Hypothyroidism -- Anybody Fix It with Diet/Lifestyle Chgs?

I know a lot of people would like to be able to do this, but I'm concerned. I "discovered" I had hypothyroidism when my thyroid basically bottomed out and caused my electrolytes to go out of whack. I ended up in the hospital for 6 days and for several of those I didn't know my husband or kids. (the porch light was on but nobody was home!) Since the thyroid hormone works on so many other parts of the body, going without can be dangerous. Perhaps if your thyroid works fairly well there are things you can do to "help" it, but that isn't an option for me. Be careful, consult your physician/endocrinologist, and best wishes!

Bump

I had thyroid cancer in my early 20's. I have been on medication for years since my thyroid gland had to be removed. Your body cannot function without and it is very dangerous to go without. You will see a lot of changes in your body.....skin is lot drier, brittle nails....thinner hair....etc. This is all part of it. If your thyroid is too low...you will see lots more serious symptoms. Your doctor just has to find the right brand and right dose for you. I was on synthroid for years, but I am now on armour thryroid.

There is a book by Mary Shomon called the Thyroid Diet Revolution. It's a pretty good book...fairly easy to read....and she claims that you can "fix" your thyroid. I'm still reading that book and still have plenty to learn from it.

Just a couple a months ago I went from being hypothyroid (Ive been hypo for 15 years) to HYPERthyroid and I believe the reason was due to a drastic diet change (I started juicing greens and taking PrimRose oil - which is supposed to aid in thyroid function). Of course, that really screwed things up for me because I had to go completely off my thyroid meds for a few months before I could be tested and go back on my meds (I am once again hypo, but I also stopped taking primrose and juicing greens...just for a little while).

Over the years, all my dr's have told me that I would be taking my thyroid meds for the rest of my life. I don't know if I can fix it or not but I plan on trying. Just make sure you consult your dr before you start though...or what happened to me could happen to you. How did I know I went hyper? My hair started to fall out in clumps....I could go and go and go but my weight loss stalled out for months. When they finally took me off my meds, I gained 20 lbs and had a slew of hypo symptoms (headaches, fatigue, ringing in ears, swelling in face, pain in joints, etc). I will never make such drastic changes without talking to my dr first.

Take a look at that book....you might be able to find something in there that will help you. According to Mary, you can change it. My experience these past few months tells me I can...I just have to find the right combination, but definitely with my dr guidance.

Good luck to you.

I had Hashimoto's for a year before it was diagnosed, I actually ended up with Myxedema and had to be hospitalized. I was put on Levothyroxine but spent much time researching what could help my health improve. Fast forward to this year and my thyroid level is the best it has been in four years, I believe this is due to huge change in diet. I discovered I am also celiac (research the correlation between hypothyroid/Hasimoto's and gluten) and also milk dairy intolerant.

I changed my diet to a mostly plant based diet (I can still eat eggs) lots of rice, potatoes, fruit, veggies, legumes etc - NO soy and the effects on my health have been dramatic. I can now lose weight, my energy is through the roof and as I said, my thyroid level is the best it has been. From an 8 last year to 0.5 as of a few weeks ago, without any change in medication levels. My Dr will be monitoring my thyroid because she may want to lower my medication (yay!)

It's a rough journey for sure, but I truly believe diet can play a massive part in our energy levels and general well being when dealing with this autoimmune annoyance.

My TSH went from 7+ to 2.1 I juice greens and a lot of ginger and I do not eat wheat anymore. My actual thyroid is healthy my endo said the problem was pituitary in nature (pituitary wasn't properly regulating the thyroid) I thought it was strange that I suddenly have normal thyroid function, I didn't realize that inflammation could adversely affect the thyroid. Previously my body was so severely inflamed I suffered from frequent reflux and severe joint pain. Since adding more anti-inflammatory foods and getting rid of wheat, I haven't had any reflux and very minimal joint pain. Did my diet change cure my thyroid issues? I can't say for sure, could be just a coincidence.

Yes! I took no drugs. I supplemented my diet with kelp (iodine) tablets. Good clean diet, with minimal sweet/cakes and stuff. Plenty of hard training. I have no more symptoms, no cold shakes, the strength has come back to my hair (it was awful)
I sleep fantastically at night. I'm taking a super multi-vitamin bio-available drink and I no longer have to nap after work! On the go all day.

It is 110% possible to fix it with a good diet, exercise and no drugs.

Under-active thyroid is essentially an auto-immune disease. The body is stopping the thyroid from working. I cut out dairy and wheat as I was intolerant to them, I'm convinced that has had a huge impact on the symptoms!

Good luck with it

I have been on Synthroid for 13 years.

After I lost 85 lbs I decided to just stop the meds because I had ran out (bad me, as a nurse I should know better). I finally went in and told the doctor what I had done and he made me go for bloodwork. My levels were SOOO out of whack and it took some time to get everything back in order.

So for me, no... a thyroid problem appears to be something I will deal with forever.