Can Nutrition Heal Your Thyroid?
Excellent question.
The thyroid is a small gland in our necks. It stores iodine, which it uses to create thyroid hormones, these hormones are picked up by every cell in our body, and signal how hard the body should work. If you have more thyroid hormones than you should (hyperthyroidism) you can feel jittery, have heart palpitations, and struggle to keep weight on. If you have less thryoid hormone (hypothyroidism), then your body runs a bit slower, you'll be tired and lethargic, have brain fog and be forgetful, you may put on weight, your bowels can be slower leading to constipation, you may feel the cold more, your skin can be dry, nails brittle and your hair and eyebrows can thin out. Low thyroid hormone levels can affect fertility and sex-drive.
What's this got to do with Nutrition or me as a Nutritional Therapist?
So I mentioned Iodine - we can get this from dairy as it gets added to cattle feed for the cows own health, it's in seaweed, cereals and grains, fish, eggs, turkey. If your diet is low in iodine, or you have issues with absorbing iodine, your body will struggle to create enough thryoid hormones.
We also need vitamin B6, zinc, selenium, copper and the amino acid tyrosine to create and then convert the hormones effectively into their active form.
Your doctor may have put you onto medication, levothyroxine. This is a replacement hormone for your thyroid, think HRT for thyroid function. However, it is not the active form of the hormone; your body needs to convert this, for it to be effective. So it’s not a case of just taking the meds and all is fine. Your body still needs selenium, zinc and copper for the enzymes that do this work, even though you’re taking medication.
And, because levothyroxine binds to calcium, it’s advised to not take it at breakfast-time if you’re having yoghurt or smoothie, or a large latte. In fact, caffeine also affects absoprtion, so you’ll need to take it well in advance of your morning coffee too.
If you’ve been diagnosed with Hashimoto’s or Graves’ Disease, both being autoimmune reactions, then you need to also be aware of your immune system function. ‘Boosting’ your immune system will cause your body to act against itself causing more symptoms, so the emphasis is more on nurturing your immune system and improving self-regulation. Vitamin D is an effective immune regulator. Ensure you include plenty of vitamin C rich foods, vitamin A and carotenes and zinc. Ashwagandha and echinacea on the other hand, whilst wonderful herbs for someone else, may stimulate your immune system too much and cause issues, so are best avoided. Some links have been shown between autoimmune thyroid disease and gluten, and a gluten-free diet can be beneficial for some people.
So here are some foods to include in your weekly shop to help nourish your thyroid and optimise thyroid hormone levels:
Tyrosine: Avocado, pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds, sunflower seeds, cashew nuts, chicken
Iodine: Seaweeds, fish, wholegrains
Zinc: Oysters, lentils, pumpkin seeds
Iron: Beef, leafy green vegetables, carrots
Selenium: Brazil nuts, cottage cheese, tuna
Copper: Shellfish, lamb, pecan nuts
Magnesium: leafy green veg, lentils, cocoa
Manganese: Watercress, pineapple, blackberries.
So back to the original question. Foods alone won’t reverse thyroid disorders, but a combination of the right nutrients and medication can help restore impaired thyroid function and minimise your symptoms.
Where to start? For some support with this, why not book a session?
