Almonds and almond milk: Does almond milk... - Thyroid UK

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Almonds and almond milk

Six-string profile image
34 Replies

Does almond milk inhibitit thyroxine?

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Six-string profile image
Six-string
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34 Replies
greygoose profile image
greygoose

No.

Six-string profile image
Six-string in reply togreygoose

Thank you.

greygoose profile image
greygoose in reply toSix-string

You're welcome. :)

BadHare profile image
BadHare

Only if you find almonds very goitrogenic.

There's only a few nuts in a glass of almond milk, so it's not a lot to worry about.

Six-string profile image
Six-string in reply toBadHare

Thank you

greygoose profile image
greygoose in reply toBadHare

Goitrogens are a red herring. Doubtful you'd ever consume enough to make any difference to you, even if you weren't on thyroid hormone replacements. Being on THR, the thyroid doesn't need to upload iodine to make hormones. And that's all goitrogens do: impede the uptake of iodine by the thyroid. It's only soy that has an effect at a cellular level. And none of them affect the hormone you take exogenously. :)

BadHare profile image
BadHare in reply togreygoose

Thanks greygoose , good to know!

greygoose profile image
greygoose in reply toBadHare

You're welcome. :)

BadHare profile image
BadHare in reply togreygoose

I've just remembered I ate a few kilos of almonds in January with no ill effect, & less mess than pistachios when I was stuck in bed. :)

greygoose profile image
greygoose in reply toBadHare

lol A few kilos, no less! lol

BadHare profile image
BadHare in reply togreygoose

I was stuck in bed so straining kefir was a challenge. I ate mostly nuts for the first week. Shells are far worse than toast crumbs!

You are what you eat. 🙃

greygoose profile image
greygoose in reply toBadHare

Nut shells in bed just doesn't bear thinking about! Ouch! :)

pvw2 profile image
pvw2 in reply toBadHare

Almonds can have an ill effect if you eat 2 kilograms per day; not practical.

BadHare profile image
BadHare in reply topvw2

It wasn’t a day, probably 7 or 8, & not by choice. Not eating at all for that long, & not being able to get out of bed & stand isn’t practical either.

wellness1 profile image
wellness1 in reply toBadHare

Isn't the potential issue with almonds/almond milk their calcium content? We are advised to take thyroid hormones 4 hours away from calcium supplements. Let's say a typical calcium supplement contains 400 mg of calcium carbonate. 1 ounce/28 grams of almonds contain 76 mg of calcium. The almond milk I drink contains 120 mg of calcium per 100 ml. If I drink 250-300 ml of almond milk, that's 300-360 mg of calcium. So couldn't that interfere with the absorbtion of levothyroxine (or liothyronine) if consumed within 4 hours?

greygoose profile image
greygoose in reply towellness1

I presume you're talking about breakfast? If you do that every day, your dose will be adjusted to compensate, because your hormone levels will be low.

wellness1 profile image
wellness1 in reply togreygoose

I wanted to address the OP's question about whether almond milk can affect levothyroxine absorption due to its calcium content. But in the specific example I gave, I'm talking about a small midday dose of T3 and my frustration in timing it away from calcium-rich food. I don't consume the same amount each day and I never test after my midday dose of T3, so my dose wouldn't be adjusted to compensate for the effect of dietary calcium on absorption. But perhaps Six-string is consuming the same amount of almond milk each day at about the same time after his or her dose of Levo.

greygoose profile image
greygoose in reply towellness1

Well, you wouldn't test after a midday dose of T3, anyway. The levels are accumulative. Not based on a single dose. If something was affecting one of your doses, it would lower your over-all level and you would know you need to adjust your total dose.

But, when I use the word 'you', I'm not speaking specifically about you, I'm just speaking in general. Maybe I should say 'one', rather than 'you'. :)

wellness1 profile image
wellness1 in reply togreygoose

When I wrote, "...I never test after my midday dose of T3..." I should have written "one would never test after a midday dose of T3. :)

To the OP's question, I suppose one could say that almond milk may have an effect on thyroid hormone absorption, but if it is consumed regularly the dose could be adjusted to reflect that. Then I suppose it would follow that the same could be said for those who take calcium supplements, although they are often told not to take them within 4 hours of Levo.

greygoose profile image
greygoose in reply towellness1

One could say "one would never test after a midday dose of T3", but it's not just about one dose and one test, is it, however you care to phrase it. It's about all the doses you take in the six weeks before tests put together.

And one could possible stretch the imagination far enough to say the same about calcium supplements, but isn't it far, far easier just to leave a gap of four hours? After all, it's not exactly difficult.

wellness1 profile image
wellness1 in reply togreygoose

I enjoy reading your comments, greygoose. :)

Hookie01 profile image
Hookie01

Almond milk made my thyroid swell, people with thyroid disease are supposed to avoid too much consumption of Almonds.

SlowDragon profile image
SlowDragonAdministrator

You might find this link interesting on almonds and Hashimoto’s

thyroidpharmacist.com/artic...

RockyPath profile image
RockyPath

And from the standpoint of social responsibility, almond growers need to be discouraged from continuing on their current path of expanding the uses of these seeds (almonds are not nuts).

They keep planting in response to success in selling products. Currently California has about a half million hectares under cultivation for almonds (about the size of Somerset), and it’s sucking the aquifers dry, so that many towns no longer have water for the human population. It’s terrible. Please think of people with no water in their homes when you look at a carton of almond milk.

wellness1 profile image
wellness1 in reply toRockyPath

Thanks for this comment, RockyPath. I hadn't really heard much about this, despite generally paying attention to environmental impact news. The growers like to focus on how much less impact it has compared to dairy milk. I got hold of some macadamia nut milk to try. I don't like it as much and it's wildly expensive, but the calcium content is good. It's made in Australia using regenerative farming techniques. Less environmental impact but a big carbon footprint to export it. sigh...

When it Comes to Nut Milk, what's the Most Sustainable Option?

wellandgood.com/good-food/m...

Realtiger profile image
Realtiger in reply towellness1

I’ve given up almond milk for this very reason - also because of the way in which bees are transported to almond orchards and suffer from infections and parasites because they are put to work to pollinate crops so intensively. Oat milk seems to come out best in the sustainability stakes but may not suit those on a strict gluten free diet. Can’t do right for doing wrong!

wellness1 profile image
wellness1 in reply toRealtiger

That's terrible about the bees!

I will phase out of almond milk, but I avoid oat milk due to the gluten issue.

Some of these articles include instructions for making one's own nut milks. I'm not really a DIY nut milk kind of gal :D

Liyaelize profile image
Liyaelize

Almonds are very high in oxalates. If you have any oxalate issues have no more than 7 per day

Workingitout profile image
Workingitout

I have Hashi’s and on 75mg daily. Have been looking into Oxalates too after being diagnosed with polymyalgia (painful joints caused by inflammation) which l had for 3 months. I am now avoiding oxalate rich foods like almonds, spinach, sweet potatoes and chia seeds and eating more meat. Pain has virtually gone, though don’t know for sure if it’s the diet changes that have made the difference, did add magnesium powder, CoQ10 and selenium supplements which are all supposed to help with auto-immune issues. Interesting videos on you tube if you google oxalate poisoning.

Nannyval profile image
Nannyval in reply toWorkingitout

I thought Almonds were good I’ve been eating on the well known Ice Cream

Nannyval profile image
Nannyval in reply toWorkingitout

I eat spinach and chia seeds regular I really don’t eat red meat at all and had really painful jilts is that done to chia seeds which I’ve eaten every day this week

Workingitout profile image
Workingitout in reply toNannyval

Wondering if there would be any harm in cutting down on these foods for a week and seeing if there is any reduction in your joint pain?

Dee-ivy06 profile image
Dee-ivy06

Soya is the one to avoid,I drink almond and/oat milk

Skylane2 profile image
Skylane2

I don’t think it does. I know biotine does and shouldn’t be taken 4 hours before or after your thyroid supplement. My doctor recommend taking the thyroid on an empty stomach and not eating, or Taking any other supplement for 1-2 hours

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