Reactive oxygen species (ROS) play an important role in physiological processes, but-when being in excess-ROS cause oxidative damage to molecules. Under physiological conditions, the production and detoxification of ROS are more-or-less balanced. Also in the thyroid, ROS and free radicals participate in physiological and pathological processes in the gland. For example, hydrogen peroxide (H 2 O 2) is crucial for thyroid hormone biosynthesis, acting at different steps of the process. Additionally, H 2 O 2 is believed to participate in the Wolff-Chaikoff's effect, undergoing in conditions of iodide excess in the thyroid. It is the purpose of this review to attempt a synthesis of what we currently know of thyroid hormones production and their relation to oxidative stress and selenium, a trace element.