus one catches from the sand.

Replied by Francisca (Michelbach-le-bas, Alsace, France) on 07/15/2010

I will post my question again as I think that neither Bill or Ted saw it! In the meanwhile I found out the name of this condition: Idiopathic guttate hypomelanosis. The white spots start on the legs, usually appear in older people, don't itch and spread to the arms and chest. It is a discoloration of the skin due to it being "tired" of the sun. My husband has it too but he is British so never had a lot of sun in his life and is very careful as well.

http://www.dermnet.com/Idiopathic-Guttate-Hypomelanosis/picture/15257
http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/1068422-overview
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Idiopathic_guttate_hypomelanosis

My question: there isn't any real cure "A variety of therapeutic methods, including topical steroids, topical retinoids, dermabrasion, cryotherapy, and minigrafting, have been used for idiopathic guttate hypomelanosis with variable success". I visited a natural doctor in Portugal and he gave me an iodine solution because he thought that it was a fungus, now I know that it isn't but in the meanwhile someone told me that in the old days one used to add iodine to coconut oil to tan better. Could this be a good idea? I tried to add a few drops, first the solution was slightly yellow but the next day it was white again. My husband told me that it was because the iodine disappears in contact with the light. Many people suffer from this problem so some ideas would be welcome!

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