800 Calorie Diet Recommended by Doctor

I had the same issue - I had my thyroid tested and the doc knocked down my cals to 800 - 900 a day. He said it could sometimes trigger a lazy thyroid, and if not it would help me until the thyroxin kicked in. It did work for a while the I gave up - turns out it was a issue with my pituitary gland, not the thyroid directly anyway so te final advice from the doc was a helpful 'eat less than you burn' :mad:

Having an underactive thyroid can reduce your BMR by roughly 30%. Obviously it depends on the degree of your particular thyroid issues, so 30% is a really rough on-the-order-of estimate, but 800 does not seem unrealistic to me. I would get a second opinion and talk to an endocrinologist, but I would trust a doctor who knows your medical history over MFP which is designed for the general population without medical issues. Doctors aren't always the best source of information on nutrition for weight loss, but you're looking at a diet related to a medical issue, not just weight loss.

Drs are knowledgeable, but not in nutrition. You, especially bc of the thyroid issues, should go see a Registered Dietitian. Someone whos actual degree is in Health and nutrition.

this is very very true. doctors have almost no education in nurtrition. BUT I would try it. just not for a long period of time.

I am sorry to disagree but Please do not eat an 800 calorie diet ever!! You may lose weight but as soon as you eat anything over that your body will store it and I am sure you don't want to gain your weight back. Eat more, eat clean and you will suceed forever!

get another opinion.

Let's see..doctor with your specific information and condition in mind, with 12 years of education and training, plus whatever more years of experience since then...or all the strangers on the Internet with their degree in Google.

Yea, I'd ignore my doctor too.

Most doctors are trained in nutrition. Get another opinion if you want, but the doctor knows your body a lot better than we do.

I just thought of one more thing- and again, what do I know, but I think lifting is supposed to boost your metabolism so being that your system is running slow maybe adding lifting can allow you to add some more calories to your diet?

I have an underactive thyroid also and the main thing that does is slow down every sysytem in your body, especially your metabolism - more so than "normal" people. I don't think 800 calories is too low and he probably knows what he's talking about because since your thyroid is making your metabolism so slow, you may not burn as many calories a day resting as MFP calculates. So if you are trying to lose weight, that may be what it takes to see a difference.

However, I hope this is just temporary and he prescribed you a thyroid medication. I have been on it for about 5 years now and when I first started, it took a month or so but soon it was amazing how different and energetic I felt. After that medication kicks in and starts regulating your thyroid hormone, you should burn more and not have to be at 800. THAT IS JUST FROM MY EXPERIENCE THOUGH- I AM NOT A DOCTOR!! just to clarify ;-)

thank you for your insight on this. you describe it a bit easier and that it is possible. thankfully i've never had to deal with something like that. hopefully it is only short term for people to be on that kind of diet.
But one question- do you take all your nutrition through supplements? i can't see you getting even close to half the nutrition you actually need with such a low cal intake !
just curious

The most important thing to find out is what type of Thyroid issue you are doing with. Roughly 90% of low thyroid issues are as a result of Hashimoto's Thyroiditis and this is an autoimmune issue. There is a large correlation between Hashimoto's and Celiac Sprue or Gluten intolerances. It might be worth it to have this checked out as well. If you have this type of thyroid issue you will definitely need to compose your diet different than you would if it were just low thyroid. As far as 800 calories a day, you could subsist on that for some time. There have been plenty of studies conducted at that level of caloric intake. As for an N=1 trial on myself, I had to put myself on an autoimmune protocol to help regulate my thyroid and lose weight. Grains, dairy, and legume can cause stomach irritation which lead to "leaky gut" and autoimmune disorders. An emphasis should be placed on saturated fat and protein with leafy greens and some other cruciferous type vegetables rounding out your calories. This is a relatively Low Carbohydrate diet and your body will shift for carbohydrate burning to fat burning as it will need to get it's energy for your brain from the protein intake. In reality you don't need carbohydrates to live and there is no such thing as an "essential carbohydrate". Your body can produce carbohydrates (glucose) from protein and fat through the process of gluconeogenesis. You also want to make sure that you stay away from iodine during this time as that can flare thyroid symptoms.

800 frickin calories is ridiculous ! you will starve and your body will go into starvation mode . Read Read Read

Holy crap NO! On 800 a day you'd need to be consistently supervised by a doctor. For 30lbs? I'm honestly appalled by this. I'm hypothyroid and net at least 1500 a day, my intake is 1800-2000. I've lost 43lbs. Please get a second opinion or see a dietician who specializes in dealing with Thyroid disorders.

If you're feeling shaky and weak, that's telling you right there that 800 cal/day is way too freaking low, and I'm speaking as someone who's had a low-functioning thyroid for 21 years. As many other posters have already mentioned, doctors are not necessarily knowledgeable about nutrition -- hie thee to an accredited nutritionist and talk to them.

One thing that I HAVE noticed about people with low-functioning thyroids -- we tend to do better in weight loss with lower carbs and higher protein percentages in our daily intake. Make sure you tell the nutritionist about your thyroid issues and ask about bumping up your lean protein intake. And good luck!

I recently had a not-so-pleasant experience with a doctor who I saw because I'm having some symptoms that seem thyroid related. Turns out I'm in the low end of normal for thyroid activity - so borderline hypothyroid. I'm 43, short and have gained weight after having 3 children. I probably need to lose about 30 pounds. The doctor told me that I need to be walking for an hour a day and consume no more than 800 calories! I know this was NOT a misunderstanding since he told me verbally and also wrote it down. I knew right when he said it, that seemed like a ridiculously low calorie count and now the more I read, the more it's shocking that a Dr. would recommend it to a patient. Has anyone else ever heard of such a low cal diet? I tried it at first to see how that would feel & was shaky & weak. No surpise. MFP says I should be at 1200 (as seems to be the case for many) but I am usually at 1400 since that's how I feel best, especially when exercising & my BMR is just over that. I'm only at the beginning of this journey & havent seen the scale move yet but would love to have some insight from those who are more experienced with such a lifestyle change. That recommendation from him made me question anything else he's told me.

You said you saw "a doctor" who recommended the 800 calories per day, but did not say "my doctor" which seems to indicate this is a specialist you've just seen for the first or second time who doesn't know your medical history. Is this correct? If so, talk to your primary care/family doctor who knows your health history and see what he says. My family doctor was emphatic that nobody should go under 1200 calories per week when trying to lose weight, especially if exercising.

i have had thyroid issues for the last 10 years. I have to be on a daily medication and watch my levels with blood test every 6 months. I have had raidation treatments and have been on both sides of the scales for the levels. I have never heard of treating the side effects with a 800 caloric diet. that sounds off. I would for sure get a second opinion.