Hypothyroidism and Your Diet

The thyroid is a small gland that is present in the throat, resembling a butterfly. Despite barely coming up to an ounce in its weight, its hormones have a huge impact on every single part of your body and, hence, your health. 

The thyroid gland is responsible for a range of bodily processes, including fat and carbohydrate metabolism, regulating your body temperature and maintaining your heart rate. Calcitonin, another hormone that the gland produces, can help regulate the amount of blood calcium. Hypothyroidism, then, or having an under active thyroid, means that your thyroid gland is not producing sufficient essential hormones for your body. This can reduce the metabolism rate of the body, leading to weight gain, fatigue and more. 

Various nutrients help maintain the healthy functioning of the thyroid, particularly iodine and selenium. Iodine plays an undeniable role in the production of thyroid hormones, which is why this trace mineral is quite influential when it comes to its association with thyroid disorders. 

Deficiencies in other micronutrients such as iron, selenium, vitamin A as well as zinc can also become associated with proper iodine nutrition and its impact on the thyroid. 

Dietary Impact 

Your diet can have a huge influence on the symptoms of hypothyroidism. There are several foods that can lead to an improvement while several others can have an adverse impact, worsening the symptoms even more. 

There are several trace elements such as zinc, iodine, copper and selenium that are essential to produce thyroid hormones. Having a deficiency in any of these can make the effects of hypothyroidism worse. Conversely, thyroid hormones are necessary for the absorption of zinc, which is why hypothyroidism can also lead to a zinc deficiency. 

Thus, when it comes to your diet, you should be aware of the following points. 

• Foods containing nutrients like iodine, selenium and zinc are essential for your thyroid to function well. 

• Some foods may negatively impact thyroid function and worsen the symptoms of hypothyroidism. 

• Some foods and supplements can block the body’s absorption of thyroid replacement medicine, so you should try to restrict their consumption. 

• Foods or your diet alone will not cure hypothyroidism but combining them with the prescribed medication can help recover thyroid function while also reducing the symptoms. 

Essential Nutrients 

Iodine 

Iodine is essential to produce thyroid hormones. These hormones can nourish your skin cells and regenerate your hair follicles. When the levels of these hormones are low, this nourishment and regeneration cannot occur as it should, resulting in dry skin and constant hair loss. Moreover, thyroid hormones can aid the body’s sweat regulation. People with inadequate levels of such hormones produce lesser sweat as compared to those with regular levels. Iodine can also warm up your body, which its lack can make you feel cold. In this case, since the body is unable to produce iodine, people need to supplement it through their diets. 

It is essential to eat foods rich in iodine such as cheese, milk, fish, seaweed and other kinds of seafood, eggs, prunes/dried plums and fortified iodized salt. In India, iodine deficiency is quite widespread. Based on surveys of 325 (so far), 263 have an endemic of this iodine deficiency. An iodine deficiency can also lead to an enlarged thyroid gland, referred to as Goitre. 

However, make sure you do not consume iodine excessively either since this can worsen not only hypothyroidism but also hyperthyroidism, which is an excess of thyroid hormones in the body. Thus, you should only supplement your diet with iodine if prescribed or recommended by a doctor. 

Selenium 

This micronutrient is required to produce thyroid hormones and maintain antioxidant activity. Selenium can also reduce inflammation and boost your immunity by providing protection against viruses. A 2017 review found that maintaining selenium levels in the body can help prevent thyroid diseases and improve overall health. 

Foods rich in selenium include brazil nuts, tuna, shrimp, seafoods, organ meats, beef, turkey, chicken, ham, eggs, oatmeal, brown rice, whole grains, dairy products, lentils, soya, nuts and various seeds like pumpkin, flax, sunflower and chia. 

Zinc 

Zinc can particularly help people with low thyroid hormone levels. Zinc can help maintain your overall health and is essential for more than 300 enzyme functions while also contributing to important bodily processes. It can help absorb nutrients, boost the immune system and help repair body tissues. 

Our bodies do not store zinc which is why you must consume it in healthy amounts on a daily basis. Oysters and shell fish, beef, crab, pork, chicken, eggs, dairy products, fortified cereals, whole grains, legumes, seeds, nuts, few fruits and vegetables and dark chocolates are some foods rich in zinc. 

You can get zinc from grains and plant foods and while this will not be as effective as animal foods, they can still help considerably. 

Foods You Should Avoid 

Some foods can be harmful for thyroid health. Although you can still eat these foods, reducing their consumption can make it easier for you to control your hypothyroidism. In essence, you should avoid dietary extremes. 

Goitrogens 

Goitrogens are natural chemicals found in several plant-based foods. Consuming too much of these foods too often can adversely impact your thyroid health. 

Foods containing goitrogens can interfere with the thyroid function by restricting iodine absorption and usage by your body. Goitrogens can essentially block the consolidation of iodine into essential thyroid hormones like thyroxine (T4) and triiodothyronine (T3). 

They also restrict the release of hormones by the thyroid gland and disturb the peripheral conversion of the thyroid storage hormone T4 into the active thyroid hormone T3. In large quantities, these can lead to goitre. They might also slow down your healthy thyroid function and lead to hypothyroidism. 

In normal amounts, however, vegetables with goitrogens can be good for your overall health and do not cause any issues. Also, cooking the vegetables with these chemicals can deactivate the compounds, making them harmless 

Examples of such foods include cauliflower, cabbage, broccoli, brussels sprouts, kale, spinach, strawberries and more. 

Soy 

Avoiding soy when it comes to hypothyroidism is quite a contentious issue with varying viewpoints. 

The treatment of hypothyroidism usually includes a synthetic thyroid hormone. Soy is believed to restrict the body's ability to absorb this medication. However, there is no evidence that people with hypothyroidism should completely stop their soy intake. Figuring out how soy can impact thyroid function requires further research. 

Soy milk, soya sauce, tofu and miso are some examples of soy-rich foods. 

Gluten 

People with Hashimoto’s Disease — a cause of hypothyroidism — are more likely to develop celiac disease since these are both autoimmune disorders. Having one of these disorders is more likely to lead to the other. 

Some studies suggest that getting rid of gluten from your diet improves thyroid function in people with Hashimoto’s who do not yet have celiac disease. This disease can lead to chronic inflammation along with harm to the small intestine through the ingestion of gluten. 

Treating celiac disease requires a gluten-free diet. Thus, people with autoimmune-related hypothyroidism can try going gluten-free in case there is an improvement if your doctor recommends it. 

Processed foods 

Processed and ultra-processed foods with added sugars and preservatives are generally harmful to your health if eaten in large quantities. Reducing their intake can improve symptoms, regulate weight, and boost your immunity. 

Fast food, burgers, donuts, cakes, cookies, pastries, soft drinks, chips, packaged foods, among others, are some examples.

You should also avoid taking your thyroid hormone at the same time as: 

• Walnuts 

• Soybean flour 

• Cottonseed meals 

• Iron supplements or multivitamins containing iron 

• Calcium supplements 

• Antacids that contain aluminium, magnesium or calcium 

• Ulcer medications 

• Some cholesterol-lowering drugs, such as those containing cholestyramine and colestipol 

You can still eat these foods several hours before or after you take your thyroid medication. 

Foods You Should Eat 

Hypothyroidism can make it easy to gain some weight but there are several things you can do to avoid this. For example, getting a good amount of rest, 

eating sufficient protein, being mindful of what you eat, undertaking yoga and meditation and having a moderate carb diet can help you out. 

There are several foods you can eat if you have hypothyroidism such as the following: 

• Eggs: Consume whole eggs since most of their iodine and selenium are found in the yolk, while the whites are full of protein. 

• Meat: all meats, including lamb, beef, chicken, etc. 

• Fish: all seafood, including salmon, tuna, shrimp, etc. 

• Vegetables: all vegetables — cruciferous vegetables are okay to eat in moderate amounts as long as you cook them properly. 

• Fruits: all fruits such as berries, bananas, oranges, tomatoes, etc. 

• Gluten-free (if required) grains and seeds: rice, buckwheat, quinoa, chia seeds, and flax seeds 

• Dairy: all dairy products, including milk, cheese, yogurt, etc. 

• Beverages: water and other non-caffeinated beverages 

People with hypothyroidism should ideally have a flexitarian diet that emphasizes vegetables and fruits but fewer meats. Vegetables and fruits take should form half of your plate with the rest of it comprising whole grains and lean protein foods. The protein can be meat, poultry or fish or even plant-based protein such as beans, lentils, tofu, or tempeh. 

Final Remarks 

To sum up, hypothyroidism can interfere with your general health to quite an extent. Improving your dietary intake with certain helpful nutrients while restricting some harmful ones can help minimize the symptoms. Make sure you always combine this diet with the medication that your doctor recommends.