Thyroid Diet – What (Not) To Eat To Improve Thyroid Function

What to eat in order to improve thyroid levels?

What to do when your thyroid levels are out of balance? To reverse your thyroid condition, eat clean and healthy. In addition, keep your stress level low, take the right supplements and avoid environmental toxins.

Here’s the best food for thyroid problems. What to eat (and not to eat) to improve your thyroid condition:

1. Avoid gluten

Especially if you have Hashimoto’s, you must stay away from gluten. The main reason is, it can initiate thyroid antibody production. Substantial drops in TPO levels are possible just from removing gluten. It is important to regularly check your optimal thyroid levels and adjust your diet accordingly. 

According to Kris Kresser: 

I recommend that you avoid gluten if you have AITD (autoimmune thyroid disease ), regardless of whether tests show an active antibody response. This is especially true if you have one of the genes (HLA DQ1,2, or 3) that predisposes you to develop gluten intolerance. In my opinion, continuing to eat gluten when you have a confirmed autoimmune condition simply isn’t worth risking the immune destruction it could cause.

In fact, the more I learn about gluten and its effects on the body, the more I think we’d all probably be better off not eating it. Mark Sisson has written extensively about the dangers of gluten and gluten-containing grains, so head over there and have a look if this is new to you. The short version: foods that contain gluten (both whole grains and flours) contain substances that inhibit nutrient absorption, damage our intestinal lining, and – as I’ve described in this article – activate a potentially destructive autoimmune response. What’s more, there are no nutrients in gluten-containing foods that you can’t get more easily and efficiently from foods that don’t contain gluten.

The good news is that if you have AITD and are gluten intolerant removing gluten completely from your diet will dramatically improve your health. It’s not easy, but it’s worth it.

2. Cruciferous vegetables: broccoli, cauliflower, kale

You’ve been probably advised not to include them raw in your diet when you suffer from hypothyroidism. However, they are packed with cancer-preventing phytonutrients. Eat them raw in moderation, cooked or juiced.

As hormones balance website says,

There is no evidence that cruciferous vegetables slow down or “kill the thyroid.” Unfortunately, there are many health bloggers who don’t fact-check and have cut and re-pasted incorrect statements claiming that “all leafy greens are foods to avoid with hypothyroidism,” when that’s not the case.

In fact, cruciferous vegetables are super nutritionally dense foods so they are good for women with thyroid issues who are often depleted in micronutrients.

Why leafy greens are great in diet for thyroid health

While it’s possible that large amounts of raw cruciferous foods can somewhat inhibit the thyroid gland’s ability to take up iodine to produce the T4 hormone, there’s a bigger picture. If you have a condition such as Hashimoto’s, the primary focus should be restoring your digestive tract and detoxifying the body – as they are usually the original triggers for thyroid conditions. Avoiding cruciferous vegetables completely does not help improve those health issues.

Leafy greens are richer in vitamins and minerals than any other of their distant veggie cousins. As most Americans are undernourished, cutting out these foods then makes us rely further on supplements – which is not the way we should be living and healing.

Since 90% of thyroid problems occur for autoimmune reasons, I believe it’s more important to restore the health of your immune system through your gut, than obsess about cutting out all crucifers.

I have found that for most women who experience hormone imbalance symptoms, the benefits of cruciferous vegetables outweigh the very small risks. The color and sharp, often bitter flavor of cruciferous veggies confer an impressive range of health benefits that largely come from their levels of glucosinolates, which are powerful plant chemical compounds which come in around 120 different varieties.

3. Do not eat soy protein isolate.

While the fermented soy products are much probably safe for you, soy protein isolate must be avoided. It means no soy milk and yogurt, energy bars that contain soy. Also the “soy meat” products such as burgers and sausages.

Whether people who have hypothyroidism should avoid soy is a topic of debate.

Hypothyroidism, as anautoimmune thyroid disease,  is generally treated with synthetic thyroid hormone — and soy has long been thought to interfere with the body’s ability to absorb the medication. However, there’s no evidence that people who have hypothyroidism should avoid soy completely.

If you have hypothyroidism, take thyroid hormone replacement as directed by your doctor. Medication can be taken at any time that’s best for you, and it’s okay to take it on an empty stomach or with food — as long as you do the same thing every day.

Generally, it’s best to wait four hours after taking thyroid medication to consume any products that contain soy. The same guidelines apply to other products that may impair the body’s ability to absorb thyroid medication, including concentrated iron and calcium supplements, and antacids that contain calcium or aluminum hydroxide. – Mayoclinic.org

4. Brazil nuts.

Brazil nuts are full of selenium and are included in foods to help hypothyroidism. It is essential in converting thyroxine to T3 and it achieves the T3 normal range. And it decreases thyroid antibodies. Eat a couple of Brazil nuts as a snack through the day.

Selenium is an antioxidant, a critical constituent in the production of thyroid hormones, and plays a vital role in the conversion of the primary thyroid hormone (T4) to the more bio-active thyroid hormone (T3). Selenium also counteracts the oxidative stress and inflammation that can come from excesses of iodine (and its by-products) surrounding the thyroid tissue, or as a result of the immune overdrive present in Hashimoto’s.

When I co-taught a ‘Eat to Beat Breast Cancer’ class many years ago, foods high in selenium were at the top of my list of natural immune supportive agents. Selenium has several important functions in the body beyond the optimum thyroid levels, and in today’s stressful climate, too many of us are deficient in this important nutrient to ignore it’s impact.

In it’s prevention against oxidative stress, we can think of this key mineral as useful in thwarting heart disease, rheumatoid arthritis, and, as I noted, cancer, among other things. It’s a precursor to the production of glutathione, the “mother” of all antioxidants. It’s depleted in our soil, due to a number of environmental factors, and blood levels of selenium have been shown to plummet as we age, leading to increased cognitive decline. – Hypothyroid Mom

5. Maca.

Maca is priceless as it balances the hypothalamus and pituitary. They are essential for the release of TRH – thyroid-releasing hormone and normal TSH levels. Basically, they are hormones responsible for regulating thyroxine levels.

Based on studies done by Dr. Gloria Chacon, the alkaloids of maca are believed to stimulate the hypothalamus and pituitary gland to better balance the entire endocrine system.

Some Women who have had moderate to severe menopausal symptoms report that they have been able to reduce their thyroid medication or in a few cases even to stop it entirely after using maca for two or three months. And they all report feeling so much better, much more energetic. In all these cases, the thyroid was under-active.

Some women with hypothyroidism take Armour thyroid, others take Synthroid. What they notice after a month or two is that they begin to feel some of the symptoms of an overactive thyroid, and so they cut back their thyroid medication and the symptoms go away. Some stabilize at 50% of their former dosage of thyroid medication and some stop all thyroid medication. However, they do this, little by little, with frequent testing of thyroid function in order not to shock the thyroid and make their condition worse. It’s impossible to give an accurate percentage of women who have had significant thyroid function improvement as a result of taking Maca. The results for some, however, are very impressive. – Asana Foods

6. Chlorophyll.

A shot of chlorophyll first thing in the morning give a boost to your energy levels and remove heavy metals that are blocking the optimal thyroid function. To include chlorophyll in the diet for thyroid health – simply drink a shot of chlorophyll or add it to your morning smoothie or juice.

7. Ashwagandha is good for autoimmune thyroid disease.

Ashwagandha is an adaptogenic herb that has been used for centuries in Ayurvedic medicine. It has many superpowers – lowers cortisol levels,  combats stress and even balances thyroid hormones. Therefore it should for sure be included in your hypothyroidism diet.

Ashwagandha has been found to selectively increase the production of T4 hormone and simultaneously reduce cell damage caused by free radicals. While this is especially beneficial for hypothyroidism (underactive thyroid), it might have a regulating effect on hyperthyroidism (overactive thyroid) as well. Combining ashwagandha with extracts of other plants such as guggulu is considered most effective combination of foods good for thyroid .

The medicinal herb ashwagandha (Withania somnifera) has been used for centuries in Ayurvedic medical practice in India as an “adaptogen” – a herb or drug that acts against both deficiency and excess and helps stabilize and regulate the body’s functioning. Modern research data points to its abilities to modulate the immunity to a desired level, serve as an antioxidant for the brain, protect the nerves, prevent or reduce inflammation, and enhance memory. – Curejoy

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