[Frequency of goiter and urinary iodine in the Peidmont school children. Data on iodine contents in some local food].
The frequency of thyroid alterations was examined and dietary iodine intake was assessed via urinary iodine in 6-15 yr-old schoolchildren from 145 towns in Piedmont and the Aosta Valley. Local food iodine values were also determined in 56 towns. Alteration frequency and daily urinary elimination of iodine were inversely proportional, even within individual school populations. The endemic goitre urinary iodine threshold (around 40-50 mug I/g creatine) varied from area to area, with as much as double this value in some instances. Drinking water iodine was usually from 0 to 3 mug/l, with relatively low values in high localities. Much higher levels were noted in the presence of salsobromoiodic hot springs. Local Piedmontese foods contained less iodine than those bought in city markets.