Diet and thyroid

[Thyropausal]

I would like to ask everyone if diet is really detrimental to the health of the individual with hypothyroidism in terms of becoming gluten, dairy, meat free etc. Do we need to be as restrictive as this and does it help? Your honesty and experiences are truly welcomed.

[TiggerMe Ambassador]

It's a process of elimination but once you find which foods your body doesn't tolerate well it is a gamechanger, for me it's nightshades, dairy, barley and high histamine foods

If I avoid these I avoid nausea, migraines, IBS and a general feeling of being poisoned

[Thyropausal in reply to TiggerMe]

Thank you, this is useful advice

[Sparklingsunshine]

I'm meat free but that predates being Hypo by several decades. Its a moral choice and a taste choice for me. I eat moderate amounts of bread but only occasionally and I eat dairy. My hypo isnt autoimmune as far as I know so cutting stuff out has always seemed a bit pointless. I'm wary of extreme exclusion diets as they are both boring and in danger of being nutritionally unsound.

[Thyropausal]

Thank you for taking the time to respond and share your experience

[SlowDragon Administrator]

Diagnosed with autoimmune thyroid disease 30 years ago

like many with Hashimoto’s, I have found strictly gluten free an astonishing improvement, despite no obvious gut issues. Gluten free since 2017

And dairy free since 2022 ……again similar improvement.

Soya free at least 20 years

[jgelliss in reply to SlowDragon]

👏👏👏👏

[LifeintheMed in reply to SlowDragon]

Out of interest - what improvements did you see?

[SlowDragon Administrator in reply to LifeintheMed]

More details on my profile

Gluten Free 2016 after endoscopy

Energy and Mobility improved significantly,

lumpy skin on elbows (had all my life) slowly disappeared. Vitiligo and psoriasis vanished

Word recall and brain fog improved significantly after about a year

Vitamin levels needed less supplements to maintain

Conversion of Ft4 to Ft3 improved a little but I still ended up getting T3 prescribed on NHS

Dairy free since summer 2022

Legs were increasingly swollen - diagnosed as Lipodema stage 2 in 2021

my.clevelandclinic.org/heal...

since going dairy free lipodema has now virtually completely gone

Weight dropped over last 8 years by 15 kilo ….approx half the 30kg I gained over 30 years on Levo

[LifeintheMed in reply to SlowDragon]

Amazing results!

[Lulu2607 in reply to SlowDragon]

SlowDragon Inspirational. Well done as that sounds like a long tough journey.

[FallingInReverse]

I think it’s undeniable that diet is important to our health… I think exclusion diets are more individual.

Since hypo my body has now done a 180 on how I feel after eating sugar. I used to eat sugar candy all the time - now it immediately puts me to sleep.

Alcohol is the same but a little more hit or miss.

So right now for me, I don’t have to ask what’s right for me because it’s so ridiculously obvious what’s not. Kind of like what Tigger says above.

I also eat well overall - no processed foods, balanced meals. Etc. Now that I’m hypo, If I don’t eat healthy it takes no longer than the next morning to feel dysfunctional until I get some nutrients in me.

That being said - I have gluten free on the bottom of my action plan for managing my symptoms. I know that whether gluten intolerant or not, it causes inflammation, and inflammation is the root of all evil! I will consider after I optimize my thyroid hormones and get through my other action items. I totally think it’s worth a try when I can commit.

Last year I stopped drinking milk and avoided dairy for a long while, but I felt no different, so I’m now very happy eating butter, cheese, drinking milk etc again.

[greygoose]

I have tried gluten-, dairy-, sugar-, nightshade, alcohol-, meat- and soy-free diets. And the only one that had any effect - i.e. made me feel better - was soy-free. Certainly none of these diets had any effect on my Hashi's. That just continued on its journey of destruction regardless of what I did or didn't eat.

[Espeegee]

I think you need to have the nutritional needs of your body at the forefront of how you nurture yourself, randomly removing anything can deny yourself something essential. Nutrition is a science that is still expanding as more research takes place. The one thing that is a universal truth is that sugar is a poison best severely restricted, not easy though as it's in everything processed just about. Everyone has different tolerances so I guess slowly removing one thing at a time is sensible but try not to exclude essential things. I know some eschew eating meat but you then deprive your body of some minerals and vitamins so would need to consider supplementation. The effects of removing a whole food group need careful consideration.

[Zephyrbear in reply to Espeegee]

“…sugar is a poison best severely restricted, not easy though as it’s in everything processed..”

I think the food industry has already restricted the use of sugar in just about everything and substituted it with literal poisons such as aspartame! I defy you to find a soft drink that hasn’t got that particular poison in it, and they recommend you give your kids this! Thank you but, no I’d rather take my chances with sugar!

The same is happening with salt - another one of those substances marked evil by some… and instead of being seasoned in a balanced way, food manufacturers now have to “flavour”, aka disguise the blandness of their product, with handfuls of pepper which makes it totally inedible to those of us with a total aversion to pepper!

I no longer buy any processed food anymore because it’s easier to prepare from scratch using the raw ingredients I like and flavouring them according to my own tastes and if that involves a ton of sugar or salt, so be it… you only live once!

[Sparklingsunshine in reply to Zephyrbear]

Agreeed, I have IBS and cant tolerate pepper or spicy food. I rarely eat any prepackaged veggie food but in the past I've found they make it spicy or peppery to hide the fact there's no salt in it. Its vile. Its made eating out very tricky.

[Espeegee in reply to Zephyrbear]

Absolutely agree with one small exception, sugar will never be safe as such but natural is better than chemical so using say honey or maple syrup rather than very processed sugar is better.

[Zephyrbear in reply to Espeegee]

Good point and I do use honey quite regularly.

[Fizzyinch]

if you have autoimmune hypo or hyper thyroidism there is a link between autoimmunity and poor gut function and systemic inflammation. As everyone has said, everyone is individual. What might work for one person might not for another. A good start if you’re not feeling well and have optimised everything else (medicines, vitamins etc) is the autoimmune paleo diet, you can then introduce foods back one by one and see how you feel.

I worked with a nutritionist and naturopath for over a year and removed a lot of foods including gluten, soy and diary. I can’t say I have felt any difference since introducing gluten again, despite everyone saying it has a big effect on hashimotos. I tend to eat it only occasionally because of the volume of pesticides used when wheat is produced.

[Fizzyinch in reply to Fizzyinch]

Oh and personally, I felt much much better once I started eating meat again (husband is vegetarian).

[Astridnova in reply to Fizzyinch]

Not surprising. That's the only way to avoid B12 deficiency.

[buddy99 in reply to Astridnova]

That.....or taking a B12 supplement.

[Mostew in reply to Fizzyinch]

Organic should be fine

[Coulby]

I stuck to the diet...it made no difference..Then I spoke to my Specialist and she said there are no diet restrictions other than watching salt intake...Wish you the best x

[Mostew in reply to Coulby]

Not sugar?!

[Coulby in reply to Mostew]

Thanks for that Mostew...I asked my Endocrinologist about sugar and she said our bodies need some sugar and as long as you're not over doing it there is no restriction on most foods ...Just don't overdo it. I have read all the restrictions on the Web and was a bit anxious about the does and don'ts!🌻

[Pollypet]

Hi Nettie - I’ve tried restricting all the usual foods in the past and felt no real difference. I eat a healthy, rounded diet trying to avoid too much processed food, salt and sugar. What did help the most though was this group! Through here I learnt all about the importance of blood tests in checking the various vitamins and minerals that are commonly low amongst Hashis and supplemented where necessary. Once I had done this, I felt so much better. But, as everyone says, we are all individuals and trial and error is often the only way. Good luck.

[Thyropausal]

Thank you so much which vitamins/minerals did you find vital? Xx

[Pollypet in reply to Thyropausal]

Hi Nettie - following private blood tests, I took extra Vit D, a Vit B complex or B12 plus worked on ferritin and folate to make sure these levels were optimal and also a magnesium supplement. In my previous post I forgot the most important thing this group helped me with and that was the importance of my TSH being at the lower end of the scale rather than the upper, as mine was. So, with my GP’s blessing I gradually increased my Levothyroxine from 125mg to 150mg by 25 mg, initially every other day but this was too much so now it’s twice a week. So far, so good!

[HowNowWhatNow]

GF has really helped me to cope with brain fog. I only tried this diet because my son is gluten intolerant and then suddenly felt the fog lift one day. Am more sensitive to sugar’s effects - much as my son is, too - now but don’t know why this is. I haven’t tried all the other types of diets. Since becoming hypo I have had some gut issues, which I had never had before. Eg. H Pylori. So when I had that I had to try the SIBO diet. I felt better on it but it was way too exclusionary for me, day to day.

[Bluesadawg]

Everyones different, as others have said, but for some people dietary changes make a huge difference. My hypo is autoimmune & I have to carefully exclude quite a lot of things ( gluten, dairy, brassicas, raw tomatos, egg yolks, flax seeds, brasil nuts, too much sugar) having had proffessional advice on replacements. But the difference is very marked. If you’re affected by food it can take quite a long time to learn about what works & doesn’t work for you tbh. But is worth it. Food intollerance blood tests can speed things up & be helpful, but bear in mind they don’t always include all things that might affect you. Mine didn’t show up gluten, which is absolute poison to me, but did show up quite a few things I wouldn’t of guessed.

A good thing to do might be to keep a food diary, including every single thing you eat & when, and how you feel. Allergies will show up within an hour, but intollerances can cause symptoms for up to 3 days after, so a diary might really help.

Also there may be things you can add to your diet, on top of suppliments. I have added more protein to my diet lately (in the form of vegan protein powder) as I read somewhere that getting more energy from protein sources rather than carbs can help with hashimotos. So far so seems to be.

Excluding things can be tricky, but its an interesting journey in exploring more food & trying more things :-). Good luck

[Geegee777]

Hi, I have hashimotos, taking t4/t3 combo.What works for me is strict gluten free,very minimal dairy....milk in my decaf tea struggle to find suitable alternative but going toward black tea very slowly . Protein in meats and fish, vegetables nuts and ground seeds,fruit and green smoothies.

When I fancy sweet things a teaspoon of quality honey does the trick and ALWAYS staying hydrated...plain water or add lemon juice.

I used to really enjoy my bread ,crisps and chocolate and gin. However feeling well is paramount and it's taken quite a while ,approx 3yrs to get here, good luck on your thyroid journey 🌸🌸

[buddy99]

I did an elimination diet and now avoid gluten. My diet is a whole food plant based one for the most part, but I occasionally eat an egg or fish. Sugar is my bane. I absolutely love sweet stuff and suffer the consequences when I give in to that craving. I have found that sometimes my body decides that it is time to mix things up again and then a food that was just fine before now is not. Over time I have learned the importance of listening to my body whether it comes to diet or exercise or stress or whatever. Ignoring or misinterpreting it usually leaves me being miserable. It seems the "learning" never ends.

[dealsgap]

I could not drink the store bought homogenized processed milk. I started drinking “real” milk two years ago and not only is it better tasting but my body (especially my gut) loves the probiotics and the beneficial bacteria/enzymes.

I can say the same with salt. Typical table salt that is just sodium chloride. I started using “Sea salt” and not only did I enjoy it but my body actually feels better when I use it.

A lot of the things we eat are processed and if you add in a toxic body (needs detoxing) then of course these things will add to the already inflammation (dis-ease) of Hypo/Hyper thyroidism.

Going back to "whole" type products (unprocessed) and "cleaning" the body I found is what helped me the most. Have to do both one without the other symptoms still exist at least for me they did...

[Fizzyinch in reply to dealsgap]

where do you buy your milk?

[dealsgap in reply to Fizzyinch]

I'm located in the states, there is a website where you can located "real milk" farmers. I'm sure that there is one there also. (Don't "google" to search as google will tell you that you will drop dead 2 minutes after consuming it???)

[mstp]

After being on thyroxine for about eight years, I went off meat. For a number of years, I was veggie all the time reassuring anyone who asked that it wasn't because I didn't want to eat animals it was just that my body didn't want to. Eventually, I discovered through Healthunlocked that the thyroxine wasn't working. I have been on liothyronine for about 12 years now, and as my health improved, I began fancying meat again. I think meat is probably difficult to digest, and as my gut was going downhill my body opted for easier foods. I now eat a very healthy diet including gluten and dairy. Twenty months ago I did the Zoe Personal Nutrition Programme, and that also helped me understand how to eat better.

[radd]

nettiebrennan2012,

For myself .... defiantly gluten free, dairy free not necessary (but I do prefer almond milk in coffee), and a little bit of meat is essential, eg more poultry and fish type protein than actual red meat.

I would say if you go meat-free it is a good idea to take an amino acid supplement that contains the full spectrum, as adequate is essential for the good workings of thyroid hormones.