The Fight Against Goiter
Washington state public health officials launch a campaign to combat adolescent goiter through iodine-fortified chocolate tablets.
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The physicians of Washington, acting through the Public Health League, have begun a community health campaign of more than ordinary importance. A state-wide effort will be made to enlist the interest of parents and of school authorities in a fight against goiter. The preventive measures are simple and easily applied, and by establishing cooperation among the individuals and agencies interested in community welfare, it is predicted that the incidence of this ailment in children of school age will be greatly lessened. In announcing the campaign, Robert O. Jones, Secretary of the Public Health League, explained that the ailment is caused by a deficiency of iodine in the water and the soil, resulting in an enlarged thyroid gland. The remedy lies in administering small doses of iodine in chocolate tablets. No attempt will be made to persuade parents to accept the treatment; the facts will be brought to their attention, and parents will be asked to give written permission to administer the remedy as a preventive or curative agent.
“Simple goiter of the so-called adolescent type yields readily to treatment and is easily preventable. The ailment is caused by a deficiency of iodine in the water and the soil.”
Public health initiatives regarding regional environmental deficiencies continue to be a pillar of Washington’s healthcare strategy. This 1923 campaign highlights the state’s historical reliance on organized medical expertise to address widespread physical ailments.
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