Hi guys,
I'm really thinking of going vegan. Has anyone been successful with this diet? Either stayed the same as before veganism or found that their symptoms and bloods improved? I know I will have to supplement and Im happy to do that. Im finding I feel a bit sicky after eating rich and heavy foods and wondering if Id feel better on a plant based diet. And please no nastiness about being a vegan or scaremongering about the diet. Im looking for facts and personal experience. Thanks!
Hi Mary,
I do like beans and pulses. I like a lot of veggie and vegan meals. Always happy to try them and don't feel like Im missing out. I've found an excellent resource on youtube. Mic the vegan 
who talks a lot about getting the right nutrition and supplementing B12 and other vits/minerals where required. He also talks about amino acids. I'm not bad at the whole nutrition thing anyway as I love learning and particularly about food/exercise and mental health. The studies he shows have got me thinking in all honesty and it might help me be more focused on my nutritional needs instead of making lazy choices as we all often do.
I get all my vitamins and minerals tested. I take good quality vitamins/ minerals where required.
I think vegetarian would be better than vegan. My sister-in-law found it difficult to maintain her vitamin levels and her weight on a vegan diet. When she travelled or went on holiday she always went back to a vegetarian diet as this made it easier for others to cook for her.
Are you already on strictly gluten free diet?
If so, being vegan or even vegetarian as well, might be very restrictive
I looked at some information from Izabella Wentz on vegan diets, and she doesn't recommend them with Hashimotos:
thyroidpharmacist.com/artic...
I feel quite good following a mostly whole food diet that includes meat. I struggle to digest legumes though.
Your main problem will be having to supplement B12 - there are no vegan sources of B12 in actual food and the seaweeds etc that are "said" to contain it actually contain a B12 analog that stops you from absorbing real B12. Vit D can also be a problem if you are doing it for "ethical" reasons and don't want to take a supplement made from sheep's wool. If you are gluten free, be aware that it is almost impossible to get gluten free vegan meals in chain hotels/restaurants (I have had to have the same dinner 3 nights running and no breakfasts as I'm working away - and another2 to go!). Can be difficult to get enough protein unless you are careful. It stopped my asthma (but that might have been the gluten free) but didn't help my thyroid.
I have been vegan for a short spell in the past and actually very much struggled - I found it way too stodgy for me and hard to digest. Eating loads of veg was great and I loved that aspect, but beans and lentils and quinoa as protein sources wasn’t great for me. I’m now dairy free (and gluten and soy) so that aspect has gone, but get protein from meat, following a Mediterranean style diet I guess. Hashimoto’s too.
V similar to Yppah; gluten / dairy / processed meat / beef free is as far as I am going with it. I've had low iron, low zinc, low b12 and the more I think about it symptoms of vitamin a deficiency on veggie diets. Vitamin a should be available from carrots etc. but Hashi's sufferers may struggle to convert vegan vitamin a i.e. beta carotene into retinol resulting in dry skin, eye issues, poor iron absorption and poor immunity from respiratory infections. Also, vegan means giving up eggs and are full of amino acids, and vitamins... I couldn't give them up. Cutting out pre-cooked and processed meat is something to consider though, especially if you have histamine issues (histamine intolerance).
Vegan diet and thyroid health 
Vegans 'need to be aware of B12 deficiency risk'
Probiotics with Hashimotos
Vegan diet without a thyroid
