Raja's Blog Space

Finally got time to squeeze to write this blog after a few days of inactivity. Shreya is out of home now for Hindi tuition and Advait is busy watching Thomas and Friends video. Couldn't find a better time.

Coming to the topic now, following up on my previous blog regarding thyroid health, there are certain foods that have to be avoided and some consumed in sufficient amounts for healthy functioning of your thyroid glands.



Foods that help thyroid functioning -

1. Breakfast, breakfast, breakfast - cannot insist more than this on starting your day with a healthy breakfast. This is not just for people with thyroid issues but for everyone in general. Healthy breakfast should contain a good mix of calories from carbohydrates, protein, and fats along with other essential nutrients. Meat eaters get protein from various sources. For vegetarians(like me), if egg is tolerated, egg white omelet with couple of whole grain toast spread with 'smart balance butter' along your favorite side would make a healthy choice. For non-egg eaters, whole grain toast with almond butter or peanut butter is good. Bottomline - Avoid sugary breakfast, for example, white bread toast with jelly/jam (contain just carb and sugar), sugary breakfast cereals (contain just sugar and corn). Beware of fruit loops! For people who consume south indian breakfast - idli, dosa, adai, pongal provide a healthy start for the day (provided the batter is made with a good ratio of dal and rice). Thyroid patients feel short of energy all the time, and quickly run out of energy resources in their body. A good breakfast with right mix of protein, fat and carbs, help them maintain good blood sugar levels and not go in search of junk food from the kitchen shelf. Might not be a bad idea to store those potato chips, murukku, and sweets in the top most rack of the kitchen shelf!!
2. Antioxidants - What are antioxidants? this could be the first question running is most of the readers mind by now. Well, I am not an expert in this field, but I do know that these are elements in the body that can help fight unwanted elements (free radicals and oxidants released in our body) which can be carcinogenic (cancer causing) in our body. Couldn't find an simpler way to explain this. Some foods that are loaded with antioxidants are pomegranate, all types of berries, green and yellow vegetables, apples, grapes, squash and fruits in general. More information on antioxidants can be found in the following websites http://www.healthcastle.com/antioxidant.shtml. For the more inquisitive reader here is another link http://recipes.howstuffworks.com/antioxidant.htm
3. Copper, zinc, and selenium - these are important minerals that support thyroid functioning and hormone production. Whole grains and meats are sources for these minerals. For vegetarians, any type of grain, whole wheat, barley (loaded with selenium), brown rice(selenium), are good sources.
4. Chromium foods - nuts (almonds, walnuts, peanuts, etc) and cheese contain good levels of chromium. They help pancreas functioning which indirectly supports thyroid functioning as well.
5. Flaxseed oil, olive oil and fish oil - healthy recommendation is at least 2 tablespoons of olive oil/day with food. Fish oil capsules are good for both cardio and thyroid functioning. Flaxseed can be consumed in ground form or as oil capsules. Not sure if this is available in india, but it is widely available in the US. I suggest consuming them in pure ground form, instead of chips with flaxseed!

1. Soy products - Soy has plant estrogen, which inhibits thyroid functioning. Of course, soy is a good protein source for vegetarians. Healthy recommendation is nothing more than 1 serving of soy per day.
2. Avoid salt intake - Obtaining salt from natural sources is the best for anyone in general, not just people with thyroid problems. Sea salt is a good source. For indians, bottled pickles are loaded with tons of salt and preservatives. It goes well with curd rice for sure. But one has to just make sure they have a close watch on the quantity of delicious "Aavakkai" or "Vadu mangai" consumed with curd rice
3. Walnuts, Almonds, Tofu, Peanuts - was surprised to see the most healthy nuts appear in this list. I would not recommend stopping intake of any of these nuts because the cardio benefits attained by consuming these nuts definitely outweighs the negative effect it can possibly have on thyroid. However, it is suggested we do not overdo on these nuts and not completely get rid of it.
4. Brussel sprouts, califlower, cabbage, turnips, spinach, and brocolli - sprouted vegetables tend to impair the thyroid function in general. For those who eat these vegetables steamed, the good news is, negative effects are partly nullified in the steaming process.
5. Sodium and preservatives - paying close attention to packaged food ingredients helps for sure. Especially when they are loaded with preservatives like sodium benzoate, etc. Also it is a good idea to avoid any food with 'partially hydrogenated' content. Watch out for the ingredients in the Maggi noodles wrapper!

Most of us know, of late more and more people are getting diagnosed with hypothyroidism or sluggish thyroid. Although this is not a major life threatening disease as such, it can result in other deficiencies that could impair one from leading a normal life. Persons suffering from sluggish thyroid or under active thyroid have to normally go through hormone replacement medication to compensate for the lower activity of the thyroid hormone produced by the pituitary gland.

Upon getting diagnosed with this deficiency, the first thing the patient hears is to go through hormone replacement medication in various doses, for indefinite period of time. Some doctors say patients have to be treated through their life, which is scary in a way. Who would want to go through some medication through their life time? There are alternative ways for treating this deficiency like yoga, chiropractic acupressure treatment, and some other methods.

I attended a class in the Cupertino Whole Foods yesterday, where a couple of chiropractic doctors discussed about accupressure techniques for treatment of underactive thyroid. Their testimonials were pretty impressive. In other places, I have also heard about yoga postures which could heal thyroid problems.

However, the key take away from the lecture yesterday was, diets that affect the highly sensitive glands that are vital for our day today bodily functions. Apparently thyroid and adrenal glands are the most sensitive glands to foreign matter in our body. With the advent of processed foods, and out of the box eating style in the fast paced world these days, no wonder the pesticides, and inorganic ingredients of the food are having a negative effect on thyroid functioning of more and more people.

In my next blog posting, I will post the various ingredients you should look out for in your packaged foods to lead a healthy lifestyle.