Should I take a T2 Supplement?

Should I take a T2 Supplement?

Studies discussed:

3,5 Diiodo-L-thyronine (T2) in Dietary Supplements: What are the Physiological Effects? by Hernandez

3,5-Diiodo-L-thyroinine (3,5-T2) Exerts Thyromimetic Effects on Hypothalamus Pituitary Thyroid Axis, Body Composition, and Energy Metabolism in Make Diet Induced Obese Mice. Jonas et al, 2015

How to manage Hashimoto's when you are a workaholic.

A listener writes in about her busy life and how to get help with fatigue, achiness, weight gain and menopause. 

Good Morning Stephanie,

Thank you very much for the ‘Guide’ and for all the information you provide.

I have a topic of interest that you may be able to address.

How to manage your Hashimoto’s when you are a workaholic.

Example: I have a full time job, Mon – Fri, 08:00 – 4:30

                            Part time job, Sat and/or Sun, 07:00a – 7:00p

                            Help husband with his job, about 10hrs week.

Plus all other items relating to running a home.

I don’t have kids but I do have 5 animals. I’m a fur mom. 😊

I usually only have 3, maybe 4 full days off a month.

And – no – scaling back on work is not an option at the moment.

All thyroid labs are good. Doctor says don’t worry about the Hashimoto’s. ☹

History of thyroid cancer, left side removed. Hashimoto’s, Chronic reactive Epstein Barr, risk for Rheumatoid arthritis, and…menopause, lol.

But still very tired, sore/achy, and weight gain after watching diet, trying to get exercise, and taking supplements.

So any insight you could give pertaining to this type of situation would be great.

I’m sure there are others in this same boat as I am.

Thank you again.

You’re wonderful.

Pam

Hi Pam,

Thanks for writing in. I really appreciate it.

Sounds like you have an extremely busy life and not sure how you power through with fatigue!

First thing I would say is, let’s have a look at your thyroid labs and see if they really are optimal. They may be optimal based on the lab values given but they may not be optimal based on what a healthy persons labs should look like.

Of course your doctor says don’t worry about the Hashimoto’s because standard of care in conventional medicine is not to treat it but to up your dose yearly as your thyroid tissue is destroyed. I’ve said that a million times on here so that is old news.

Next is to see if your medication is at the right dose and kind. Many people do fine on T4 only meds like Synthroid or Levothyroxine but a lot of people don’t. It’s clear you will need thyroid meds lifelong based on the fact that you are missing half your thyroid.

Chronic reactive EBV could very well be due to stress or overworking. In this case with the very busy life you have, some adaptogenic herbs might be called for. Potentially Rhodiola, Schisandra, Ashwagandha, Holy Basil or Maca. Don’t just go throwing these in your regime though. It really depends on what is going on and starting slow with one of these like Ashwagandha or Maca first, see how you feel after a couple weeks of taking it and then add in some others. You can order these through my dispensary at https://us.fullscript.com/welcome/hfh

When you have Hashimoto’s your risk for other autoimmune disease raises by about 30% so I will say, not slowing down a bit or at the very least making sure your diet is dialed in pretty much perfectly means your Rheumatoid Arthritis risk is probably higher than most.

Having a history of thyroid cancer is a big deal as well. Make sure you are having tumor markers tested regularly - I would guess this is being monitored but you never know. It should be if it isn’t.

I’m going to do an episode on cancer in general but to make sure your cancer does not come back into the other half of your thyroid OR appear somewhere else, there is a lot you can do in your diet and your lifestyle.

I want to say that I don’t think being busy is bad, especially if you are happy and you have good relationships, especially with your husband and those close to you. Sometimes this matters more than anything else. So if you feel great, have a sense of purpose and community and are truly happy, you are one step ahead of many people in your same situation healthwise.

It would be good to know what supplements you are taking. With cancer being in your past. L-glutamine is a popular supplement but there is some risk it might feed cancer so be aware of that.

Avoiding sugar as much as possible is a good idea - sugar is the main fuel for cancer cells. Your diet should be from the cleanest sources of food that you can afford. Here is where organic matters most. Lots and lots of fresh veggies, dark leafy greens, fermented foods such as sauerkraut and kimchi, bone broth, berries (keep other fruits to a minimum), locally raised organic meats if you can do it. I know this seems ridiculous given the cost of groceries but these are ideal for preventing a recurrence. I can provide meal plans and do so for my clients when they want them so that finding food to cook becomes much easier. Also, given your busy life, some non starchy carbs are probably needed daily to help maintain your energy.

You stated you are still very tired, sore/achy and dealing with weight gain and the most lovely menopause. The weight gain could be menopause related or it could be inflammation. It could be both. Hard to say without looking at your diet and some labs. Feeling very tired could be due to a need for T3 meds or an upping of your dose- again, those normal lab ranges may not be normal. Menopause can also cause joint pain.

If it is your joints that are sore and achy, this can be due to higher levels of inflammation and with menopause we lose some stability from decreased strength and tension in our tendons. If it is muscle soreness and aches then it could be a mitochondrial issue so we would need to look at what nutrients your body might be in need of.

A good fish oil may be in order for you and possibly a broad spectrum one that has omega 3,6,7 and 9. Designs For Health makes one called OmegAvail Synergy which again, you can get by going to us.fullscript.com/welcome/hfh which is my dispensary and gives you a 10% discount. Clients get 20% discount.

If you are not strictly gluten free, I would start with that and see if it improves any soreness you have. If not, try avoiding nightshades like tomato, potato, peppers, eggplant, etc. A quick google search of nightshade foods will help you find a whole list.

If none of this helps the soreness and aches then I would suggest and elimination diet.

You may also want to support your immune system. Looking for nutrient deficiencies is a good first step so that we can identify what your body needs. Things like vitamin A, C, D, or zinc. Maybe you need nutrients to support your mitochondria like B vitamins or maybe you are anemic? There might be more questions than answers here but it gives you something to think about. Here is also where being gluten free will be helpful along with figuring out if there are other food sensitivities. An elimination diet is the best way to know if you have a sensitivity as there is not one really good blood test for allergies or sensitivities.

You stated you are trying to get exercise. What does that look like? I imagine if you are fatigued that exercising is the last thing you want to do. When you have Hashimoto’s or any autoimmune disease, exercising can cause more fatigue if not done right. We have to not over do it. In your case, you might be working so much that exercise of any kind will send you over the edge. I would try for some restorative yoga if that is the case. It is the most amazing kind of yoga where you lie down in specific poses made to help restore your body and energy. And it is worth doing if you can do nothing else.

If you are doing a lot of sitting at your day job or the weekend job then I would make a plan to do some standing when you can. Get a standing desk to do some work at. Walk at lunch during a couple days a week. When you go to the store, park far away and walk from the back of the parking lot. Take the stairs when you can. All of this adds up and is a great first start to exercising when you can.

I hope this helps a bit. I can’t give specific details about what you should be taking as far as supplements go because that would be irresponsible.

Thanks for sending in your question. I love when you guys do that.

I created a new guide for you all called the definitive guide to Hashimoto’s which you can get by signing up for my newsletter. Use the pop up form on my website to be sure you get access. I am not sure the other sign ups on my site have it attached. If you sign up for my email list and it doesn’t show up, email me and I’ll send it to you!

Thanks so much for listening AND for tuning in! I am so so grateful to all of you.

Please share this with anyone you know who is dealing with Hashimoto’s and if you could be so kind to leave a rating and review, it helps more people find the podcast in the sea of millions of podcasts out there.

Losing weight after menopause

Hello

I just started listening to your podcast and love it! I heard you mention menopause and how you gained weight and lost it. I would love to hear you elaborate on this subject. Menopause and Hashimotos and weight gain and what to do. I feel desperate with trying to lose and so many different ideas out there from intermittent fasting to keto and I don’t know what to focus on that will work. Please consider doing a podcast show about this.

Thank you

Beth Axxxxxxxx

Thanks for this question Beth.

Weight loss in menopause while also having Hashimoto’s can be a bit challenging. There are a lot of things to consider.

It’s not about calories in and calories out. Calories do matter and what kind of calories you are eating matter but what matters more is what is gong on in your body hormonally.

If you are struggling with weight loss, you could be dealing with a hormonal imbalance of some kind. Maybe your thyroid medication isn’t optimized well. Maybe some other hormone is off, like cortisol, insulin and/or leptin.

Maybe you have estrogen dominance or low testosterone. These things will determine how fat you get from the calories you do consume.

Most of the time the weight loss struggle, when not thyroid hormones, might be an issue of cortisol. When cortisol is high over a period of time it can create lower levels of serotonin affecting mood (depression), keep you from sleeping well (increasing sugar cravings) and can cause you to store fat.

Too much cortisol can create that dreaded muffin top and this needs to be fixed before much of anything else can be taken care of. Higher cortisol can give you that wired but tired feeling, make you quick to anger and make you feel irritable. It also is a cause of fat gain. I spent years like this though the weight gain in my late 30’s and all of my 40’s was really minimal because I was still cycling so estrogen was helping to keep me thinner.

When dealing with low cortisol you can get tired easily or have poor stamina and low cortisol can cause you to look at things in more negative ways, you might find you get sick more often, and of course it contributes to thyroid dysfunction.

Cortisol is 100% related to stress and how you react to it which will sabotage your fat loss. When high, cortisol increases blood sugar which leads to higher insulin levels which can increase fat storage.

Remember stress can be mental/emotional, strained finances, toxic relationships, infections, poor or little sleep (even shift work), food allergies/sensitivities and over exercise.

Bottom line, working to lower stress and manage cortisol will help reduce body fat.

When cortisol is high it will also decrease conversion of T4 to T3 which causes a slowed metabolism which will probably lead to fat gain.

I mentioned leptin before. This hormone tells your body when you are full so if leptin is blocked, you don’t get the full signal and you may end up eating more calories than you need/want leading to poor blood sugar regulation, higher insulin, and fat storage.

Gut health is also important. Many of you know a large percentage of your immune system lies in your gut aka GI tract aka intestines. If your gut is unhealthy, so are you, and this includes your ability to lose fat.

GI dysfunction very simply can look like gas, bloating, undigested food in your stools, terrible smelling gas, constipation and/or diarrhea, bad breath, nausea.

If the bacteria in your gut are out of balance, this can affect the conversion of thyroid hormone from T4 to T3, slowing metabolism. It can also affect the body’s ability to excrete estrogen creating a recycling of the hormone and cause you to gain fat.

If you are not properly breaking down the foods you are eating then you are not absorbing nutrients either. You need adequate protein to be digested and absorbed in order to make neurotransmitters, repair tissues and build a healthy immune system. If you have poor digestion this can lead to anemia which causes muscles to fatigue easily and can make it difficult to exercise and will decrease your ability to lose fat.

Inflammation in the GI tract can cause a stress response in the body which will increase cortisol production which can cause immune system problems in the gut itself leaving you susceptible to infections which will cause more inflammation and more cortisol leaving your body in a cycle of inflammation.

Eating foods you are sensitive to can cause a stress response in the body leading to release of cortisol and, you guessed it, fat storage.

Now you all know that when your thyroid is sluggish it means difficulty losing weight and easy gain of weight. All the stuff I’ve talked about can affect thyroid function and poor thyroid function which can include being on medication that isn’t fully supporting optimal function can affect all the stuff I’ve already discussed.

Sex hormones like estrogen and progesterone, when out of balance, will definitely cause you to hold on to fat as well. These hormones impact your ability to feel emotionally well, have will power and have any kind of motivation. In order for your sex hormones to be in balance, you have to have balanced blood sugar, balanced adrenals, and a healthy GI tract. If your testosterone levels are high you will have trouble losing fat. In addition, if you are dealing with any kind of toxicity at all from xenoestrogens, fat loss will be difficult.

All of this needs to be corrected before fat loss happens and fat loss should not happen if you are not reasonably healthy because you don’t want to be losing fat tissue which will mobilize toxins from that fat tissue and if you are not eliminating them, they will redistribute in other tissue. Not good.

Think if you have some of this stuff going on and then you hit menopause. Our estradiol is lower in menopause and estradiol helps us be more sensitive to insulin. So now we are at higher risk for insulin resistance.

Insulin resistance means your blood sugar levels could be normal but you might have too much insulin in your blood. High insulin with no where to go means fat storage. This means that for some of you for the first time in your life, what you eat will greatly effect your weight. Sugar and anything that converts to sugar will be a problem for you in excess. This means less dessert, less treats, avoiding sugary drinks and for some of us it might mean quitting these things altogether. It just depends on how important getting rid of the belly fat is to you. And it isn’t forever. Just long enough to give your body a minute to get insulin levels regulated and then you can figure out what you can enjoy and how much of it. It’s called finding your carb tolerance. This doesn’t mean you need to go low carb either because that is a problem for hashimoto’s but you might need to reduce the amount of bread, white potatoes and rice until you get things regulated. This is something I can help you with and I recommend having some labs done to see just where your biggest problems lie with this. There are some extra markers you should ask your doctor for but before you do, I recommend meeting with me to figure out what might be going on, then you can go to your doctor and get your labs done with what ever add ons I think you need.

Now, a topic all on its own is detoxification and I’m giving a talk at an online summit in January. Sign up for my newsletter at outofthewoodsnutrition.com for info in that in the coming weeks. There is a fair amount of research tying pesticides to fat gain and to poor liver health. Some in the scientific community suggest that our body creates more fat to handle the load of toxins we get exposed to. I have a couple of different questionnaires you can take to asses your toxin level when you work with me. It is the best and cheapest way to determine toxic burden because most testing is not reliable.

There is an immune system marker called Interleukin-6 or IL-6 and when that is increased due to inflammation of some kind, it can make it difficult to lose weight and keep it off and it may be a trigger for fat gain. Fat tissue is now considered to be an organ in the endocrine system and it likely causes inflammation while inflammation causes us to store body fat. Another vicious cycle.

Decreasing inflammation through diet is a great first step in beginning to lose fat. Cutting sugar, processed foods and eating real whole foods is important. If you need meal plans, I can help you with that. If you are a client in my 6 month package, you get meal plans for free. If you just want a meal plan consult, we can work something out.

All of this is tied to your brain health which I won’t go into detail here but what’s going on in your brain physiology impacts sex hormones, thyroid hormone, neurotransmitters like dopamine, serotonin, GABA and more.

Dopamine helps to keep our metabolism going and when we have low dopamine we have low energy and the worst part- sugar and junk food binges. Don’t let anyone tell you this is about will power. They can seriously suck it if they do. If you are low on GABA, it can also cause cravings for fat and carbs. This is not to say you should supplement with GABA because you can do that but that won’t fix why you are low on it in the first place.

I’m not about bandaids for problems unless they are needed to get your body on the right track while we figure out what problems you are dealing with.

Most of this info really applies to anyone but this question was about dealing with menopause. I went in early. I think I was 46 or 47. Either way I was super happy to not have a period anymore because my periods were horrible my whole entire life. I’m reading a book about hypothyroidism that was written at least 40 years ago and thinking back on my childhood and my first periods- I had so so many signs that my thyroid might not be functioning well all the way back to 13 years old. Sometimes this makes me so mad because I feel like a huge part of my life was just subpar. It’s really why I worked so hard to get my masters and my nutritionist license. I have so much to offer you guys in the way of experience and knowledge around these topics so that you don’t have to suffer like I did. It’s the only way I can not just sit and wallow in losing so many years of well being. I’m so glad I woke up and fought for better health. Some days are still a struggle but those are fewer and farther in between as long as I manage my stress and diet. In all honesty, I’ve gone off the rails a bit with my diet. Sometimes eating super healthy all the time just gets old. And, I’m paying for it a bit. My digestion sucks right now and today my energy level is in the tank but I think that is mostly due to getting up too early, working out too hard and a couple crappy things in my personal life.

I really need to start meditating and journaling again. I have a locked document on my computer where I write out things I would never say out loud or want anyone else to read. It’s where I get all the anger off my chest and just let it go. I highly recommend it for a release, especially if you don’t have anyone you can talk to regularly or you don’t want to always be complaining about certain people.

Anyway, back to menopause. As I said, I was around 46 when it hit for me. The average age is around 51. And let me just tell you- life is not over once you hit menopause. Before you hit it though, you might be having some crazy symptoms- even if you are fit and your diet is dialed.

Anxiety, racing thoughts, heart palpitations, hot flashes, insomnia, depression and so on. You can even have these symptoms in your thirties if your body is going to go into early menopause. If you are fit, these may be milder than someone who isn’t but very few of us make it through perimenopause without some symptoms. Peri-menopause occurs because your hormones, estrogen and progesterone, are all over the place.

Abdominal fat gain in menopause is real and so is loss of lean muscle. This is due to decreased sensitivity to insulin as I mentioned earlier. Your blood sugar is likely higher and there is likely some insulin resistance which lead to fat storage.

Any high cortisol, again, also leads to fat storage. We also become less able to build muscle and you are losing bone mineral density. It becomes pretty imperative at this stage in life to start exercising if you don’t already, and lifting weights is the most beneficial.

Let’s talk estrogen, specifically estradiol or E2. This form of estrogen declines in menopause. It promotes muscle growth and muscle strength- you need to lift heavy weights to make up for loss of estradiol.

You have to watch inflammation and blood sugar too. When estradiol declines but estrone or E1 might be a little higher and progesterone is low, it can cause sore joints.

The average weight gain in menopause is 5-8 pounds. As I mentioned before it was 28 pounds over a couple of years for me. It didn’t help I was mostly sedentary for 2 ½ years sitting at my desk doing homework and not changing how I ate much at all. In fact, I probably ate more sugar and crap due to stress in school which contributed to my weight gain. The change in estrogen levels and cortisol make us gain fat in our stomach which puts us at higher risk for heart disease. If your fat is in your thighs however, you are less likely to be at risk for heart disease.

Exercise and a dialed diet are going to be key to fat loss in menopause. I’m not a trainer so I can’t speak well to exercise but Stacy Sims in her book Next Level recommends sprint interval training for fat loss along with lifting heavy.

Her book gives you plenty of ideas on what kinds of exercise you can do but if you are new to exercising, buy the book and ask a trainer to help you work out based on the principles in the book.

It might take you some time to find a trainer willing to do it- I hired a guy who agreed to read my copy of Next Level and he never did. He told me he knew enough that he didn’t need to after he had the book for a few months.

Then, when I got it back it looked like he spilled water or something all over it. I was slightly annoyed over the whole situation- also I didn’t speak up for myself- still a work in progress there!

Alright- so sprint training and lifting heavy. I use an airdyne bike at my gym and do 8 rounds of 20 seconds high intensity and then 10 seconds off. I also lift heavy using a program from the book Hangry by Sara Fragoso and Dr. Brook Kalinak. I’ve definitely gained muscle and lost some fat but the biggest change has been body composition. My thighs are smaller and the dimples on my behind are getting smaller.

This has been two years in the making for me. In order for this to be sustainable and enjoyable I go to the gym 3 days a week and I foam roll, warm up, lift heavy, sprint and then stretch. I hate working out but after 2 years, it feels good to go. I feel stronger and more confident and the weight is coming off slowly which in my opinion is the only way to do it.

I’ve been more mindful of what I eat but that needs to get more dialed in as well. Like I said, I’m kind of off the wagon which for me just means eating more gluten free bread and too many nuts. I’ve also cut back on chocolate and rarely drink coffee.

By the way, lifting heavy as defined by Stacy Sims is lifting six reps or less of the most weight you can of things like deadlifts, chest press and squats. Get the book, read the book and then find someone to help you write a program from the recommendations in the book. Don’t try to figure it out on your own unless you are well versed in the gym already.

Doing this will help increase your metabolism, help you lose fat, improve your stability so you don’t fall and break a hip and improve your body composition.

Let’s talk diets.

If you are exercising, it will be super important to fuel yourself before you exercise otherwise your body will be stressed which messes with your muscle gain and fat loss. Eat a little protein and a carb like banana and nut butter, toast and nut butter, or something like that.

I tend to forget to do a carb in the morning but I do cold brew and protein powder before I go to the gym and I eat as soon as I get home. Sims states in her book that women specifically need to eat within 30 minutes of a workout in order to build muscle and keep our body from further breaking muscle down.

If you don’t eat right after your workout, your body is in a stressed place, blood sugar is likely high and you are more likely to store body fat. So working out while intermittent fasting is a big big no no. Eat some protein- whey protein is ideal, animal protein is also good. Chicken, eggs, nuts, fish, greek yogurt, cottage cheese. Any of these before or after are good.

Then do your best to get around 100 grams of protein per day or around 30 per meal.

If you google Stacy Sims and Intermittent fasting you will find a good article on why you should not do it. A very brief summary of why you shouldn’t intermittent fast or the ketogenic diet is because both of these diets mess with a neuropeptide called kisspeptin which, when it is disrupted will make our brain think we are deficient in nutrients, especially carbs leading to increased appetite and increases insulin resistance which leads to fat storage.

Fasting and exercising leads to higher cortisol which leads to fat storage. Short term, the keto diet might be great- long term it can mess up your endocrine system and increase fat gain. The article is called Yes! You are an athlete. No! You shouldn’t practice intermittent fasting. It’s a quick read and pretty easy to understand.

Bottom line- no to dieting, yes to exercising. Yes to figuring out your carb tolerance. Yes to looking at your blood work. Yes to joining me for 6 months every other week to help you get and stay on track with all of this. If you are sick and tired of being sick and tired. If fatigue is winning at keeping you on the sidelines of life more than you are winning at having the life you really want, then we need to talk.

You can schedule a discovery call at outofthewoodsnutrition.com under the work with me tab. Let’s see if we are a good fit. I know I can help you get your life back! Let’s do this together! I am compassionate and I have a real passion for helping people just like you get rid of their fatigue!

If you haven’t signed up for my newsletter you can do so on my website as well and get 5 things your doctor won’t tell you about hypothyroidism. I send out recipes almost every week in my emails.

Thanks to Beth for sending in this question. I love when you guys do that. If you have a question, please email me at stephanie@outofthewoodsnutrition.com or fill out the contact form on my website. It’s so much more fun to answer your questions than come up with content or guess at what you might be interested in.

Thanks for tuning in. Until next time.

Is Intermittent Fasting Good For Hypothyroidism?

Hi Stephanie, 

Hope this email finds you well 

This last email of yours got me thinking about how now a days everyone is promoting intermittent fasting, 16 hours or more of fasting, very early dinner and late breakfast or skipping breakfast to have lunch directly. 

I want to know what’s your take on this.  

Thank you for all the content you publish and all the effort you put into giving us updated information. 

Have a great  thanksgiving. 

Kindest regards,

Lucia 

A quick primer on what IF is. It is in the category of time restricted feeding, alternate day fasting, and just plain fasting. This just means that you eat your allotted calories for the day within a specific time frame or eating window. This can be four hours, eight hours, 12 hours- basically whatever you choose as long as you eat within that window.

The idea behind this is that restricting your eating window to a specific timeline causes your body to burn fat and it is said to be good for you, your cells, etc.

The caveat here, and this is the case with most research done on humans, is that the subjects of the research or more often than not, men. A woman's biochemistry and physiology is not the same as a mans so the research cannot always translate to what women should or could be doing for better health.

The second issue is that research on intermittent fasting and the benefits of it, is often done on obese and overweight subjects. Almost any dietary changes made to this category of people will indeed show that it can be helpful in improving health outcomes. Men, especially do fairly well on an intermittent fasting diet with improvements in fat loss, blood sugar and insulin levels. Women, however, show no improvements in blood sugar or insulin levels in some studies, according to researcher Dr. Stacy Sims.

Most review articles on intermittent fasting have looked at things like body weight, waist size, blood pressure, heart rate, blood sugar, cholesterol levels, etc.  There is little research on the effects that IF might have on circadian rhythms of hormones, including thyroid hormones.

A lot of studies of any kind are first done in a petri dish or in animals, usually rats. Sometimes this is all that is done, usually because it would be unethical to do certain research on humans.  These types of studies don’t always translate well to humans. It is something that should be in the back of your mind when you hear things like “Research shows that xyz…”. Always have that critical thinking hat on.

That said, in rat studies, 24 hour fasts lower blood levels of T3, thyrotropin releasing hormone and TSH. In humans, T3 falls pretty fast after a fast. A 3½ day fast in healthy people showed T3 and TSH both dropped within the first two days of the fast. Another study showed T3 dropping by half in 24 hours while TSH remained stable. This is significant for anyone who’s thyroid condition is not already properly managed. And, I’m not sure how long these studies were for. What’s to say that after a year doing this you might also see significant issues with TSH levels. This is the problem. We don’t know because as far as research studies are concerned, thyroid problems are well managed with levothyroxine.

For people doing alternate day fasts from 4 weeks to 6 months long, the amount of T3 in blood was lowered while TSH, again remained the same. Another study showed eight weeks of time restricted feedings for just 8 hours also caused low T3 and normal TSH.

One study in this review showed 6 months of alternate day fasting showed no effects on FT4 or TSH in those with subclinical hypothyroidism. For those that need a reminder, this is when you might be feeling like crap but your thyroid levels don’t present out of the standard lab range so they do nothing for you. This is also when working with a nutritionist is important. Another study though, showed that fasting during Ramadan caused subjects on thyroid meds to need their dose to be raised.

This information is from a review which is referenced on my website with the transcript of this episode in case you want to have a look for yourself. I did not look at the studies mentioned in this review at all. I’m just summarizing what the paper states. If I had a guess, I’d say the studies were not done on women for the most part.

In addition, according to Dr. Sims, intermittent fasting caused more oxidative stress in female subjects where the opposite was true for male subjects. It also slowed production of thyroid hormone and slowed metabolism. Slow thyroid and slow metabolism go hand in hand.

This is a problem for women because when we fast, our body hangs on to fat or tries to hang on to it by slowing things like thyroid and metabolism down. If you exercise and fast together, it makes this even worse. If you are overweight and sedentary, you may see a benefit for awhile at least on the outside but you could be really f-ing things up physiologically.

Same thing applies to the ketogenic diet, another very popular option for weight loss. According to Sims, women’s bodies use carbs to startt hefat burning process and women tend to already be physiologically set to burn fat for fuel but needs those carbs to get things going. She states in her book, Next Level, that the keto diet, even in the short term, may negatively affect bone health meaning causing bone loss which is not a good thing for those of us in post menopause. It might also mess with hunger signals making you feel more hungry and store more fat (another problem for menopause because our satiety signals are not as strong and we hang on to fat much easier). It can also increase cortisol levels which is closely tied to how well your thyroid works.

I hope you found this info helpful. The moral of the story here is not to jump on the latest and greatest health or diet bandwagon. Quick fixes are not long term fixes and they are not a magic pill. The best, most sustainable way to help your chronic health, your thyroid condition, is to make changes you can stick with for the rest of your life. That is what I am here for. You can schedule a discovery call on my website helpforhashimotos.com and we can chat and see if we are a good fit. You can also sign up for my newsletter and get Five Things Your Doctor Won’t Tell You About Hypothyroidism. I’ve been doing a series on mindful eating every Friday in my newsletter as well as a weekly recipe. I respect your inbox and strive to provide you with quality content.

Have a great week!

Welton S, Minty R, O'Driscoll T, Willms H, Poirier D, Madden S, Kelly L. Intermittent fasting and weight loss: Systematic review. Can Fam Physician. 2020 Feb;66(2):117-125. PMID: 32060194; PMCID: PMC7021351.

Kim BH, Joo Y, Kim MS, Choe HK, Tong Q, Kwon O. Effects of Intermittent Fasting on the Circulating Levels and Circadian Rhythms of Hormones. Endocrinol Metab (Seoul). 2021 Aug;36(4):745-756. doi: 10.3803/EnM.2021.405. Epub 2021 Aug 27. PMID: 34474513; PMCID: PMC8419605.

What do my labs mean?

Your lab tests are only as useful as their interpretation.  I may have told you to ask for certain labs or maybe you have read on the internet what the best labs to ask for are to figure out why your thyroid isn’t working well.

Maybe your doctor will order the labs you ask for but do they know how to interpret them beyond the standard lab ranges offered? Do you? Probably not. So you have all this information and no plan to get you feeling better.

I’ve even seen functional medicine lab ranges that are more narrow than the standard or conventional lab ranges not be good enough to figure out a problem. The reason behind that is that the functional lab companies are getting their ranges based on the people who are coming to them for tests.

What does this mean? It means that the sick people going to a functional medicine doctor to get their labs are the people who’s results are making the lab ranges. This is true for most labs.

Does that sound like a way to figure out whether or not YOUR labs are out of range or within range? They might be within range of a bunch of other people who feel like crap and don’t know why.

Basic blood chemistry labs like a CBC, CMP, lipid panel, iron panel, thyroid panel can be super helpful but also know that your symptoms matter regardless of what your labs say. The labs are a way to help put the pieces of the puzzle together.

Your symptoms are your body’s way of telling you something is up. They help gauge whether an intervention is working or not. I saw plenty of people who could not help my fatigue because they were not looking in the right place or they were trying to bandaid the symptoms without really getting at the root cause.

Today I wanted to share with you my old labs and how they were interpreted by my practitioners at the time and show you what was missed based on the scientific research based lab values I use.

I was looking in a file cabinet for some financial documents and then got side tracked with all the stuff that could be thrown out in the file cabinet and I came across a green folder with a hand written schedule of appointments for a plan I paid for through a certain chiropractic office. I dug into it and found so much stuff related to my health and trying to feel better over the years. I thought this would make a great podcast episode since many of you have been to multiple practitioners and still feel like crap.

I’m taking you back to 11/25/2011 which is the first wellness plan I found from the 1st holistic practitioner I saw. She was a naturopathic doctor and from what I can tell from my research on her, she was out of ND school/residency about a year or less when I saw her. She was a kind, passionate doctor. I saw her for a few years until it got to be too far of a drive and I still wasn’t feeling great. She was actually on to why I wasn’t feeling great and it was an emotional component I wasn’t dealing with and her suggesting we work on it scared me away. I quit working with her after that and kept looking for the magic pill with other practitioners and never ever felt quite right.

I remember one visit with her where I had brought her a list of supplements I was taking based on testing I had done in my nutritional therapy practitioner training and she said, “I don’t even know what to do with this.”. I could tell she was super annoyed and I get it now as a practitioner because when a client/patient is taking stuff outside of the protocol that was set for them it may or may not be detrimental to the outcome. Plus, you might also just be wasting your money.

Anyway, I went to her for fatigue, hypothyroidism, mood issues, blood sugar issues, and apparently heavy bleeding during my cycle- super heavy. I’m sure there was other stuff but I don’t have my intake form.

Any of this sound familiar to you?

She recommended to me before testing was done:

• Coconut oil for low blood sugar/shakiness

• Flax meal, 1-2 T daily (she suggested mixing in applesauce) all month

• Omega 3: super EFA liquid 1 tsp/day all month

• GLA: 1000mg flax and 1000mg EPO days 15-28

• Vitamin D3: start at 2000IU/day, get tested within 2 weeks

• Probiotics: HMF Neuro caps 1/day

• Acupuncture for mood support

• Labs to get: TPO Ab, Tg AB, FT3, FT4, TSH, rT3 ($155); 25 OH Vit. D, 22IgG Food intolerance test

• See a gynecologist to get pelvic/transnational ultrasound to rule out organic causes of heavy bleeding with menses

• Schedule next appointment in 6 weeks

I did some testing on 12/9/2011: Intestinal barrier assessment 22 IgG through Pharmasan Labs. Just for reference, I was 40 years old (I’m 51 now) and my kids were 11, 9, and 6. I was working as a social worker 20 hours a week and not a very happy person.

Results were:

• Intestinal barrier assessment showed a moderately leaky gut

• Food parameter summary/food sensitivities detected

  • Yogurt was high

  • Baker’s yeast, egg white, tuna, wheat were moderate

  • Cows milk, gluten, goats milk, oats, shrimp were low for presenting antibodies

• Vitamin D test was at 33.3 on 12/8/11 and she told me the range was 40-100

I saw her on 1/2/2012 to go over these test results.

The wellness plan was:

• Avoid yogurt, bakers yeast, egg white, wheat, milk, gluten, oats for at least 4 weeks. Then trial reintroduce the low foods one at a time in this order: oats, milk/cheese- wait at least 4 days in between reintroducing when not eating oats. So eat oats for 4 days, wait four days then reintroduce milk/cheese but don’t eat oats while doing that.

• Breakfast ideas: quinoa porridge, organic chicken sausage, avocado with sea salt, egg yolk

• Flax seeds 1-2 tablespoons/day all month

• Super EFA liquid 1 tsp/day all month

• GLA: 1000mg flax and 1000mg EPO days 15-25

• Vit. D: 10,000IU per day for one month, then reduce to 4,000IU/day

• B6 complex 1/day with breakfast

• Probiotics: HMF neurocaps 1/day

• Slow Flow- use day 1 of period 3 caps every 3-4 hours

• Progesterone cream: day 15-28, stop if period comes before day 28, 1 pump per day at bedtime

• Permeability complex II- 1 cap 2x/day with meals

• She will contact me with thyroid results

• Retest vitamin D in 3 months

• Pelvic/transvaginal ultrasound due to menorrhagia to rule out other causes before getting ablation

• Schedule next appointment in March.

• On the back of the plan was a drawing of leaky gut

The wellness plan for my next visit on 3/9/12 went like this:

• substitute sugar for yacon syrup, read labels and eat less than 20-30g of sugar per day and watch to see how skin reacts.

• Snack ideas: celery/nut butter, carrots/hummus

• Same supplements as before with addition of

  • orthothyroid 2 caps/day

• Remove IUD

• Next visit 8-10 weeks, discuss periods, skin

I’m missing a years worth of labs and wellness plans from her- I do remember her diagnosing me with Hashimoto’s after these thyroid labs were done so I was off to see about medication changes from my doctor because ND’s in MN cannot prescribe medication.

I got more labs done on 1/8/2013 from Pharmasan Labs. The panel was called the Endocrine Health Basic and it was a saliva test.

The cortisol test wasn’t horrible as far as results go- it was a little low in the morning and stayed below range until about 2 pm where it barely went within the range and then was a little high around 9pm. This is a typical pattern for someone with thyroid problems. According to the reference range, my cortisol was below reference range all day long- could be why I was so tired all the time and my blood pressure was super low (I was also freezing all the time).

DHEA was 274.5 with reference range for women at 57.0-615 so that was normal

Estradiol was off the charts low at <0.8 and it should have been between 1.0-14 according to the lab range.

Estrone was 0.8 and that was within the range for my age group.

Progesterone was 566 so high for the range of 38.0-462 but she had me on progesterone cream so I can only imagine that it was probably in range before that.

Testosterone was 26.2 which was also within this labs range.

I wrote her an email on 2/20/2013 saying i got a new presecription for thyroid meds with an increased dose. I got a referral to an endocrinologist which I did not use because I have not found them helpful in the past and they are more expensive to see. I was getting heart palpitations on my new medication so I was taking half a pill and working my way up to a full pill to let my body adjust. I told her I didn’t feel clear headed, probably brain fog, and I was super forgetful and having a hard time concentrating. I said, ‘my kids think I’m crazy’. I told her I was worried about taking a higher dose and asked if I should take it and see how it goes.

She replied that my thyroid needs more support so it might be worth trying to see how my body tolerates it. She wondered if there was something in the medication that my body didn’t like. I believe the real problem was that my cortisol was so off still, I didn’t handle stress well and my body was just responding to the T3 in the new medication. She suggested I ask my doctor for Westhroid or Naturethroid and to ask my pharmacist about the medication I was taking and why I might be having palpitations on it.

I do remember taking Westhroid and doing really well on it and then there was a shortage or whatever and I had to find something else. Story of my life!

On 10/25/13 I redid the Endocrine Health Basic lab panel

• cortisol was within normal range except at 8pm it was high at 3.3 and it should have been below 1.5. She told me to take magnesium at 7pm. I remember the first time I took a powdered magnesium in water. I felt a rush of calm over my whole body from top to bottom. That is the only supplement that has made me feel a physical difference.

• DHEA was at 58.6, remember last time it was in the 200’s. It was still within the normal lab range but much lower this time. My notes say DHEA is a counter balance for cortisol

• All the sex hormones were within the lab normal range. The healthy lab ranges I have are for blood and not saliva so I can’t compare the two. One thing to know is that even functional medicine labs are making their ‘normal’ lab ranges based on the results of people who use the lab. Who goes to practitioners who use ‘functional medicine’ labs? Sick people! I think my hormones were off because I was still a long ways from feeling good with severe mood swings, poor sleep, angry all the time, terrible blood sugar and more.

• I must have had a visit on or around December 4th 2013 because I got a wellness plan via email with 24 things on it

• Supplement protocol changed a bit- ground flax in applesauce was making me throw up shortly after taking it.

  • Floravital iron and herbs at 10ml per day to see if tolerated and reduce dose if it caused constipation

  • NO RAW brassica veggies or soy because they can interfere with thyroid function- we now know this not to be true unless all you ate was brassica veggies and nothing else in huge amounts every day.

  • Add a pinch of sea salt to my water

  • Cornus Sanguinea for autoimmune thyroid support 1 spoonful in the morning (I don’t remember taking this)

  • Adrenal support 2 caps with breakfast

  • EstroMend 2 caps with dinner for memory/estrogen support instead of Femmenesence Pro Peri

  • Take a break from Sepia 200ck for at least one month to see if PMS is manageable without it (she was throwing supplements at this mood problem and nothing was sticking)

  • Repeat thyroid labs in 5 weeks

  • Glutenzyme by Pharmax in case of accidental gluten exposure - at the time we were not sure if I had celiac disease because I never got tested. I felt so good off gluten I didn’t want to go back on to be retested. At this time I was very strict with avoiding gluten.

  • Exercise: do yoga and she wanted me to go to a Qoya class which was about a 40 minute drive for me from my house and I never went. I don’t like driving that far for a workout- even now, my gym is 5 minutes from my house.

  • Grounding/visualization: imagine roots growing from your feet that firmly connect you to the earth. I still do this when I feel stressed. She said the roots provide you with nourishment/energy and offer a way to release any unwanted energy back to the earth to transform it.

  • We discussed removing my mercury fillings from my teeth.

  • Return visit in 8 weeks.

The next set of labs is from 11/26/2014 so almost a year later. By this time I probably did have my fillings removed. I did 1/4 of my mouth at a time with a dentist who knew how to remove mercury safely.

By this time I had found an MD willing to treat my symptoms along with my labs and I don’t think I was seeing the ND anymore- she was too far away for me. That said, I was driving almost an hour to the MD but she took my insurance so the visits were way cheaper. I had also gotten my nutritional therapy practitioner certification by this time. The notes on the reason for the visit was that I was here to check on thyroid, I fell really good, not fatigued, sleeping 7-8 hours, feels well physically, stress is reduced, had heart palpitations when tried raising dose of thyroid meds last time. This doctor was the only doctor in her practice willing to use something other than levothyroxine to treat thyroid so I tread lightly with her in order to continue to get the meds that made me feel good. I’d also make a note that I was not feeling tired even though my iron levels were super low- I think this was attributed to being filled up with friends in a community of like minded people who I really enjoyed. I had previously lost a friend group in 2010 and had found friends through my certification program.

• FT3 2.0 (lab range 2.0-4.4) normal but low by my ranges

• FT4 0.74 (0.82-1.77) low by lab and my ranges

• TSH 5.070 (0.450-4.500) High by lab and my ranges

• TPO Ab 69 (0-34) high

• Tg Ab 1.0 (0.0-0.9) high

• RT3 11.4 (9.2-24.1) lab range only

Again, these are lab ranges here that are done on probably both healthy and sick people because it was the lab at the doctors office though some of this, like Reverse T3 and the antibodies may have been sent out to Quest diagnostics. Had my doctor used the ranges I have which are based on healthy people and from the research, it may have painted a different picture. Here I have low T3, low FT4 and High TSH which indicates I’m not making enough T4 and not converting it for whatever reason. My meds were raised.

Fatigue was back with a vengeance and by January 2015 I was going to a chiropractic office that had a medical doctor on staff. My hope was that I would be able to see the doctor and have him prescribe my meds. The funny thing is, I never asked the chiropractor if I could do that. I just assumed. When they presented their plan and the cost, there was no mention of the doctor. I figured out later, he was a place holder so they could do certain things in their clinic that needed an MD on staff. I don’t think he was ever there. I didn’t have my voice, I was too timid to ask about seeing the doctor.

So for this office, their treatment plan was for my complaints of low energy, anxiety, brain fog, constipation. Based on my history and his exams he recommended the Nutritional Function lab test, GI Effects Stool test, Cyrex Array 4 for food hypersensitivity with the knowledge that I may need further testing based on the results of these tests.

Their plan included 6 visits with the nutrition chiropractor and 16 visits doing oxygen therapy which was their fix for my fatigue. He put me on the Apex Energetics RepairVite Diet and their powder. I did feel really good after this diet but it was restrictive. They used the IFM MSQ each visit to see how things were either improving either for the better or worse. In 2015 this plan cost me $1235 after discounts.

They did a body composition by hooking me up to some electrodes and having me lay on my back for around 10 minutes or so. I got a super fancy report showing my BMI at the time was good. It also had something on it called phase angle and mine was low. This report indicated that that is consistent with cell death or cell breakdown which could very well have been the case. I was thin and tired and brain foggy. It is said to be a predictor of malnutrition and I do think at the time I was not absorbing nutrients really well. It also showed that I was about 31.4% body fat so likely losing muscle and what you might call skinny fat. All that from a really fancy nine page report.

I did have my blood drawn for a CBC at their clinic. They didn’t give me the actual results but a fancier paper with each marker, my lab value, functional ranges and laboratory ranges. The entire thing was highlighted line by line in green for normal, yellow for out of the functional range and red for out of the laboratory range.

This blood draw was from 2/24/2015 - I was originally going to go through each lab marker and tell you the differences between their lab range and my lab ranges but I think that is going to be too much so I’m going to skim over them. The point I’m trying to get across is that this chiropractor missed some things that I would catch with my lab ranges. These things would be minor for the most part and could be fixed with some diet changes and supplements.

They missed low albumin, high AST and ALT liver markers, low sodium, high CO2, high bilirubin, low glucose, high HBA1C, low HDL cholesterol, high iron, low ferritin, low neutrophils, and high lymphocytes. They had shown high monocytes and eosinophils where my ranges said they were normal.

When the lab ranges vary so crazily from lab to lab and practitioner to practitioner, things can get missed. The blood chemistry training I received from my former professor allowed me to get scientific research based lab values on healthy individuals that are sound with ranges tight enough that I’m able to catch things before they get bad so to speak. This lab also showed TSH was a little high and T4 was low which would indicate I was in need of an upped dose of medication which I could not get from them because their doctor on staff was not actually on staff.

I was more mad at myself about that whole doctor thing because I didn’t have the confidence to ask them about it. I was intimidated by the chiropractors for some stupid reason. Things would definitely be very different now- I have found my voice! I would have questioned them about seeing the doctor. I was just so desperate at the time.

They also had me do a Cyrex Labs Array 4 - Gluten Associated Cross Reactive Foods and Fodds Sensitivity which is for IgG and IgA antibodies. Nothing was out of range but soy and corn were considered to be just slightly out of the normal range. He put me on the RepairVite diet for 3 or 4 weeks then when my MSQ showed I felt really great he told me I could go back to my normal diet. That was it. According to him my gut was healed.

Next was a Genova Diagnostics GI Effects stool test. A huge fancy report with graphs and pictures in color on the first page that told me nothing. I had undigested fat in my stool and some species of bacteria were low. So the solution was to take HCL with meals.

They also did a comprehensive melatonin profile which came back normal. I think he did that one because I was so tired. Remember that they missed low ferritin which will make one tired so I think this test was a waste.

In April 2015 they had me to the Adrenocortex Stress Profile which is a saliva test. It showed my cortisol was high all morning and high normal in afternoon and normal at night. I think the stories in my head contributed to my stress levels. I was not a happy person and I was wound up pretty tight.

Once I was done with their program I told them I was still fatigued and they told me to go back to my doctor to have my thyroid checked. And that was it.

I was back at my doctor that took insurance in August 2015 and had a CBC done again. There was about a 5 months difference between the two labs and this one was showing anemia and likely micronutrient deficiencies. RBC, Hemoglobin and Hematocrit were all low and MCV was high by my ranges all of which indicated I needed some nutrients. I had my B12 tested too and it cam back normal by the lab range. I don’t have a different range for that but it would be interesting to dig through the research which I might do at some point. All of this would point to fatigue for sure but it was missed by my doctor.

Same doctor tested my thyroid on October 6, 2015. FT3 was normal (low by my range) at 2.0, FT4 was low by both ranges at 0.74, TSH was high by both ranges at 6.130. I was on naturethroid at the time and struggling with palpitations when the dose went up so this is when I started splitting the dose and taking it twice a day. When TSH and T4 are low it could mean an iodine deficiency (not likely though I was not eating a lot of processed foods and using sea salt), autoimmunity- so antibodies could be high, and there was likely less conversion of T4 to T3 because there was less T4. There was a definite thyroid gland dysfunction.

Fast forward to April 2017 when I had my blood and urine tested for life insurance.

By my ranges, glucose was low, BUN was low, Creatinine low, Uric acid low, bilirubin low, liver enzyme ALT high, AST high normal but better than the previous years labs, GGT low (indicated oxidative stress), protein low (low by their range too), albumin low, globulin low normal (low by their standards), calcium low, LDH low (indicative of glucose issues), HDL low (inflammation), cholesterol/HDL ratio leaning towards an increased risk of CVD. They missed a lot of stuff with their ranges and I got the best life insurance rating you can possibly get.

My latest labs were done at my last visit to get my prescription renewed. I’m grateful to have a quality nurse practitioner willing to work with me based on my symptoms. She is cash pay though so I do pay out of pocket every time I see her. She is also functional medicine trained. The first time I saw her, she had me do a Dutch test and a Cyrex leaky gut panel- that was around $1000 for the two tests. I didn’t learn much from either- stuff I kind of already knew. I also did a food sensitivity panel from Cyrex that came up positive for foods I had been eating a lot of and tuna and shrimp. Since those two were on that very first food sensitivity panel I did back in 2012 I wonder if there isn’t some significance to that.

I did a gut healing protocol- a mix of following her recommendations and my own gut healing protocol from my GI class. It worked. I have been able to reintroduce dairy on a limited basis, meaning I don’t eat it every day, and nuts.

Back to my latest labs- done in April 2022. I compared them to the labs I had done July 2020 which was fun for me given my blood chemistry background.

What was missed?

Everything came back normal according the the lab values from the lab which was Quest Diagnostics.

My lab ranges revealed some white blood cells were high indicating a potential for low cortisol, a virus, parasite, and general inflammation. My blood sugar was low at 70 but can be low if cortisol is low or in hypothyroidism. My HDL cholesterol was low indicating the need for gallbladder support and triglycerides were high which can be high if there is hypothyroidism or elevated estrogen. My cholesterol to HDL ratio was high which can indicate an increased risk for cardiovascular disease.

My calcium was low indicating potential need for getting more in my diet or poor absorption. It could also be a mineral deficiency but I can’t confirm that because the minerals were not measured.

Creatinine was low which would either be decreased muscle mass or poor protein intake. LDH was high which can be high with hypothyroidism and my TSH was 20.39, FT4 0.7, FT3 2.2.

Clearly my thyroid labs say I was hypothyroid which affected the results of my other labs.

Why was I so hypo? I forget to take my afternoon dose of NDT a lot. I retested in June of this year after being more diligent about taking that afternoon dose and my TSH was 0.44, FT4 1.1, and FT3 3.7.

Why did I share all of this with you?

So you know you are not alone on this journey. I get what it feels like to feel bad.

I’ve done the work to understand what your labs might be saying about what’s going on in your body and I can help you figure it out.

I also want to point out that a lot can change in a couple of months of giving your body what it needs or what it is asking for so one bad lab result does not mean you are doomed. That lab draw is just a picture in time of what is going on and retesting with the same labs after a couple months of changes can help me see if things are going in the right direction.

Let’s figure this out together. I am on your team.

Thanks for tuning in.

Can a Vegan Diet Help Hashimoto's?

Hi everyone. Thanks for joining me today on Help For Hashimoto’s. I’m so glad you are here. I’m on my spring break and have a week off. It is nice to be on my own schedule but I also seem to be much less productive. 

I had a guest on a few episodes ago who was an energy worker. Her name is Rachel Vineyard and she did an energy healing session with me that cleared up many many cords I had attached to me that were weighing me down. After she cleared and sealed them I felt so much better and lighter and happier. Now that my time is up with her and I’m on my own, I had a dream that a dark figure was trying to reattach itself to me and since that dream, I have had really low energy. I told Rachel I have a sneaking suspicion of where the dark energy was coming from and I am hopeful I can keep it from taking hold. It is so frustrating to feel good, almost normal, and then have my energy just stolen away from me again. I know some of you have this same issue. Just low energy all the time. Maybe some of it is I keep forgetting to take my afternoon dose of my medication. I had my labs done on Monday so I look forward to seeing what they are. Either way, I just keep swimming as Dori says in Finding Nemo. 

I received a question from a listener so let’s get right to it. 

Hi Stephanie,

 I hope you are well.

 Firstly I just want to let you know how much I love listening to your podcasts.  I listen to them after I drop my daughter off at school and before going to bed everyday.

 Thank you so much for the time that you put into these podcasts and for keeping it REAL!!

I first got diagnosed with Hashimoto's by my naturopath end of Jan this year after years and years of feeling crap! I have been back and forward to numerous Dr's only to tell me that everything was fine, only when i knew it wasn't.  I knew something was not right when none of my clothes fit me, I was feeling tired and exhausted all the time, I was feeling extremely anxious, getting rashes all over my body, constipated/diarrhoea and bloated all the time (to the point I look like I'm about to have triplets), body aches and pain and so the list went on.

I tried to treat it naturally with herbs and i gave it a month, but I just simply was not feeling right.  I was then told my naturopath to cut out gluten and goitrogenic vegetables and take supplements.  I was following all of this strictly, and cut out drinking on the weekends, but I was still feeling awful.  I was starting to feel so alone and lost in this journey that I felt suicidal.  I hated my puffy, chubby body, the pain I was in and this new person.

I have also suffered from candida since I was 11, to the point that I had a diatherme of the cervix, tried every anti candida diet, coconut oil-EVERYTHING YOU NAME IT!

 Now my Naturopath thinks I may have leaky gut or SIBO and wants to treat me for this.  I keep getting told by numerous health professionals that I cant be vegan with Hashimoto's but I have been eating this way for most of my adult life.  I have an extremely clean diet, don't eat the vegan junk processed foods (like people think), and prior to Hashimoto's was extremely active.  Now i just feel like this lost fish drowning in a deep sea taking Levrothyroxine which I had to force my endocronologist to give me a compounding script free without the CRAP!!

 I just feel like my head is spinning and so alone.  I don't want to give up my plant based lifestyle because I HATE MEAT.  I love vegetables, lentils and legumes. 

 Is there anyone that can help?

 (Sorry for the long email)

 Kind regards,

Lizz

I kept getting told by health coaches that I can

The short answer on whether you can be a vegan or vegetarian and have Hashimoto’s is yes but there is a few things we need to discuss. First, had anyone asked me this question even a year ago, I would have told you there is no way you can be healthy and be a vegan or a vegetarian. I have changed my mind on that by being open-minded and willing to listen to the other side. I will say, I don’t necessarily agree with any type of diet that requires supplementation because you can’t get all the nutrients you need in high enough amounts from food. This is not a philosophical episode. You believe what you want. I’m basing my opinion on science. I’m also prepared to say that for the majority of people who are vegetarian or vegan, you can have an autoimmune disease and be healthy. In fact, there is a lot of research on Rheumatoid Arthritis being helped significantly by a vegan diet.  So, there will be no dogma about this. I want to help each of you be the best you can be so here we go. 

The first study I found is called Iodine Status and Thyroid Function of Boston-Area Vegetarians and Vegans.  We know iodine is important for thyroid hormone to be made. For women of childbearing age, getting enough iodine in your diet is important too. Iodine deficiency affects around 2 billion people worldwide and is the leading cause of preventable mental retardation (Leung et al., 2011). Here in the US, we get iodine from iodized salt, dairy products, eggs, seafood, and some bread. Iodine content isn’t usually on a food label and salt restriction is associated with iodine deficiency. Vegetarians consuming dairy and eggs may be getting enough iodine but vegans can end up deficient. This study recruited vegans and vegetarians who had been on their respective diets for at least 3 months and iodine was measured in their urine along with some other metabolites affecting thyroid function such as thiocynates in soy, a chemical found in cigarette smoke, and perchlorates which is an environmental toxin. The study had 78 vegetarians and 62 vegans of mixed races and sex. 

Vegans had lower iodine status compared to the general population and vegetarians. Women of childbearing age or those who are lactating should consume 150 ug (micrograms) of iodine per day as potassium iodide. The other compounds were measured to determine if they had an effect on thyroid function in competing with thyroid hormone. It wasn’t clear if that was the case but I think likely not since vegetarians had normal iodine status and vegans were low. 

Another study looked at lower intakes of iodine and selenium between vegans and vegetarians. While these diets tend to have better food quality and they also tend to be higher in vitamins C, E, B1, folate, magnesium they tend to be lower in vitamin A, D, B12, calcium, and zinc.  You may have read something different elsewhere. I am just telling you what the study says. Studies can be wrong but the internet can also be wrong. There were 62 women in this study- 26 omnivores, 16 vegetarians, and 20 vegans. A small study, so we need to take that into consideration. There were obvious differences between omnivores and vegans such as saturated fat intake and fiber intake- no excuse on the fiber intake for omnivores. All of us should be getting about 30 grams of fiber a day. I struggle with that myself which is so stupid because I feel exponentially better when I consume a lot of veggies. Anyway, this study reports all three eating groups had sufficient intakes of vitamins A, C, E, B’s and zinc and sodium. This information was taken via a food questionnaire that was analyzed by a computer. All three eating groups were not getting enough vitamin D, potassium, or iodine. The vegan group was especially low on selenium and iodine, B12, and calcium. (Fallon et al., 2020). 

Another study called Prevalence of Hyperthyroidism According to Type of Vegetarian Diet found that those consuming a vegan diet had a lower incidence of hyperthyroidism compared to meat-eaters and semi-vegetarian diets were not protective against hyperthyroidism. Hyperthyroidism is caused most commonly by Graves Disease which is also an autoimmune thyroid condition and equally not as fun to have. I’d even say less so than Hashimoto’s because while having a hyperfunctioning thyroid can cause weight loss, which many of us would not mind, it is not the right way to lose weight, and hyperthyroidism that isn’t controlled likely leads to thyroid storm and can result in you having to purposely destroy or remove your thyroid gland. This study used a food frequency questionnaire to determine nutrients taken in which is a common way to do that in scientific studies. It has some downsides, but it is a much less expensive way to determine this outside of monitoring or providing all food eaten by study participants. The information for this study was taken from the Adventist Health Study-2. Seventh Day Adventist’s are known for consuming a vegetarian diet, and 97,000 of them participated in this study. Predictors for hyperthyroidism were being overweight, obese, and female. Most vegans and vegetarians have a lower BMI which the researchers list as a possible reason for having autoimmune disease in general. That said, I know a lot of people who are not overweight who have an autoimmune disease so not sure how accurate that statement is. 

A study called Intake and Adequacy of The Vegan Diet. A Systematic Review of The Evidence (Bakaloudi et al., 2020) found that in general vegan diets are lower in protein than all other diets, and had lower intakes of B2, Niacin/B3, B12, Vitamin D, iodine, zinc, calcium, potassium, and selenium. 

I looked at one last study called Vegan Diets and Hypothyroidism. They discuss the higher incidence of hypothyroidism as autoimmune thyroiditis aka Hashimoto’s where almost all of us have anti-thyroid antibodies, are women, and are of increased age. Again, this study discusses the lower BMI found in most vegans/vegetarians as being protective against autoimmunity. This study also combed through the data from the Adventist Health Study-2. It is interesting to me that the folks with hypothyroidism in this study were found to be more likely to use salt, had higher BMI, lower-income, and education compared to people without hypothyroidism. Their main findings were that those following a vegan diet tended to not have hypothyroidism but this finding was not statistically significant which means that there wasn’t enough of a difference between groups for it to be a big deal. 

Outside of looking at diets, it appears that many hypothyroid patients are low in Zinc compared to normal healthy people. One reason for this can be that if you have hypothyroidism, you are not absorbing zinc as well in your gut or that other areas of the body are stealing it for their use. There is also a possibility that levels are just lower in hypothyroid patients as one study found that hyperthyroid patients had higher levels of zinc. We need zinc for thyroid hormone to be made, we need it to make proteins and it helps T3 get where it needs to go. 

Selenium is needed for thyroid gland function and a bunch of other stuff in the body. Rat studies show that production of T3 is inhibited in selenium deficiency without changing how much is stored in the liver and in rats, a deficiency will present as higher T4, lower T3, and lower enzyme activity involved in thyroid hormone conversion from T4 to T3.  Low selenium also means less glutathione which is a big antioxidant in the body that can play a role in more damage to the thyroid gland. 

The bottom line is you will want to be pretty diligent in making sure you get adequate amounts of foods with these nutrients. You can look up food sources of any nutrient at world’s healthiest foods dot com or whfoods.com. Just put selenium in the search bar or whatever vitamin or mineral you are looking for and it will show you which foods are highest in those nutrients. If you don’t think you can get enough from food then you should probably supplement. 

I’m awaiting a book that can help me further understand how to help my vegetarian and vegan clients but I can share some information on how to get enough of some nutrients through food. 

Calcium recommendations for adults is 1000mg/day but if you are a woman over 50 you need 1200mg/day. Plant-based sources are navy and pinto beans, dark leafy greens, tofu, blackstrap molasses, corn tortillas, figs, almonds, fortified juice or soy milk. Soy is okay to eat- please be sure it is organic. Vitamin D will help your body absorb calcium and if you supplement, you can take calcium citrate or malate any time of day, not just with meals. If you take it between meals, it is less likely to interfere with the absorption of other minerals. 

Vegans can get enough iron but it is not as well absorbed in plants so you need to consume more iron than the RDA to make sure you get enough, around 32g/day. Legumes, dark chocolate, spinach, blackstrap molasses, seeds, or fortified cereals are good sources. Foods with vitamin C increase iron absorption and you can cook more acidic foods in cast iron. 

Zinc- RDA is 11mg/day for men and 8 mg/day for women. If deficient it can manifest as poor wound healing, hair loss, immune system dysfunction, or dermatitis. You can get zinc from legumes, whole grains, nuts and seeds, and fortified foods. It is not as bio-available in plant foods compared to animal sources. I see a lot about “well planned” diets which to me means you must be really aware of what you plan to eat say over a weeks time to ensure you get all the adequate nutrients your body needs. 

Iodine- RDA is 150 micrograms with the upper tolerable limit at 1100 micrograms which is equal to 1/2 teaspoon of iodized salt, sea vegetables, and 1/16th teaspoon of kelp. If you are deficient in iodine, then brassicas and soy can cause thyroid issues. This one is kind of Goldilocks like- you can get too little and you can get too much and it will cause thyroid problems. 

B12- this is made in the gut of animals by bacteria. Vegans should supplement with this nutrient as it is not in many plant foods. You can get some in tempeh, sea veggies, and chlorella but the amounts are inconsistent. Supplement first, then fortified foods. RDA for B12 is 2.4 mcg per day and can be checked in serum on a lab test. The normal range depending on the lab can be from around 225 to 950. You can supplement with 1000-2500mcg 2x/week to get enough. If you are deficient, the type of B12 you should consume is methylmalonic acid. Deficiency presents as weakness, fatigue, mood changes (ha- maybe I am B12 deficient) with more severe symptoms of deficiency as megaloblastic anemia and nerve damage. 

Vitamin D- get it from sunshine, fortified foods,  and supplements. RDA is 600 IU/day with the government saying the upper limit is 4000IU per day. Some studies show up to 1800 per day will improve health while over that will worsen some health outcomes. Hashimoto’s patients need to be sure this is at a level above 30 since it plays a role in immune health and helps the cells grow and mature. 

As I learn more about this, I will share it with you all. I think we just need to be mindful of what works for our situation, beliefs, and body paying special attention to what works for our body. My body feels better when I eat a lot of plants but I also enjoy eating meat so I have no plans to give that up. If you prefer only plants for whatever reason, then do that. I do believe that vegan diets do have to be well planned. It can’t be all impossible burgers and fries with pop/soda and vegan cheesecake for dessert. There are plenty of ways to eat junk food no matter what kind of diet you eat. The most important piece is to make sure you are eating real whole foods as often as possible with the majority of them being plants no matter what kind of diet you choose. 

I made a few plant-based recipes over the last couple of days from the app Deliciously Ella. I discovered her from watching the Netflix show with Zac Efron where he traveled the world talking about sustainability or something. Anyway, Ella made him a vegan curry dish that looked so delicious I wanted the recipe. It was on her app so I bought it. I think it is around $15 for the year and let me tell you it is worth every penny. She has amazing recipes and there is a wellness component so you can exercise and track food, water, and sleep. I do struggle to get enough veggies in and this app helps. I will say it is a lot of chopping of veggies but the end products are worth it and I do feel so much better when I eat a ton of vegetables so there is a trade-off. 

We sometimes are looking for shortcuts to health because they seem like they are easier and the internet makes them look really alluring. Things like fix your gut with these five steps or 3 herbs that heal your thyroid, the 3 step plan to fix your thyroid. These are all internet marketing terms and if you have been listening awhile you know you can’t fix anything in just three steps. Our bodies are machines dependent on the proper fuel to keep them running well. You didn’t end up with hashimoto’s in three short steps and you are not going to fix it in three short steps. Diet and lifestyle changes are key for long-term health. 

Thanks for listening. Please sign up for my newsletter over at outofthewoodsnutrition.com and if you would be so kind to leave a rating and review on apple podcasts I would so appreciate it. Send me your questions too. I love hearing from you guys.

Also, there is a theory about women who have lost their voice in life and the relationship it has to thyroid problems. If you have a story of losing your voice in your life- due to emotional abuse or whatever if you want to share your story with me email me at stephanie@outofthewoodsnutrition.com .  Until next time. 

References:

1. Leung, A. M., Lamar, A., He, X., Braverman, L. E., & Pearce, E. N. (2011). Iodine status and thyroid function of Boston-area vegetarians and vegans. The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, 96(8), E1303–E1307.

2. Fallon, N., & Dillon, S. A. (2020). Low Intakes of Iodine and Selenium Amongst Vegan and Vegetarian Women Highlight a Potential Nutritional Vulnerability. Frontiers in Nutrition. 

3. Bakaloudi, D. R., Halloran, A., Rippin, H. L., Oikonomidou, A. C., Dardavesis, T. I., Williams, J., Wickramasinghe, K., Breda, J., & Chourdakis, M. (2020). Intake and adequacy of the vegan diet. A systematic review of the evidence. Clinical Nutrition.

4. Tonstad, S., Nathan, E., Oda, K., & Fraser, G. E. (2015). Prevalence of hyperthyroidism according to type of vegetarian diet. Public Health Nutrition, 18(8), 1482–1487.

5. Tonstad, S., Nathan, E., Oda, K., & Fraser, G. (2013). Vegan Diets and Hypothyroidism. Nutrients, 5(11), 4642–4652.

What you need to know about detoxification.

Welcome to episode 74. 

This week I am going to give you a simple primer on the phases of detoxification in your body. This is important to know so you know how the food you eat actually might be affecting how you feel and the process of disease. When the body is out of balance due to your detoxification  systems not working well or at all, you will feel sick and it will affect your thyroid. We are made of many systems and they all work together. Our current medical system has developed specialties for each of our systems. Maybe you see an endocrinologist for your thyroid- they deal with the endocrine system. We have gastroenterologists who specialize in our GI tract. We have cardiologists who specialize in our heart health and so on. The missing piece here is that all of these systems work together and when one is out of balance, it is likely that others are also out of balance and that can create systemic dis-ease. 

When your detoxification system- and interestingly, there is no conventional medical specialty for this system. The only way this system gets attention is from scientists who are developing pharmaceutical drugs because all drugs get processed through this system and that is kind of what I am going to talk about today. It is important stuff because when things go wrong here you can end up with cancer, heart disease, liver problems and more. 

Okay. Let’s get started.  I mentioned a bit last week that there are three phases of detoxification. Phase I, Phase II and Phase II. We will go through each of these and I will try to make this as simple as possible to understand. The basics of this system is we take in a toxin- and most toxins are what we call fat soluble meaning they like to hang out in our fat tissue. Toxins can come from the outside- from our environment, from the air we breath, from our food, from our clothes- pretty much anywhere. It is unavoidable. 

Those toxins come in and  some will be eliminated through our stool or sweat without going through phase I but if they are not eliminated they go to the liver and through phase I detoxification. The liver will process them and then they get eliminated through our urine or our stool. Now, many people with hypothyroidism and mismanaged medication have constipation so these toxins are not being eliminated right away through the stool. They are getting reabsorbed in to the body. Not good. We want to get those out. 

In the liver, in phase I- it is called biotransformation- this means the substance is transformed or changed into something else so it can be prepared for elimination. We have enzymes in our liver that break down these foreign things called xenobiotics. This process creates free radicals which are molecules that are unstable due to missing and electron and create oxidative stress. They damage tissue in the body if they are not neutralized. We do that with antioxidants. 

You have likely heard that things like blueberries are a good source of antioxidants. There are special components of blueberries and other fruits and veggies that help neutralize these free radicals that our body has created. Also - before they create damage in the body they are supposed to go through phase II where they are further changed by other molecules in the body joining with them (molecules which are created through our consumption and breakdown of protein) and creating these harmless water soluble substance that will be sent to the kidney for elimination through urine or through the GI tract for elimination through stool. The elimination part is phase III. 

In order for this to happen we need to provide our body with nutrients. For phase I we specifically need B vitamins, especially riboflavin, niacin, B6, folate, B12, flavonoids (these come from the colors in our veggies), you need some good healthy fats to build healthy cell structures and you need glutathione which is the body’s master antioxidant. 

Before these broken down and more harmful products from phase I can move on to phase II they need the antioxidants and those require the use of things like vitamin A, vitamin C, selenium, copper, zinc, CoQ10, things called thiols which are found in garlic, onions and cruciferous veggies like broccoli, bioflavonoids (found mostly in citrus fruits, black currents- if you have bleeding gums you could be missing bioflavonoids in your diet). 

Next they move on to phase II where the biggest nutrient needed here is protein. Protein, when broken down provides all the amino acids needed for this second phase to work really well and this is important because if this phase is not working up to the speed of phase I, you have all these really harmful compounds that will be moving throughout the body, damaging tissues and wreaking havoc on the body. 

This means you need to be not only eating quality proteins but you also need to be breaking them down and assimilating them. Now quality proteins in the scientific literature means that you are getting all the amino acids needed for the body to operate- typically the essential amino acids and there are about 20-22 essential amino acids meaning our body cannot produce them and we need to get them from our diet. We can get them from plants or animals but easiest is from animals. 

Once these compounds are changed again in phase II they get set for elimination and in order for that to happen well you need a few things to be working really well there too. The transformed compounds, and those that didn’t get transformed are sent to the river of bile that flows through our digestive tract which will then be eliminated through our stool. This means that you need to be producing healthy bile from your liver. Past episodes will talk more in depth about that but basically you need to be consuming healthy fats- not canola oil or vegetable oil or trans fats. You have to minimize fried foods and consume olive oil, some coconut oil and eat avocados. These help build healthy bile which will help keep your gallbladder healthy so you can excrete all these toxins in your stool. You also will excrete through urine but first the toxic byproducts are shuttled to the blood, then they are filtered through the kidneys and then excreted through urine. This means you need to be drinking enough water so you are peeing this stuff out. 

How do we support these phases with food? Phase I foods include things like mushrooms, eggs, asparagus, almonds, turkey, chicken, salmon, lamb, beef, sardines, brown rice, sweet potato, beans, broccoli, leafy greens, fish, undenatured whey protein, turmeric, avocado, garlic, foods high in vitamin C and selenium, all the plant foods, sunflower seeds. 

Phase II foods are all about protein and digesting and assimilating that protein. So you must have good digestion and you probably should heal your gut if you have intestinal permeability or leaky gut. That would be important. How do you know if you have good digestion? What are your stools like? Are they well formed, sort of sausage shaped? Do you have much on the toilet paper when you wipe? If you do have a mess on your toilet paper and they are not well formed you likely need to work on your digestion. You might need a stomach acid supplement, you might need a gut healing program, you might need more fiber. Is your gallbladder doing its job? If not, that needs to be taken care of too. Do you have gut dysbiosis like an issue with candida or an issue with an imbalance in your microbiome?

If you have any genetic mutations such as MTHFR or COMT you will need extra help feeding the proper nutrients to your body so the detoxification system can do its job. If you have issues with these SNPs- they are related to methylation which is part of the detoxification process and you might have higher homocysteine levels on a blood test, you might have low B12, low folate status and low methionine (an essential amino acid). The short answer for this issue is to make sure you are consuming a lot of leafy greens, a mediterranean type diet can be really helpful and you want to be sure you are getting all the b vitamins but you don’t want to take them in too high amounts. You want to not smoke or drink too much coffee and avoiding alcohol is beneficial. Some medications can affect your folate status, particularly methotrexate. 

I talked a little bit about glutathione being your body’s master antioxidant. It is pretty important and there are some things that go in in the body that can cause it to be depleted so you want to make sure you provide the raw materials to keep your glutathione status healthy. Protein, brassica veggies, turmeric, fruits and veggies (cruciferous especially at 5-10 servings a day), green tea, N-acetycysteine, omega 3 fatty acids, salmon, resveratrol, allium veggies (chives, leeks, garlic, onion), vitamin C and E and whey protein. 

This is your very simple and quick primer on the phases of detoxification. I do not recommend doing a detoxification plan without first healing your gut and doing an elimination diet. You can’t start a detox while you are feeling really bad because it can just make you worse. You should always work with a practitioner who can help you navigate this. 

That is it for today. I want to thank you for being here and for listening. I do appreciate it. If you could leave me a review on apple podcasts it helps me reach more people. If you need some help with your health or you know someone who does, I am taking new clients and would love to chat with you. You can set up a discovery call on my website and click on the appointment tab where you can select a free 15 minute call to see if we are a good fit for each other. 

While you are there, sign up for my newsletter for recipes and other tips sent out every few weeks. 

Here’s to you until next week. 

Super Foods For A Super You

We are talking about foods that build a healthy thyroid and a healthy body today.

How can I put my Hashimoto's in to remission if my thyroid is burnt out?

Welcome to episode 52.

I can’t believe I made it a year. I’m grateful you are listening. I suppose I should have done something to celebrate a year of podcasting but I have a crap ton of work to do for school this week which is generating a fair amount of stress for me so one day I will get it together and do some kind of giveaway. 

I have been monitoring my blood sugar levels for the last few days because I have really been struggling with some symptoms of blood sugar dysregulation. It turns out that my body is not so much appreciating the morning protein shake, especially when it is made with raw cacao. The caffeine from that alone is causing me to get a jittery feeling. I did much better with a meal of chicken and cabbage for breakfast yesterday with more stable blood sugar all through out the day. 

I am hoping to get a handle on this so my adrenals can have a break and I can gain some muscle. I’m finally able to get some exercise in after my broken collarbone. 

Okay- on to a listener question

Hi Stephanie,

I get confused with all the varying things I am reading about Hashi's, in particular how can my Hashi's be put into remission when  technically it has burnt out?  I am hoping you can shed some light on this for me, please.

Good luck with your studies - I know how much work goes into a Masters Degree.  

Many thanks

Kind Regards

Dorothy

There are varying degrees of damage done to your thyroid when you have Hashimoto’s. The longer you go with inflammation in the body that creates higher antibodies you may have more damage done to your thyroid leaving it unable to produce hormone. 

When you are putting Hashimoto’s in to remission you are putting out the inflammatory fire that is causing your body to be out of balance. That inflammation will be different for everyone and it will cause your thyroid to be damaged but how long it takes to put your autoimmune disease in to remission depends on how much damage was done and how long you have gone before you started making changes to your health. 

It can often be diet changes that will bring antibodies down and put your disease in to remission. Often times though, you will need to do more than just a few simple diet changes. 

Food is information for our cells. What you put in your body matters. Processed foods are basically dead foods. They have no good information for our cells to take in to build healthy tissues which build healthy organs which build healthy systems which build a healthy person or organism. 

So food is important. What you eat is important and the quality of that food is equally important. It can be expensive to eat healthy, especially if you are buying any amount of convenience “health food” such as gluten free crackers or breads or lunch meat that is of higher quality. 

It is time consuming to cook healthy foods especially if you get caught up in all the fun stuff so many food bloggers are making. I don’t have time for complicated dishes so I don’t make them. I made venison steak bites seasoned with Redmond Real Seasoned Salt, and pepper cooked in coconut oil and I steamed broccoli and sautéed Brussels sprouts in olive oil and added minced garlic at the end with some lemon juice. I added a side of my homemade sauerkraut and that was it. The night before I had chicken breast cooked in a cast iron skillet and roasted cabbage. 

Real whole clean foods are a good place to start to put your disease in to remission. 

You also have to look at what your blood sugar is like. If you have blood sugar dysregulation you will likely still be dealing with inflammation and thyroid issues even if your diet is perfect. 

• Do you wake up a few hours after falling asleep (or between 1-3am) and find it hard to get back to sleep?

• Do you crave sweet things?

• Do you have binge type eating  or uncontrolled eating?

• Do you feel like your appetite is excessive?

• Do you crave coffee or sugar in the afternoon?

• Do you get sleepy in the afternoon or after a meal?

• Does your fatigue get relieved by eating?

• Do you get a headache or feel shaky if meals or skipped or delayed?

• Do you get irritable or hangry before meals?

These are all signs you need to work on balancing your blood sugar which can be done with diet but also lifestyle changes because it isn’t only food that causes a rise in blood sugar. 

Lack of food, low blood sugar in the morning or not eating soon enough in the morning can cause your adrenals to have to get involved in raising blood sugar- a cortisol release and then you have an insulin surge and maybe you are insulin resistant and you are then storing fat because insulin is a fat storage hormone. 

Foods to help blood sugar regulation include: 

• asparagus

• avocado

• soaked and sprouted beans

• brewers yeast

• broccoli

• brussels sprouts

• butter

• carrots

• cauliflower

• eggs

• full fat dairy

• kale

• liver

• onions

• peas

• pecans

• salmon

• seaweed

• sweet potato

• tomatoes

These foods and others have the very important B vitamins which are so important in blood sugar regulation as well as some amino acids and other compounds that help promote insulin to do its job as well as maintain hormone balance. 

You won’t be able to put Hashimoto’s in to remission if you have low iron stores- ferritin. So have a full iron panel done at the lab. the lab range for ferritin is ridiculous. It is like 17-80 or something. Most people with thyroid issues feel better with ferritin in the higher range. 

You also won’t put Hashimoto’s in to remission if you are dealing with adrenal insufficiency or hpa axis dysfunction. Your adrenal glands have many roles, one of which is to manage blood sugar. Another is to manage stress. So if you are having fights in your head with your parter or spouse, your mom or whoever, if you get really mad in traffic or have a lot going on and zero support you will likely be dealing with some kind of adrenal issue. 

• If you tend to be a night person- you get a second wind later in the evening and have trouble falling asleep and then are slow to start in the morning. 

• If you feel keyed up and can’t calm down. 

• Higher or lower than normal blood pressure, get dizzy when standing up. 

• Feel wired or jittery after drinking coffee. Caffeine is one of the worst things you can do for your adrenal health, especially if you are dealing with some kind of adrenal imbalance which most of us are. 

• If you get a headache after exercising- I had a friend who this happened to and she never could figure out why this was. I wonder now if she wasn’t dealing with adrenal issues. My guess is yes based on knowing a bit about her life. 

• Do you clench or grind your teeth? 

• Do you crave salt or salt your food before you taste it?

• Do you have chronic low back pain that gets worse with fatigue?

• Have chronic fatigue or get drowsy or tired often or easily?

• Do you get a headache in the afternoon or yawn a lot?

These are all signs you may be needing to do some work on your adrenal glands. 

Making sure you eat a meal with protein in the morning within an hour of waking will help your adrenals heal. Also make sure that you are getting plenty of rest and doing some gentle exercise along with a no sugar diet for a few weeks will help your adrenals reset. 

There may be some burn out in your thyroid or damage. You may need medication for the rest of your life but you are not resigned to a life of fatigue and general malaise. 

In my functional medicine training we are talking about making the whole person better- mind, body and spirit.  One cannot work great without the other two in balance as well.

You can feel better and you deserve to feel better. This disease ruins so many lives but we don’t have to let it. 

You can take charge of your health. This is what I most passionate about. Take charge of how you perceive your illness. Do not let it be who you are. This is so important. 

I spent a lot of years hiding behind my disease and letting it define me. My kids got a sick mom. They also got a mom who for years let that sickness be her excuse until one day I woke up and wanted more. 

I wanted a better life. I took that to an extreme for awhile too and now I have finally found some balance. I am less dogmatic with myself and am okay with the choices I am making in food and in life. 

It is a process and takes some time to figure out- which can all depend on your life view and what kinds of baggage you took from your childhood and all that stuff. 

Getting well is a bit of a process but it can be done. Of course it is much easier when you have support from those around you and the energy to get started but it doesn’t have to all change over night. Baby steps can be just the right place to start. 

And one more thing about diet. The autoimmune protocol is a wonderful diet. Elimination diets in general are the best way to figure out which foods your body doesn’t really do well with. They are not the be all end all. You don’t have to stress about doing it.

Start with what you are comfortable with but also know that healing may take longer if you are consuming things that inflame your body. The stress of trying to change your life can also cause inflammation so do it in a way that works for you and don’t compare your journey to any one else’s. We are bio individuals and so is our healing. 

Thanks for writing in. I thank you for that. If you have any questions about this episode please head over to helpforhashimotos.com and leave a comment on episode 52. 

I’m not loving how the social media outlets are banning some people these days because they don’t align with big pharma or big food companies.

 People are starting to notice that these big companies care much less about our health and more about profits no matter the expense of the people consuming or being forced to use their products. 

Nothing wrong with making a profit but there is a lot wrong with the integrity of some of these big companies and people are standing up for their health and changing the marketplace. 

Please continue to do that. Stand up for what you believe no matter what side you are on and have a conversation about your side rather than slinging mud at others. We can’t change the world with mud but we can agree to disagree. 

So anyway, I don’t have a big social media presence and not many of you would miss me if I disappeared off of social media. I encourage you to take a break from it as well. Spend time looking at the sunset instead of scrolling at pictures of one. Go for a hike or a walk with someone you love instead of texting them. Go to someone’s website instead of their facebook page. 

You have the power to change the way things are done in this world and because it is money that rules the world, choose wisely where you spend yours. 

Thanks for listening. 

Find me at helpforhashimotos.com or email me at helpforhashimotos@gmail.com or fill out the contact form on my website. 

Have a great week. 

What do I eat for Type 2 Diabetes? Episode 41.

Welcome to episode 41. We have a listener question so let’s get started. 

Hi there. Thanks for your easy to understand information in your podcast. I have Celiac disease, Hashi's and now Diabetes! Do you have a sample simple diet plan? I just got diagnosed with the Diabetes..  I have no clue what to do about this. 

Misty

Hi Misty, 

Thanks for listening to the podcast! Sounds like you have a lot going on. I am going to assume you were diagnosed with Type II diabetes. 

A sample diet plan would look something like removing all processed foods, eating real whole foods. Meats, ideally from pastured animals, good quality fats like grass fed butter, coconut oil, olive oil and consuming lots and lots of veggies. 

This type of diet is very helpful to reset the body so it can reduce inflammation and your cells can become less resistant to insulin again. 

Often, having issues with insulin means you also have trouble with your weight. It is estimated that more than ⅔ of adults in the US are overweight. I am not saying that you are overweight Misty. 

Each year about 45 million Americans go on a diet and spend around $33 billion on weight loss products and programs. 

Let’s get something straight right now.

Diets don’t work.

Weight loss programs might work while you working them but they don’t work once you stop. This is why I am constantly preaching and teaching my clients that it is not about a diet. It is about changing your diet and lifestyle.

A diet is the kinds of foods that a person, animal or community habitually eats according to the dictionary definition. So we have a diet. We don’t go on a diet for a short time to get a result that we can’t keep when we go off a diet. 

Digging ourselves out of our chronic disease states is a JOURNEY and not necessarily a destination. 

You almost have to just make a decision to start doing the right thing by your body. Give it what it needs and craves to keep it in balance. Choose your health. 

When you are dealing with Type II diabetes, refined carbs are not your friend. 

Here is what happens to your cells when you consume too much sugar in the form of sugar itself or refined carbs like bread, pasta, cookies, cakes etc. 

Our cells need energy and they store in the form of something called ATP (adenosine triphosphate). Cells need glucose (sugar) to create ATP or they will die. 

Plants make glucose through photosynthesis, we do not. We have to get it from our diet. 

If your blood glucose or blood sugar gets too low, not enough glucose will get to our tissues and organs, leaving our cells unable to make enough ATP to work properly or function. 

Now too much glucose in the blood will make blood thicker (think of molasses and how slow that flows) and it won’t flow as well or as quickly which means nutrients, especially oxygen does not get delivered to cells and they will eventually die. 

When we eat something and digest it, glucose enters our bloodstream. Our cells need to adjust to that shift in sugar pretty fast so the cells can get the glucose they need to create energy.  

How does this happen?  Insulin. It is a hormone produced by the pancreas and it gets released just before we eat and while we are eating. It tells the liver, muscle and fat tissues to take the sugar out of our blood which lowers our blood sugar levels. 

Insulin goes to the receptors on our cells. I always think of receptors on our cells as little satellite dishes waiting to receive a signal.  When it gets to the receptor and attaches itself to it, the cell it is on (muscle, liver, fat) gets a signal to absorb the glucose/sugar molecule and store it as a form of glucose called glycogen which is a stored form of glucose or sugar. 

As your blood sugar level drops, insulin release will slow down or stop. Our body doesn’t want this level to get too low though so it will also stimulate the cells in muscle, fat and in the liver to to break down that stored sugar, glycogen, by releasing glucagon and sugar will be released. 

This is how the body maintains balance or homeostasis. 

Our body gets ready for the barrage of sugar we consume by releasing insulin before we even take the first bite. Just by us smelling some delicious food or drooling over the dessert tray at a restaurant, our body releases insulin. 

Let’s use a candy bar as an example. You eat it, it is broken down in your stomach and absorbed as glucose right into the bloodstream.

Your body will then release insulin and in a few minutes your insulin level will be pretty high so it can bring all that sugar to the cells and lowering your blood sugar levels. 

What you ate the meal before the candy bar will affect how much insulin is released- usually means more insulin is released to respond to the candy bar if you are eating a meal made from the Standard American Diet- processed, refined carbs. 

If your blood sugar is regularly high, the pancreas continues to release insulin until blood sugar levels return to normal. 

The brain needs glucose and can make its own insulin. How crazy is that. That might be why when your blood sugar gets too low, you can’t think. 

Stress will affect your blood sugar too. Noradrenaline, a fight or flight hormone, will keep the body from producing insulin because it thinks we need to hang on to the sugar in our blood to flee danger. 

In Type II Diabetes the problem is that you have insulin being released but the receptors on your cells are not taking it in. This shows up as consistently high blood sugar levels on a blood test. 

It starts out as insulin resistance. Think of insulin as a key to a door. The cell is the door and the receptor is a lock on the door. Using that key too much can wear out the lock and it just doesn’t work anymore so you can’t get the door open. Your body might try to make more keys (insulin) to try to get the door open. 

The more refined carbs and sugar you eat, the more insulin produced by the pancreas. This can wear down the receptors causing insulin resistance but if not managed with diet and lifestyle it can also wear out the pancreas to the point of it not being able to make insulin as well or make enough or make any at all. 

This is when you become insulin dependent and need to inject yourself with insulin. 

Again, the best foods for managing Type II Diabetes are going to be proteins like meat, seafood, poultry, lamb, bison, wild caught fish, pastured eggs. Always buy the highest quality protein that you eat the most of and for the rest, trim the fat and do your best. 

Full fat dairy products will slow down the absorption of the milk sugars keeping your blood sugar stable. Most people with hashimoto’s should not be consuming dairy but you can do full fat coconut milk in place of many dairy products, except cheese sadly. 

Veggies in large amounts. Avoid some of the starchier veggies for a few weeks like sweet potatoes, squashes, beans and things like that. 

Grains will cause your insulin to spike so are not recommended. 

I hope this helps. 

If you have a question about your health you would like me to answer, send it to me at helpforhashimotos@gmail.com or go to my website and fill out the contact form. 

Please leave me a rating and review on iTunes and share this podcast with anyone you think could use the help from it. I would really appreciate it. 

You can also get my ebook Five Things Your Doctor Won’t Tell You About Hypothyroidism by heading over to HelpForHashimotos.com. 

You can join my facebook group Help For Hashmoto’s and while I am on a social media break I do check daily to see if anyone has asked to join. 

I’m currently taking new clients. If you need help figuring out just how to feel better with Hashimotos, thyroid problems or other chronic illness, I’m your girl! 

Can celery juice heal my thyroid? Episode 40.

Welcome to Episode 40!

I hope you are well! Thanks for listening, I appreciate that you are here! 

I’ve been having a lot of breakfast soup lately and protein shakes with chopped up frozen zucchini, pea protein and beef protein from Designs For Health with coconut milk. Quick and easy breakfast. I have something going on with my digestion so I am taking it easy with more healing foods during the day like bone broth and soup. 

I had been eating some sour dough bread from a company called Bread Srsly but my body is letting me know that no grains seem to be okay right now. I’ve been getting itchy skin. I’m going on vacation soon so when I get back I am going to dial my diet in tight and do a lot of bone broth to see if I can get my digestion back on track. 

Ever since I did that little experiment of going off my medication I have had horrible digestion. So- I’ve started making sure I am taking stomach acid with every meal to help break down my protein better. 

I have also been doing a lot of green juice in my Vitamix. A couple sticks of celery, about ⅓ to half a cucumber. I just cut some up and put them in the freezer so I don’t have to worry about them going bad. I add a whole peeled and seeded lemon and a palmful of parsley with water and ice and blend. I do add a pinch of sea salt too. I’m pretty sure I’ve talked about this drink before on here but there you have it again. 

I got to thinking about my green juice and the celery in it. Celery juice seems to be all the rage right now and so it begs the question: 

Can Celery Juice Heal My Thyroid?

Anthony William, The Medical Medium, says that fresh celery juice every day will help you heal your thyroid. 

I’ve never been a huge fan of celery but recently my body really seems to enjoy it. I still prefer it to be covered in nut butter if I’m going to eat it raw but sometimes I crave plain old celery. 

I always use it as a base for my soup recipes but other than that celery has not usually been real high on my list of delicious veggies. 

This study says celery has many medicinal properties.  It appears to be antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, can help lower blood sugar and levels of fat in the blood. 

It grows well in cold and mild environments and is widely used in traditional medicine. It is said that it can prevent cardiovascular disease, jaundice, joint pain, lower blood pressure and is anti-fungal. It can also help protect the lining of our gut. 

Pretty crazy that Mother Nature provides us will all this good stuff to take care of our body. 

Celery has antioxidants in it which will help neutralize free radicals. Free radicals damage our tissues and cells. 

What is the best way to eat celery?

Fresh raw celery is best consumed within a week in order to get the antioxidant benefit and chopping it as needed rather than making celery sticks and storing them for the week means losing less nutrients. But if you need to chop it and store it in order to save time or make eating it easier then go for it. You won’t lose all the nutrients. 

Steaming it can protect some of its nutrients too.  So I guess this means eating it in a variety of ways can be the most beneficial. 

Be sure to choose celery that is crisp and will snap when you pull it apart and try to always buy it organically if you can. It is usually on the Environmental Working Groups list of the dirty dozen. 

What nutrients are in celery?

One cup of celery has 33% the daily value of vitamin K, 11% molybdenum (if you have multiple chemical sensitivities you could be deficient in this), 9% folate, 6% potassium and so much more. You can go to whfoods.org for a full nutrient profile. 

Vitamin K: It is a fat soluble vitamin found in foods and made in our body. It helps blood clotting- this is K1. K2 is made by the bacteria in our gut so good gut health is important. 

K is absorbed from the upper part of your small intestine with the help of bile which is made in the liver and secreted from the gallbladder and from pancreatic juices. Taking too much vitamin E or Calcium can reduce absorption of K. It is stored in small amounts. Rancid oils (like canola and soybean oil) and fats, x-rays, radiation, aspirin, air pollution and freezing of foods all destroy vitamin K. It is not a good idea to supplement with K1 unless you can have your clotting abilities monitored. 

Molybdenum is an essential trace mineral that we get mostly from food. It is deficient in the soil which can cause a deficiency in mammals including humans.  It helps in fixing nitrogen in the soil so decreased molybdenum leads to poor plant growth. 

Our body only contains about 9mg of this mineral and it is found mostly in the liver and the kidneys, adrenal glands, bones and skin. One function that relates to thyroid problems is that it helps to mobilize iron from the liver so the body can use it. This means that it can help prevent anemia. A common and important issue in thyroid health. 

It is well absorbed from the small intestine but competes with copper where absorption happens. It is thought to help prevent some cancers as well. 

This is not something you should supplement with in large amounts. You will find it in a multi mineral supplement in just the right amount with other needed minerals. Check with a practitioner before supplementing with anything. 

Deficiency is thought to lead to visual problems, rapid heart rate and breathing problems. 

Folate is also known as B9. It is a water soluble vitamin and is prevalent in dark leafy green veggies. Do not confuse folate with synthetic folic acid which is in most processed foods. The synthetic form can lead to unmetabolized folic acid and will be a problem for you if your methylation pathways are not working right. 

Our body can store enough of this in the liver for 6-9 months before we will notice a deficiency. It helps us make red blood cells and helps us break down and use protein, divide cells and is important in brain function. 

Folate is used to treat stress, fatigue and adrenal gland dysfunction. Taking high amounts of vitamin C can cause you to need more folate. The adrenals also like vitamin C but again- supplementing willy nilly because someone said something helped them can be bad for you. 

If you are taking birth control pills you can need to supplement with folate. It also helps with menstrual issues. It can help restless leg syndrome and with pernicious anemia (a B12 problem). 

And finally potassium. It is a pretty significant mineral in the body. We need it for cells to function and for the electrical connections in our body. It is part of electrolytes which help our cells get water. It actually means that it has a little electrical charge to it. 98% of our potassium is found in our cells. Those tiny little things sure do have a lot of things in them. 

Alcohol, caffeine, sugar, diuretic drugs all cause potassium losses and can contribute to lowering the blood potassium. We also lose potassium from diarrhea and throwing up. 

It helps regulate our blood pressure and deficiency is common in chronic illness and as we get older. 

Fatigue is the most common symptom of deficiency and early symptoms of deficiency also include things like muscle weakness, slow reflexes, dry skin, acne and can progress in to nervous disorders, insomnia, slow or irregular heartbeat. 

Low potassium can cause irregular heartbeat and cause blood sugar issues making our blood sugar higher. 

What is so great about celery juice?

It sounds pretty good to me based on all the nutrients in it and what they do for us! How about you?

Well, studies show that the juice has been shown to lower inflammation and if you have Hashimoto’s you likely have some inflammation in the body. 

Anthony William says that juicing celery and drinking 16 ounces  (or up to 32 ounces) of it a day will improve many chronic conditions including thyroid conditions.  You will need to have once bunch of celery to juice per day to get 16 ounces out of it. That is a lot of celery. 

He says you need to drink it in the morning on an empty stomach. I would agree with this if you were going to do it. Drinking it on an empty stomach will ensure that nothing will interfere with it doing its job. 

In his book he says that celery will help you maintain stomach acid and it helps the liver produce bile which you need to emulsify fats. His whole thing in his thyroid book is that EBV is the cause of thyroid problems, which for many people, can be a trigger and celery juice is supposed to “anti-EBV”. He says it also helps support the central nervous system and helps with adrenal health. 

He says celery juice will increase production of T3 which for many of us would be great. 

I’ve tried once to make celery juice in my Vitamix and I had a really hard time getting it down. I don’t have a juicer and don’t plan to buy one so for now, I’m holding off on drinking the green stuff all by itself. 

I have heard a lot of good stories about celery juice helping people have great bowel movements, more energy and get rid of hot flashes. 

There do not seem to be any downsides to drinking it. If you want to give it a try, go for it. You will get some great anti-oxidants, vitamin C and other good for you nutrients. There is nothing wrong with that. 

Okay. That is it for today. Thanks for listening! 

If you have a question about your health you would like me to answer, send it to me at helpforhashimotos@gmail.com or go to my website and fill out the contact form. 

Please leave me a rating and review on iTunes and share this podcast with anyone you think could use the help from it. I would really appreciate it. 

You can also get my ebook Five Things Your Doctor Won’t Tell You About Hypothyroidism by heading over to HelpForHashimotos.com. 

You can join my facebook group Help For Hashmoto’s and while I am on a social media break I do check daily to see if anyone has asked to join. 

I’m currently taking new clients. If you need help figuring out just how to feel better with Hashimotos, thyroid problems or other chronic illness, I’m your girl! 

Until next week! 

Nadkarni KM. Indian Materia Medica. 2nd ed Mumbai, India: Popular Prakashan; 2010. 

Kooti W, Ghasemiboroon M, Asadi-Samani M, et al. The effects of hydro-alcoholic extract of celery on lipid profile of rats fed a high fat diet. Adv Environ Biol. 2014;8:325–330

An extract of Apium graveolens var. dulce leaves: structure of the major constituent, apiin, and its anti-inflammatory properties. Mencherini T, Cau A, Bianco G, Della Loggia R, Aquino RP, Autore G J Pharm Pharmacol. 2007 Jun; 59(6):891-7.

Kooti W, Ali-Akbari S, Asadi-Samani M, Ghadery H, Ashtary-Larky D. A review on medicinal plant of Apium graveolens . Adv Herb Med. 2014;1:48–59. 

Six types of thyroid dysfunction. Episode 39.

Welcome to Episode 39. I’m so happy you are here. 

I spend a good couple hours cooking several things last night so I would have food to eat over the next week or so. I’ve been trying to double up on meals when I cook so we have stuff to freeze for nights I don’t want to cook. 

I made two whole chickens on Sunday night so I had leftover meat for making soup and for putting on salads. I made a double batch of chili on Monday and Tuesday was a big batch of Thai Beef Stew, braised cabbage and I tried out a meatless dish of grape tomatoes, garlic, basil, chickpeas and spaghetti squash. If you tolerate legumes it was an okay dish. I was hoping for more flavor from the chickpeas. I just sautéed the tomatoes in olive oil, smashed them, added the garlic and chickpeas and sautéed a bit longer. Then I added the spaghetti squash and basil and mixed it through. 

We are having venison chops tonight with sautéed mushrooms and roasted cabbage. 

What are you making for dinner these days?  Head over to my website and comment on this post to let me know what your cooking. Look for Episode 39. 

Today we are talking about the six types of thyroid dysfunction that cause or result in hypothyroidism so let’s get started. 

The thyroid gland is super sensitive to any changes in the biochemistry in our body. It’s job is to perceive even the tiniest of changes in the body and make up for that by changing how much thyroid hormone is released in the body. 

This is one reason you can see such different lab values over time. 

When these changes in our biochemistry become something that is chronic or constantly happening in the body then there begins to be problems with the thyroid gland and the communication between the hypothalamus and the pituitary gland. 

Things like constant blood sugar dysregulation, constant or chronic inflammation in the body, deficiencies in nutrients, poor liver function, toxic burden, low stomach acid, intestinal permeability, poor eliminations and even the use of hormones including thyroid hormones can cause thyroid problems. 

Hypothyroidism or low thyroid function can fall into six different types. Some of these may occur at the same time, and it may be that only one of these will require permanent hormone replacement. 

1.Primary Hypothyroidism. 

This is when there is decreased hormone production by the thyroid gland. So it isn’t making enough T4 or T3. One cause and the most common cause in the US is Hashimoto’s. Worldwide the most common cause of Primary Hypothyroidism is iodine deficiency. (ref)  It is also caused by removal of the thyroid gland. 

This is a dysfunction of the thyroid gland and this is the one type of hypothyroidism that needs to be treated with thyroid hormone replacement. 

If you have Hashimoto’s, you may need medication due to the destruction of your thyroid gland but you also need to understand that this condition is an immune system issue first and a thyroid issue second. 

If you catch Hashimoto’s before too much damage is done, you might be able to support your thyroid nutritionally. Sadly, for me, I am still in need of medication.  If you do not have success bringing TSH down with diet and lifestyle changes, you will likely need hormone replacement. 

Your labs might look like this if you have primary hypothyroidism: 

• high TSH

• normal or low Total T4

• normal or low Free T4

• normal or low Free T3

• normal Reverse T3

2. Secondary Hypothyroidism

This deals with your thyroid not putting out enough thyroid hormone due to an issue in the pituitary gland. Remember that the thyroid is regulated by the pituitary gland and the hypothalamus. When these two glands are not communicating and the pituitary doesn’t secrete Thyroid Stimulating Hormone (TSH) like it is supposed to. You may find your TSH at or around 1.8 but still having symptoms of hypothyroidism. 

Chronic stress in the body is usually at the heart of this one. Stress fatigues the pituitary and it can cause a failure to signal the thyroid to produce thyroid hormone. 

Stress: too busy all the time, not enough sleep, living off of coffee and processed foods, inflammation, viral or bacterial infections. All of these will mess with your adrenal function and your thyroid function and remember those two go hand in hand.

You can also have low thyroid function after pregnancy. This is a stressful time for women who tend to be the ones suffering with most thyroid conditions. Pregnancy in and of itself will put a high demand on the pituitary gland. 

If your blood tests come out normal but your doctor puts you on thyroid medication anyway, it can help you feel better for a couple weeks but then you might start to feel worse. You can develop thyroid hormone resistance at your cells much like insulin resistance. 

So your cells are refusing thyroid hormone because there is too much in the blood and you might be given a higher dose making things even worse. You have all this hormone running through your blood so your pituitary gland gets a message it can stop making TSH or it just stops talking to the thyroid altogether. 

You might need medication after enough damage has been done between the communication of the pituitary and the thyroid.  

If you have Hashimoto’s but it doesn’t get addressed, this can become you.

Your labs might look like this: 

• 1.8 or less TSH

• 6 or less T4

• symptoms of hypothyroidism. 

3. Your T4 is not converting to T3

This happens when you have tons of chronic stress and high cortisol. So you are making T4 but your body isn’t converting it to T3 which is what your cells need. When cortisol is high, you will likely have some of this going on. 

If your body is dealing with infection or inflammation your cell walls can be damaged by that which also affects T4 to T3 conversion. 

You need to damper the inflammation or infection and support your body in dealing with cellular stress (free radicals). 

T3 levels won’t affect your TSH so your labs might look like this: 

• Normal TSH

• Normal Total T4

• Normal Free T4

• Low T3

• Low Free T3

• Low or normal Reverse T3

4. Your conversion of T4 to T3 is too high.

This would mean you have too much T3 being made and you also have less thyroid binding globulin (TBG). 

Too much T3 will overwhelm the cells and you find yourself in thyroid hormone resistance again. It is common in women with insulin resistance and PCOS. It is often caused by too much testosterone in the body.  If you have developed Type II Diabetes and are taking insulin for this, you may also find yourself in an over conversion of T4 to T3.

If you are using a testosterone cream you can over convert T4 and T3. 

You will have hypo symptoms with this one. 

A big help here will be to reverse the insulin resistance to reverse the thyroid hormone resistance and begin to feel better. 

You may have labs that look like this: 

• Normal TSH

• High or high normal Free T4

• High or high normal Free T3

• Normal Reverse T3

5. High Thyroid Binding Globulin

Thyroid Binding Globulin is a protein that carries thyroid hormones to the cells so they can use them.  You can develop antibodies to this protein in Hashimoto’s. 

You can find yourself in this situation if you take hormonal birth control or estrogen replacement therapy. 

If you are on birth control, you may have high levels of estrogen you will make too much TBG and thyroid hormones are carried to the cells on TBG so if you have too many TBG proteins in the blood bound to them, you can have less thyroid hormone getting to your cells. 

You have to work to get the excess estrogen out of the body. 

Your labs might look like this: 

• Normal TSH

• Low Free T4

• Low Free T3

• Normal Reverse T3

6. Thyroid Hormone Resistance

Again, similar to insulin resistance with a root cause being stress. Your pituitary gland and thyroid gland may be making just the right amount of hormone but it just isn’t getting into the cells. It feels like hypothyroidism to you and it is the high amount of cortisol in your body that is causing your cells to resist the thyroid hormone. 

You absolutely must manage your adrenals with this one. 

Your labs might look like this: 

• Normal TSH

• Normal Free T4

• Normal Free T3

• Normal Reverse T3

You have to make sure your labs are being tested regularly in all cases. 

Ok. That’s it for me. 

I want to remind you all that I have openings in my practice for a few more clients right now so if you are needing help navigating diet and lifestyle changes head over to Help For Hashimoto’s and fill out the contact form. You can also get my report on Five Things Your Doctor Won’t Tell You About Hypothyroidism. 

One last thing, part of the diet and lifestyle changes are to look at what you are putting on your skin. I found Beautycounter to be a trusted source for skin care and make up for me. They ban over 1300 chemicals in their products while the US only has a ban on around 30 ingredients. So, you don’t have to think about safety with their products and I really like that so I became a consultant last year. I don’t work too hard at selling it because my focus is really on nutrition but if you have any interest in checking them out go to beautycounter.com/stephanieewals to shop. I would sure appreciate your support. 

I’m still on a social media break and have no desire to get back on anytime soon. I’m checking the Help For Hashimoto’s facebook group once a day. You can join that if you would like but all the action is in the newsletter which you can sign up for on my website. 

I’m grateful to you all. Please leave me a rating and review on iTunes so more people can find the show and get help. 

Until next time. 

Your immune system and Hashimoto's; Adaptive vs. Innate immunity in Hashimoto’s. Episode 38.

Welcome to episode 38.

I am 3/4’s the way through a year of podcasting. Thanks for sticking with me and hanging out. I really appreciate it. My end goal is to help as many people as possible have a great quality of life with autoimmune disease.

You can help me with that by sharing this podcast with people you know dealing with thyroid issues and by leaving a rating or a review. I have enjoyed reading the reviews and honestly avoided them for awhile because I didn’t want to see if there were any bad ones. Thankfully there weren’t any. Anyway, I am grateful to those of you leaving reviews. 

Someone in Denver who rides the train to work listens and I want to thank you! I do this for you! So you can begin to feel your best. 

I’ve had a busy week and didn’t do so well with eating enough last week. I had not prepped any food which always makes for days where I just skip a meal which is so bad for my adrenals and my blood sugar. My blood sugar is so sensitive which I think is keeping me from losing the 5-10 pounds I have gained over the last year or two. I have not done anything different with my diet but menopause and insulin resistance have made of mess of my body. I have regularly done the autoimmune strong workouts over the last month- I’m getting them in at least three days a week. I hate working out but I want to be strong as I get older so I just do it anyway. 

I ate out a lot this past weekend but we are so fortunate to have some really cool restaurants that serve at least Paleo type foods. I had a green curry with pastured chicken and organic veggies twice in the last week from a great restaurant called French Meadow in Minneapolis. They have a lot of gluten free options which is so nice and the food is good. It tastes like it is made from scratch.  

I had a yucca crust pepperoni pizza with a cheese made from pumpkin seeds and a chicken curry dish to bring home from another place called Sassy Spoon. They are 100% gluten free which is nice. They are another from scratch type restaurant. 

This weekend I was at a party for a family member and there were gluten free cookies for dessert and I had at least one whole cookie if not a little more. I could feel the effects of that right away on my neck and my face began to itch like crazy. So, despite wanting to devour a ton of them, I didn’t. I didn’t want to suffer the physical consequences. That party had a taco bar with corn tortillas but I skipped the tortilla and just had the meat, lettuce and guacamole with a little salsa- so basically a taco salad. Pretty easy to modify that one if you can tolerate tomatoes. 

On Saturday morning I made my breakfast soup and chicken and veggie stir fry with lots of garlic to eat for the week. As long as I have food to eat during the week, every thing seems to go better for me. My moods are better, sleep is better, energy is better. It is just a matter of taking the time to make the food. 

Monday I ate at a place called Foxy Falafel which even has Autoimmune Protocol menu items. I tolerate chickpeas so I had their falafel which is such a treat. We even got their egg free, gluten free, dairy free brownie and chocolate chip cookie. I over indulged but I have not been to that restaurant in 2 ½ years so it was okay with me. They also sold Hu chocolate which is pretty darn good. 

After all that indulgence over the last week, I filled up on my green juice made in my vitamix which consists of a lemon, 2 stalks of celery, ¼ of an english cucumber, a handful of parsley, water and ice. I always feel really good after drinking that and it kickstarts my digestion for the day. 

Sauerkraut has been in regular rotation too. That helps my digestion work better as well. We have our old refrigerator full of it and everyone complains about the smell. It is sort of infiltrating the whole refrigerator. I love it! 

I’ve been doing hamburger patties on a bed of lettuce too. Quick and easy. 

Okay- let’s get started on todays subject. It is an important one to understand because it plays a big role in your autoimmune disease. 

Today we are talking about your immune system and Hashimoto’s. This episode has some scientific terms in it but I think I have broken it down to make it easier to understand. It is important for you to know how your body works and the immune system is a pretty big deal.

It is our biggest line of defense with many kinds of cells, antibodies, proteins and chemicals all working together like a country’s military defense system works to protect a nation. 

The immune system is divided in to the innate immune system aka the non-specific immune system. This side of the immune system is highly involved in inflammation- like when you hurt yourself and you get a bruise or a bump. When you cut yourself and the area gets all red and becomes scabbed. The job of the immune cells in innate is to keep pathogens out. It acts quickly and does not specify or target any one thing. For the most part, it cannot tell the difference between an invader, damaged cells or healthy cells so healthy tissue sometimes gets damaged. So if you have chronic stress causing inflammation or some kind of infection that won’t go away, this side of the immune system produces chronic inflammation. 

The other side of our immune system is the adaptive immune system which is very specific about the attacks it launches. We will talk a little more about this side in a minute. 

Your immune system needs to be regulated in order for your Hashimoto’s disease to be managed. 

Our immune system is on guard for antigens. Antigens are toxins or other foreign substance which causes an immune response in the body and can create antibodies against it. 

Things like a specific food, mold, bacteria, a chronic virus such as EBV or a parasite. These things irritate the immune system leading to an attack.  Now in Hashimoto’s, gluten is a big antigen which induces an attack on the thyroid gland every time you eat it. Remember that gluten is a protein found in all grains to some degree but the biggies that can be more of a problem for most people are wheat, barley and spelt. 

You can also have an immune response to environmental chemicals or heavy metals but not everyone will develop an immune response to these things.  You might be someone who doesn’t have a huge heavy metal burden or you just don’t react to foods. The exception would be gluten and possibly dairy because the proteins are similar to those of your thyroid so I always recommend people remove those two things from your diet. 

Your immune system might be reactive to bacteria. Many people with Hashimoto’s have antibodies to the bacteria Yersinia enterocolitica. 

Whatever your issue is you need to remove the antigen either by removing the offending food, detox the heavy metal or get rid of the bacteria to calm the immune system and manage Hashimoto’s. 

When dealing with autoimmune disease and specifically Hashimoto’s we want to look at TH-1 and TH-2 cytokines which can be high while T-suppressor cells will be low. 

A cytokine is a category of tiny proteins that work to signal cells of the immune system and are produced by cells in the immune system and a number of other places. They have many jobs in the body one of which is to work with the immune system to protect us. 

T-suppressor cells are also known as regulatory T cells which work to modulate or regulate the immune system and help us maintain tolerance to antigens against our self which helps prevent autoimmune disease. The T regulatory cells are immunosuppressive- they suppress the immune system. 

So, if we have high cytokines and low T-suppressor or T-regulatory cells then you have an immune system that is all out of balance and giving you symptoms of Hashimoto’s and maybe even causing destruction to your thyroid gland. 

Now let’s look at TH-1 and TH-2 cytokines specifically because most of us fall in to either TH-1 dominance or TH-2 dominance. 

TH-1 are T helper cells involved in an innate, or immediate immune system response. This is the adaptive immune system which is a part of the immune system that creates memory after dealing with an antigen. This means it will always remember that particular antigen whether it is a food, mold, heavy metal or parasite or bug. Every time that substance enters your body your innate/adaptive/acquired immune system will attack. It is very specific about what it reacts to. This is the part of our immune system that, once we have measles, will protect us from ever getting it again.  It is the line of defense against the pathogens.  

Sometimes it doesn’t distinguish the difference between an invader from non invader when it enters the body. It gets confused which can result in things like hay fever, asthma or an attack on the thyroid. 

When you have TH-1 dominance your immune system is overactive in the TH-1 pathway.  The majority of people with Hashimoto’s have TH-1 dominance but there are some Hashimoto’s patients with TH-2 dominance. 

You might also switch back and forth between the two depending on what your body is needing or getting too much of. Maybe you are deficient in some minerals or or getting too much of a mineral. These can trigger either TH-1 or TH-2 dominance. 

The best way to manage this is to focus on the whole body. Reduce inflammation throughout the body. Remove the triggers for your immune system. 

Once you have an autoimmune disease, you can put it in remission but you will have it forever and will have to work to manage your diet and lifestyle so your immune system can relax a bit. You must restore balance to the body. 

High TH-1 or TH-2 immune cells block thyroid receptors on your cells so your thyroid hormone cannot get in and do its job giving you symptoms of hypothyroid. 

Type 1 Diabetes, Hashimoto’s, MS and chronic viral infections are associated with TH-1 dominance. 

Lupus, dermatitis, asthma, and chemical sensitivities are mostly associated with TH-2 dominance. 

This is not always the case- remember that. As with everything there are exceptions. 

TH-2 are T helper cells involved in a delayed immune system response. Helper cells work to direct immune system activity as do the regulator cells and suppressor cells stop an immune reaction when needed. 
There are some different ways these immune cells could be affecting you. 

• You might not make enough of the T-suppressor cells that regulate your immune system and tolerate antigens. Not enough T-suppressor cells keeps the immune system on high alert and attacking self. Your thyroid gland can be a victim of this problem. 

• Maybe you make too much of the chemical messenger Interleukin-2 (IL-2) that tells other immune cells to attack and kill an invader. Too much of this one puts tissue not involved in the attack at risk of being an innocent bystander that gets attacked. 

• You might make too many Interleukin-4 (IL-4). This releases B cells that look for intruders and mark them for death. Again, here your thyroid tissue can be damaged. 

• Not managing your blood sugar or not being able to handle increases in insulin due to consuming sugar and refined carbs can send those B cells in to over production. 

• Having food sensitivities and eating those foods anyway or dealing with a parasite will increase Interleukin-4 and increase production of the B cells. 

• A chronic virus such as EBV will increase the Interleukin 2 creating more natural killer cells and cytotoxic T cells. 

Let’s get to know what these terms mean. 

Interleukin- these are a type of cytokine. Cytokines are chemical messengers within the immune system cells. Some cytokines kill pathogens on their own. 

B cells- a white blood cell that is circulating in the body and is on the lookout for for antigens that they have antibodies to. When these cells activate, they are quick to divide and grow. Some of these have memory and will forever recognize an antigen when it enters the body. 

Natural Killer cells- white blood cells that go to an infection site to destroy cells infected by a virus. They play a role in the adaptive immune system having a memory to viruses. They do not need to be activated to kill cells in the body. 

Cytotoxic cells- T cells that attack cells infected with a virus and certain bacteria. They release chemicals called cytotoxins which cause infected cells to die. 

Our ultimate goal here is to bring the immune system back in to balance. 

You need to support your immune system and you can start with Vitamin D in the form of cholecalciferol. This specifically supports the T regulatory cells so they can do their job right. Remember these are the ones that help regulate the immune system. 

Make sure you are taking an emulsified version which means it is mixed with some kind of oil so that your body can use it. Poor quality vitamin D supplements with be mixed with soybean oil or with canola oil. Look for one with MCT oil (a form of coconut oil) or I have seen them with olive oil too. Biotics makes a nice one called Bio-D Mulsion Forte. 

Fish oil will also support the T regulatory cells but taking any fish oil in large amounts isn’t a good idea. 

There are some studies to show that people with Hashimoto’s are not able to process vitamin D naturally so they may need higher amounts than the average person. If you have a Vitamin D test that shows normal levels yet your immune system is still struggling and you are doing everything else right to reduce inflammation and immune responses you may think about raising the amount you take. Having high normal levels is best for thyroid patients. 

You may need a therapeutic dose and should have your levels checked by your doctor once a year or more to make sure you don’t over do it. 

Excess vitamin D can cause calcification of the heart, kidneys or lungs and you can have too much calcium circulating in your blood. 

Glutathione (a big antioxidant in the body) in a cream form and superoxide dismutase (an enzyme that acts as an antioxidant to protect your cells). These will both help regulate the immune system. 

Don’t waste your money just trying these to see if they help. Work with someone who can first help you get your diet and lifestyle dialed in, get your digestion working well and making sure you are able to digest fats and absorb vitamins and minerals. 

Back to TH-1 and TH-2 Dominance. It is helpful to know which way you go here so you can know which things will continue to stimulate your TH-1 or TH-2 cells. 

Things that stimulate TH-1: Echinacea, Maitake mushrooms, glycyrrhiza from licorice (so if you take licorice for adrenal health and you feel worse because of it then it could indicate TH-1 dominance), lemon balm. 

Things that stimulate TH-2: caffeine, green tea extract, grape seed extract, pine bark extract, white willow bark, lycopene (found in tomatoes) , resveratrol. Taking any of these will stimulate the immune system further and cause you to feel worse. 

Again, work with someone who can help you with monitoring these things. 

Things that regulate TH-1 and TH-2:  probiotics, vitamin A, vitamin E and colostrum. 

Things that quiet interleukin one that would activate TH-1 or TH-2: Boswellia (frankincense is a species of the Boswellia species), pancreatic enzymes (often sold as digestive enzymes), Turmeric or its compound curcumin. 

It is probably best if you have some sort of immunologic testing done to find out if you are TH-1 or TH-2 dominant before messing around with the things mentioned, aside from Vitamin D. 

You also will want to work on diet, keeping your blood sugar stable, get your adrenal health dialed in and make sure your digestion is working top notch. 

After all of this is completed and you know where your body stands, where your immune system stands then you can work to find those specific antigens, the things triggering the immune response. A gluten free diet is very important because gluten is one of those foods that is inflammatory as I stated in the beginning. 

Healing leaky gut or intestinal permeability will be important too but we can discuss that in another podcast if I haven’t covered it. I don’t remember what I did yesterday hardly and being 38 episodes in, I cannot remember from week to week what I have covered. 

Thanks so much for listening. Again, if you could leave me a review on iTunes, I would really appreciate it. 

I am on a social media break and not sure when to return. I am checking the Help For Hashimoto’s facebook group once a day, otherwise I’m avoiding all social media.  

If you have a question, you can email helpforhashimotos@gmail.com or you can go to my website and fill out the contact form. 

Have a comment or question about this episode? Leave it on the blog post on my website helpforhashimotos.com under episode 38. I’d love to hear from you. You can also get my free ebook 5 Things Your Doctor Won’t Tell You About Hypothyroidism while you are there. You’ll get a weekly recipe and some nutritional nugget of information each week. 

I’m taking new clients right now so if you are in need of help navigating your autoimmune disease and especially Hashimoto’s, I am here to help. You can reach out to me on my website. You can make an appointment for a 15 minute free call to see if we are a good fit for working together. 

Until next week my friends. 

Can Hypothyroidism affect your heart? Episode 37.

Welcome to episode 37. Thanks for joining me. Today I am diving in to our heart health and what it means to our heart health when we are dealing with hypothyroidism. 

Do you have: 

High or low blood pressure?

Fast or slow pulse?

Irregular heartbeat?

Heart skips a beat?

Palpitations

High cholesterol?

Heart Disease, plaque buildup, heart attack?

These are all things that can be affected by thyroid disease. 

Our heart uses thyroid hormone. Our heart is affected by changes in our medication or by the amount of medication we are taking. It is affected by low levels of T3. How many of you have a doctor that will only test TSH? 

This could be affecting your heart. 

When you don’t have enough thyroid hormone your heart can beat too slow or it can beat irregularly meaning it can flutter or miss beats. Long term consequences of this is that your tissues don’t get enough oxygen or nutrients which will make you feel physically bad. Our heart and the entire cardiovascular system is dependent on adequate levels of T3 for proper function. T3 helps improve how the heart contracts so when you are low you will have less cardiac output. Cardiac output means the amount of blood the heart pumps through the circulatory system in one minute. 

You can also end up with plaques developing in your arteries and high blood pressure. Hypothyroidism can effect how blood is pumped in and out of the heart, how the lining of the arteries functions, cholesterol levels in the blood and more. Low T3 can increase the amount of cholesterol and fat circulating (technically called lipids) in the blood.

T3 is the main regulator of gene expression in the heart muscle. Gene expression means how genetic information is transferred in the cells of the body. It is the effect of a gene on the body.  It is thought that low T3 levels are associated with increased death in patients already dealing with heart disease. 

Hypothyroidism is associated with higher cardiovascular risk factors. This means that we have a higher chance of cardiovascular disease. The heart cells do not convert T4 in to T3 very well if at all so if T3 is low then the heart tissue feels the effects and doesn’t function as well as it should. 

Treatment with thyroid medications is supposed to improve all risk factors but the problem is if you are treated with T4 only medication and you are not converting T4 to T3 for whatever reason, you may be at higher risk for issues with your heart. 

There are not a lot of randomized controlled studies in this area but hopefully some will be done soon. 

Bottom Line:  Hypothyroidism affects the whole body. It has a negative impact on the heart and almost everything else when it isn’t treated. 

You might hear from your doctor that NDT like Armour or Westhroid etc will cause a high heart rate. If this is the case for you then you must look at your adrenal health and/or iron levels. If you have high reverse T3 which is usually the case with cortisol or iron problems or even chronic inflammation you can see an issue with your heart rate.  You could have a high heart rate if you are having a flare up of Hashimoto’s where tissue is being killed off and thyroid hormone is being released. 

If you think your medication is causing heart palpitations, discuss it with your doctor and you may also want to try to take it in smaller doses. I am currently on Armour which my body doesn’t love as much as the compounded thyroid powder so when I take one whole pill I get palpitations throughout the day. I have to take half a pill 4x a day to get my body used to it. I also have adrenal issues and low iron which is not super responsive to iron supplementation so once those things are fixed, I should be good. 

OK.  I want to explain more about heart disease so you know what you are dealing with and how you can optimize your life choices so you can give your heart a fighting chance. 

Heart Disease or Coronary Heart Disease are conditions that affect the heart muscle, valves or rhythm. 

Cardiovascular Disease are conditions that affect blood vessels- usually that they are narrowed or blocked which can lead to a heart attack. 

Heart disease is caused by atherosclerosis- a disease of the arterial wall that leads to the narrowing and obstruction of the artery. The narrowing is because of sclerotic deformation of the artery and the development of raised patches called atherosclerotic plaques in the inner lining of the arterial wall. Depending on which organ in the body the artery feeds, atherosclerosis in those arterial walls will impair blood flow to that organ. 

The two major types of Coronary Heart Disease are angina pectoris and myocardial infarction (heart attack). 

AP happens when the space inside the coronary artery is narrowed but not closed off completely.  At rest your body will be able to deal with less blood flow but any physical activity will cause the heart to have to work harder, the artery with the build up can’t supply enough blood to feed the heart muscle which can result in a gripping chest pain that can radiate to the neck and usually the left arm. 

Heart Attack or MI happens when the coronary artery closes up all the way and blood flow to the heart muscle stops. This causes a portion of the heart to die or causes death. 

About half the people who have a heart attack die in the first 2-3 hours and if you make it through a heart attack will take some time to recover and may suffer complications such as an abnormal heartbeat. 

How do we prevent these conditions?

We first prevent the build up in our arteries- the atherosclerosis. 

We avoid: smoking, obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure, physical inactivity, stress, anxiety, anger and the big ones- poor sleep and the standard American diet (SAD). 

For 60 years or more we have been told to avoid fat and cholesterol in our diet. To eat margarine and cook with vegetable oils. That we need to be on statin drugs to manage our cholesterol. 

We can thank the Diet Heart Hypothesis which states that dietary fats, including cholesterol, cause heart disease. A correlation was shown in a diagram of 6 countries (carefully selected out of 22 countries that had the same data available) that fat consumption and death from heart disease were related. When all 22 countries were put in the diagram the correlation between fat and heart disease wasn’t plausible. It actually shows there is no correlation at all between fat consumption and dying from heart disease. 

A lot of money was thrown at scientific research in the US to prove this correlation to be true. The data that did not support the hypothesis was thrown out and the data that did was promoted and advertised. Studies in other countries that were done were proving this hypothesis to be wrong. 

Many of the studies proving the correlation between dietary fat and increase in heart disease or death were funded by companies that proved to benefit from this idea that fat is killing us. We were being sold a false bill of goods and we have been believing it and paying for it with our health for years. 

Is cholesterol really a bad thing?

The short answer is no. 

The longer answer-  We will die without cholesterol. Our bodies are made of billions of cells and almost every one of those cells produces cholesterol all the time. Why is this? Every cell uses cholesterol for structural integrity. 

Saturated fats and cholesterol are used by our cells to make the cell walls firm. If they are flabby and fluid we would be structured like a worm. 

Cholesterol is needed in different amounts all over the body depending on the purpose or function of the cell in that area. 

Protective barriers like our skin will have much more cholesterol because we need a strong sturdy barrier to protect us from any invasion. If a cell needs to be softer and more fluid it will have less cholesterol. 

Our cells communicate with each other and and transport molecules in and out of the cells-they need cholesterol and fats to do that. 

Our brain uses about around 25% of all the cholesterol in our body. 

Most of the cholesterol in our body does not actually come from the food we eat. Many studies have been done to show that dietary cholesterol does not have a huge effect on the cholesterol in our blood. 

Our body was made to make it on its own. It makes about 85% of our cholesterol and the rest comes from food. When we eat more foods containing cholesterol our body makes less of it. We eat less of it, our body makes more. 

Low cholesterol has been shown to produce emotional instability,  problems with behavior, aggressiveness, violence, low self control and more.

Sex hormones are made from cholesterol too- low libido, adrenal issues, high or low estrogen etc. 

Our liver produces much of our cholesterol and regulates its levels. 

When our skin is exposed to sunlight, we make vitamin D from cholesterol. 

Why do some people have high cholesterol and others don’t? Why will it be higher when we are under stress or have surgery? Why is it higher in winter and lower in summer?

Cholesterol plays a healing role in our body. It goes up when we need something to be healed. It’s higher in the winter because we have less sun exposure. 

Damaging molecules end up in our blood stream and we have this layer of cells in our blood vessels that can be damaged by things going through our blood. These cells send a message to our liver that there is damage. The liver makes cholesterol and sends it to the damaged area in the form of LDL cholesterol to repair the damage. Once the damage is repaired/the wound is healed it goes back to the liver in the form of HDL.

If you have high LDL cholesterol you should be asking, what is causing damage in my body instead of how do I lower my cholesterol. Get to the root of the problem and the cholesterol will take care of itself. 

Atherosclerotic plaques in your body are sources of inflammation in the body. Inflammation is the way our body responds to any injury. It is there to get rid of whatever is causing the problem so the body can begin to repair itself. 

Plaques in your arteries are the body's attempt at dealing with chronic, never ending damage that has been done to the blood vessels. The body is basically forming scar tissue in your arteries. 

What causes all of this?

Processed foods is a big one, poorly managed blood sugar and sugar in the diet in large amounts. Remember that women should only have around 22grams of sugar per day and men should only have 24 grams per day. High blood sugar on a regular basis creates an inflammatory environment within the body. 

Really quickly- some other things that cause inflammation in the body are the chemicals in products we use everyday- personal care products, household products, prescription drugs, exposure to smoke and pollution, pesticides, chlorine, microbes and parasites and even disrupted gut bacteria. Certain nutrient deficiencies, lack of sun exposure, no exercise and high stress are also big problems for our health in general but also in managing inflammation in the body. 

How do we manage to have good heart health and good cholesterol?

Consuming high quality healthy fats: 

Note it is NOT any particular fat that is good or bad but the way it is processed that makes it bad for us. 

The types of fats we need to know and understand: 

Saturated fat: a stable fat, doesn’t go rancid easily and our body can make it so it is considered non- essential. It is usually solid or semi solid at room temperature. 

Monounsaturated fat: pretty stable fat, won’t go rancid easily, our body can make it so it is considered non essential. Liquid at room temperature but if refrigerated should become somewhat solid. Found in olive oil, olives and oils from almonds, pecans, cashews, peanuts and avocados. 

Polyunsaturated fat: very unstable, goes rancid easily, never heat them or cook with them. Always in a liquid state, even if refrigerated. Two of these are considered essential meaning we have to get them from the diet. Flax and other seeds, nuts and fish and fish oil. Omega 6 and 3 are from these types of fats. 

All fats and oils are a combination of these three types of fats. They are categorized by which fat is most prevalent. 

We need all three types of these fats in order to have proper function in the body and to make sure that we can manage any inflammation in the body. 

We must have good digestion, proper liver function, zinc, magnesium, vitamin B6, vitamin E and C in order to have proper repair of inflammation in the body. 

Consume a mixture of about 30% saturated fat, 10% polyunsaturated fats (Omega 3 and 6) and 60% monounsaturated fats like olive oil as a very general guideline: 

• Animal fats from pastured, well raised animals if possible

• High quality butter such as Kerry Gold, Organic Valley or a locally made butter

• Ghee which is the butter fat with the whey removed- used in Indian cooking a lot

• Coconut or Palm Oils

• Cold Pressed extra virgin olive oil

• Other cold pressed oils from nuts or seeds

Cold pressed oils are expensive and more difficult to make. They are the most fragile oils as they are easily damaged by light and heat. They are the seed oils and oils made from nuts. Canola oil is a seed oil and is processed with high heat, chemicals and is a rancid and damaged oil before it hits the grocery store shelves where it then sits on a shelf exposed to light all day long- remember seed oils are polyunsaturated and are damaged by light and heat. 

Avoid hydrogenated fats, partially hydrogenated fats and those highly processed “vegetable” oils and of course trans fats. 

Other things that can be helpful: 

Vitamin C can help the body repair itself when under stress or when other factors are present that might otherwise cause damage to the lining of the blood vessels. Best choice is whole foods that are high in vitamin C (listed in order from highest amount of vitamin C per serving to lowest) like papaya, bell peppers, broccoli, brussels sprouts, strawberries, pineapple, oranges, kiwi, cantaloupe and cauliflower. 

Staying well hydrated will keep your blood free flowing and thinner. The thicker and more viscous your blood is, the more damage can be done to the lining of your blood vessels because there is more friction. Aim for about half your body weight in ounces a day but no more than 100 oz a day. That is a lot of water and even I find it tough to get that much water in each day. 

Cardio Protective Nutrition: 

• Consuming and digesting animal proteins which are the best source of vitamins A, D and the B vitamins. 

• Again, vitamin C

• Potassium- helps us maintain healthy blood pressure. Fruits and veggies in general but Swiss Chard has 1000mg of potassium per serving. Recommended amount is 4700mg per day. 

• Fill your dinner plate (and lunch and breakfast plate) with vegetables, especially cruciferous veggies like broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, brussels sprouts

• Consume wild caught fish, pastured eggs

• Fermented foods like sauerkraut, kimchi, fermented pickles, miso or natto

Lastly, high cholesterol in the elderly population is associated with longer life and life expectancy in general increases with higher cholesterol. Cholesterol is protective against infections, lower cholesterol levels associated with memory issues. 

Okay. That is it for today. Thanks for listening. Please leave me a rating and review on iTunes so more people can find the podcast. Let’s get as many people as possible the information they need to heal. 

Have a question or comment about today’s episode? Head on over to helpforhashimotos.com and ask it on this weeks episode blog post. Search for Episode 37 and you will find a transcript of todays episode. 

Need help figuring out how to navigate your thyroid condition? I am taking new clients right now and would love to help you out. Go to my website and fill out the contact form. 

I’m taking a facebook break. I will be checking in to see if anyone wants to join the Help For Hashimoto’s facebook group but beyond that I am trying to stay off it. I’m not a fan of putting out a bunch of content there when Facebook owns it all. 

I am focusing more of my energy on putting really good content out in my newsletter and here on the podcast so if you have a topic you want covered contact me through my website. 

I forgot again to send the lunch ideas in my newsletter. I’m so sorry about that. I was pretty stressed out last week with lack of sleep and worrying about passing the grad school entrance exam. I got a middle of the road score which is what my school was looking for so it looks like I’m going back to school at almost 48. Am I crazy? I don’t know. I am little scared though. it is kind of daunting to be a student at my age. I am also freaking excited to learn about functional medicine! More excited than scared the more I think about it. Maybe it will be fun for you all to learn along side me! 

Go sign up for my newsletter. For sure each week you will get a new recipe to try and so far the feedback on the recipes I’ve sent out has been really good. 

All right, see you next week! Take care! 

https://endocrinenews.endocrine.org/hypothyroidism-and-the-heart/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17923583

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5512679/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17093250

Why are my hands and feet so cold? Episode 35.

Welcome to Episode 35. I’m coming to you from the frozen Tundra of MN where schools are closed and the high temps for the day will be around -15 and the low -31 with windchills reaching -50. When I got up the outdoor temp was -26.

 It is cold here and when you have thyroid problems and you are already cold, this can be an issue for you. Cold hands and feet can’t get warm and sometimes you might even be cold to the bone. 

A few years ago there were nights where I could not get warm enough to fall asleep without a heating blanket, wool socks, a sweatshirt and flannel pajama bottoms with at least 3 blankets on top of me, one of which was down. 

The struggle is real my friends. If you feel like this, you are not alone- cold weather or not.  

I got a question in my inbox about this very issue. Here it is: 

I was diagnosed with Hashimoto in 99, but given no info beyond that.  Had many problems with medication so ended up not using RX but went to Thyrophin PMG but always being ill.  Have been gluten and corn free, low dairy for years.

The past few weeks my feet have felt like they are in ice water, and my temperature has often been 95 degrees, with a hot home and heating pads and baths I can sometimes get up to 97.2 degrees.

I had been forgetting the Thyrophin frequently.

I did get a chill New Years Day.

Do you think the Hashimoto could be why I am so cold?

Unfortunately my MD moved away and there will not be a replacement for some time and I am in a remote area without much for functional medicine.

I will listen to more podcasts tomorrow.

I am taking undenatured whey to reduce hydrogen peroxide,  but can’t get catalase where I am, have upped the Thyrophin and drinking lots of ginger tea,  and bone broth and wondering what else I can do.

Thanks for any advice you can give me,

Sandy 

Thanks for your question Sandy. No doubt you will be helping many people by having wrote in and asked me this. It is a common problem. 

I would like to know what kind of problems you had on your medication. Perhaps you just didn’t feel great? Maybe you had heart palpitations? Maybe it made you feel worse?

The possible scenario here is that your adrenal health or HPA axis is not functioning properly which is leading to adrenal issues and if you have adrenal issues you may not feel well on medication. I discuss this in Episode 34 but the idea is that your adrenal health affects your thyroid health and vice versa so if you are not dealing with stress well, not sleeping well, having blood sugar issues, then your adrenals are working overtime and you are either in a state of hypoadrenia (things are working slower) or hyperadrenia (things are in overdrive) and your thyroid along with TSH and Free T3 and Free T4 output are also being affected. 

Thyrotrophin PMG is a supplement from Standard Process that is similar to the GTA from Biotics except it has magnesium citrate and bovine thyroid extract that has been processed to remove thyroxine or what we call T4. GTA  Forte II which is what I take has zinc, selenium, copper, rubidium, porcine glandular concentrate and some enzymes. 

Natural Desiccated Thyroid Hormone prescription pills are made from porcine or pig glandulars and the Thyrotrophin is made from bovine or cow thyroid glands so maybe this is partly why you are not feeling well. 

I am assuming you needed medication because you were on it but didn’t feel well on it so it might be time to have your labs done again at a doctors office or order them yourself through someone like Direct Labs, depending on where you live. Some states don’t allow consumers to order lab work. 

You probably need T3. Denis Wilson, MD has coined the term Wilson’s Temperature Syndrome which means that you can have a low body temperature and other symptoms that will respond to T3 therapy. 

I found this to be the case for me. I still have a lower body temperature but once I started on GTA, I no longer have frigid hands and feet. My hands are still a little cool but I am no longer freezing before bed and my overall comfort is much better. This, I believe is attributed to the T3 in GTA. 

It is almost like your body is able to reset itself and you may find that even after stopping a T3 treatment that you will remain more temperature stable. 

Symptoms of Wilson Temperature Syndrome (WTS) include typical hypothyroid symptoms and things like asthma, hives and migraines along with a lower body temperature. You may also have fatigue that lasts and stays, anxiety, depression, headaches, insomnia, muscle aches, brain fog, carpal tunnel syndrome, overall lack of well being. 

Low body temperature is the main symptom and is easily measured because as a whole, our body temp needs to be within a certain range to properly function. If you don’t have low iron or iron deficiency anemia, kidney disease or liver disease, and you have all these other symptoms, you might want to check in to Wilson Temperature Syndrome. 

Don’t expect to go to your regular doctor and expect them to even know what this is. You can learn more by googling Wilson’s Temperature Syndrome. 

I would make a plan to remember to take your Thyrotrophin. Find a time of day to take it where you can make it a habit. Also, don’t buy it off Amazon. Find a practitioner to buy it from. 

It is definitely you thyroid issues as to why you are so cold. 

You say you are taking undenatured whey to reduce hydrogen peroxide. 

Undenatured whey is whey that has not been heated enough to denature it or basically kill all the enzymes and good stuff that might be in it. Heat will destroy the immunoglobulins and break the peptide bond (broken down protein). It has glutyl-cysteine which is a peptide. Your cells use it to make glutathione which is our big antioxidant. From what I understand undenatured whey is supposed to raise glutathione levels and fix anemia. 

If your thyroid issues are due to a mercury toxicity from environment, amalgam fillings or anything else, you may not want to be taking this type of whey. Too much cysteine can suppress your thyroids ability to function so there may be a possibility of consuming too much undenatured whey that could be making you feel worse. 

The other issue I have with whey in any form is that the proteins in dairy products are similar to protein structure in your thyroid which can be an issue for your immune system. It can get confused and attack your thyroid tissue which can create more problems like hyper thyroid symptoms and tissue or cell death. 

Hydrogen peroxide is naturally produced by the body when we convert iodine in the thyroid. When TSH rises, more TPO or thyroid peroxidase enzyme is released which then releases hydrogen peroxide. This will cause damage to the cells in the thyroid if there is not enough selenium and glutathione. If you have Hashimoto’s you may have had a TPO antibody test done. The more peroxide in the body the more TPO antibodies may be created. The immune system may see the rise in TPO enzyme as the problem and so creates antibodies against it. 

The more iodine in your diet, the more it will need to be converted, the more hydrogen peroxide there will be which can decrease how much selenium and glutathione you have to deal with it. 

You might likely be deficient if you are eating more processed foods rather than real whole foods as well. 

You also said that you can’t get catalase where you are. I want to explain what that is for you guys. 

Catalase is an enzyme that will break down the hydrogen peroxide keeping it from damaging our cells much like glutathione does. You make catalase in your liver but maybe you are not making enough. 

Selenium also helps to form glutathione which will remove excess hydrogen peroxide. You can supplement with anywhere from 50mg to 200mg per day of selenium but no more. 

Before you do that though, look closely at your diet. Remove dairy completely for a couple of months to see if it is causing an immune response for you. Stay gluten free and find out what foods you are sensitive to. Sugar, alcohol, soy, caffeine, eggs and even other gluten free grains can be a problem for many of us. You may also want to consider if nightshades are a problem by eliminating them. They are quite anti-inflammatory for many people. 

Ginger is good for heating up the body so keep up with the ginger tea. Bone broth is excellent. Make sure you are eating enough. 

Eat foods that love the liver. Much of our T4 is converted to T3 in the liver. 

Foods with vitamin C like acerola cherries, greens, parsley, cruciferous veggies like cauliflower, broccoli, cabbages, brussel sprouts. Remember these are only a problem as a goitrogenic food if you are eating them raw in large quantities on a daily basis. 

Foods with vitamin E which will be protective to the liver and have antioxidant properties. Asparagus, Avocado, leafy greens. 

Zinc is an antioxidant and is in abundance in oysters, ginger root, many nuts and peas. 

Selenium works with vitamin E as an antioxidant. Molasses, brazil nuts, brown rice, turnips, garlic, red swiss chard, oranges and shellfish.

Most of us are deficient in magnesium and this is important for so many things in the body from helping cells to create energy to helping our liver detoxification pathways work properly.  It is found in a lot of grains and nuts but also coconut and brown rice. 

If you are following an elimination diet, this may not work for you and you might have to supplement with magnesium. My favorite is magnesium glycinate. 

There are many more things that are great for your liver- B vitamins, turmeric, milk thistle and amino acids. Remember that amino acids are coming from protein being broken down in our digestive tract. 

So eating and digesting protein is helpful as well. 

I would recommend you find a way to have your thyroid tested again and be diligent with taking the supplement for your thyroid. 

I hope this helps you Sandy. Thanks so much for writing in. 

I have had some people try to contact me about working with me one on one through DM’s on Instagram. It took me about a month to even notice they were there. I try to just pop on and off of my social media accounts so the best way to reach me is through my website www.helpforhashimotos.com by filling out the contact page there. 

Someone also asked me to talk about lunch ideas and I am going to put that in my newsletter along with a recipe for a pizza hotdish (as we call it here in MN)/casserole. So head on over to helpforhashimotos.com to sign up for that. 

You can find me on social media at out of the woods nutrition-help for hashimoto’s on facebook and @stephanieewalsntp on instagram. I have been less active there so again, the newsletter is the place to get the good information from me. There is also the help for hashimoto’s facebook support group so you can go ask to join that. 

Thanks so much for tuning in. Until next week! 

Adrenals and your medication. Episode 34.

Welcome to Episode 34. I’m so glad you are here. Today we are talking about adrenal health and why it is soooo important to have healthy adrenal function when you have hashimoto’s or other thyroid conditions. 

The adrenal glands are little walnut sized glands that sit right on top of our kidneys. We would die without them, they are that important. These little glands help us deal with stress in our every day lives and with chronic stress which is a part of most people’s every day lives. 

Your ability to be resilient, have energy and endurance all depend on our adrenal glands ability to do their job. They secrete cortisol, adrenaline (epinephrine) and noradrenaline (norepinephrine) and impact how your body uses carbohydrates and fats, how well you convert your food into energy and if your body will store fat, how your blood sugar is managed, and helps your cardiovascular system and gastrointestinal system work as they should. 

The adrenal glands also make your sex hormones after menopause and andropause. They have anti-inflammatory properties and help to minimize the effects of alcohol, drugs, foods and toxins. 

All this said, they are pretty important and they manage a lot of stuff in our body which means they can “wear out” or become fatigued. This is what many now call HPA axis dysfunction or dysregulation. 

Basically this means that when our body perceives a stressful event our brain signals our adrenal glands to release cortisol, adrenaline or noradrenaline to deal with the stress. 

As this happens more often in our body due to chronic stress, food sensitivities/allergies, inflammation, mismanaged blood sugar etc., our adrenal glands become less able to recover and respond again and they become depleted. The adrenals are not able to respond and this affects all parts of our body in a physiological way. 

This disrupts how much cortisol is released and when it is released which will affect our sleep patterns as well as the production of some hormones and neurotransmitters but not necessarily the levels of cortisol put out by the adrenals. 

It is the brain that signals the adrenals to release their hormones, the adrenal glands don’t do it on their own, so it is believed that the problem is in the brain and the signaling in the nervous system. 

The package insert for your thyroid medication will specifically state that you should not use your medication. Here is what the package insert says for Synthroid (Armour says something similar)

• Do not use SYNTHROID if you have uncorrected adrenal problems.

• Taking too much levothyroxine has been associated with increased bone loss, especially in women after menopause.

• Once your doctor has found your specific SYNTHROID dose, it is important to have lab tests done, as ordered by your doctor, at least once a year.

• Foods like soybean flour, cottonseed meal, walnuts, and dietary fiber may cause your body to absorb less SYNTHROID from the gastrointestinal tract. Grapefruit juice may cause your body to absorb less levothyroxine and may reduce its effect. Let your doctor know if you eat these foods, as your dose of SYNTHROID may need to be adjusted.

• Use SYNTHROID only as ordered by your doctor. Take SYNTHROID as a single dose, preferably on an empty stomach, one-half to one hour before breakfast.

What does this mean for you?

Here is a list of symptoms that will tell you if you are having an issue with your adrenal health:

• You tend to be a night person

• You have a hard time falling asleep

• You are a slow starter in the morning

• You might feel keyed up and have trouble calming down

• Your blood pressure is higher than 120/80

• You get a headache after exercising

• You feel wired after drinking coffee

• You clench or grind your teeth

• You have chronic low back pain that gets worse when you are fatigued

• You get dizzy if you stand up too fast from sitting/lying 

• You crave salt

• You have afternoon yawning, afternoon headaches

• You have a tendency towards shin splints 

• You tend to need sunglasses outside even if it isn’t sunny

You may also see lab work that shows high T3 yet you are feeling like you are still hypo or if you are on a natural desiccated thyroid medication and just not feeling well or you’re having symptoms that make you feel hyper like heart palpitations, racing heart or even anxiety. 

This can be because the cells are not getting the T3 and it is just sitting in your blood stream which can cause the feeling of anxiety or a racing heart among other things. 

Your thyroid function often is affected by how well functioning your adrenal glands are. 

Chronic adrenal stress will affect how your brain is able to tell the adrenals to work so they will have extra output of adrenal hormones at certain times and at others you will have very little leading to the symptoms listed earlier. 

When your adrenals are not functioning well, aside from keeping T3 from getting in to the cells, you will also have trouble converting T4 into T3, your cells can become less sensitive to your thyroid hormones which is probably what is happening when your T3 is high yet you feel hypo. 

Hashimoto’s can be triggered by chronic adrenal stress because adrenal stress will wreak havoc on the immune system which can result in the antibodies against your thyroid being made. 

What causes adrenal stress? 

So much. 

Your diet- consuming too much processed food, too much sugar and having food intolerances or food allergies. Your adrenal glands, cortisol especially, play a major role in blood sugar management. Food intolerances cause inflammation and an immune system response so continually eating foods you “shouldn’t” will cause an issue for your adrenals and can raise reverse T3 which means your body is converting your needed free T3 into Reverse T3 leaving you feeling hypo. 

Your body makes less Progesterone which is needed to even out the effects of estrogen in our body when we are dealing with chronic stress. 

Too much estrogen in your body binds up your thyroid hormones in your blood. High cortisol contributes to estrogen dominance in your body. 

Your adrenal function is affected by your ability to deal with stress of all kinds. We turn on that stress response when we: 

Don’t get enough sleep. Sometimes we can’t control getting enough sleep if we work a night shift or we have young children or whatever. Being deprived of sleep is not good for your adrenal health which isn’t good for your thyroid health. 

Make sleep a priority. Sleep in a dark, cool room. Go to bed at the same time every night and wake up around the same time every morning. This will help to reset your internal clock and will help you sleep better and deeper in the long run. Also, keep electronics out of your room, wear the blue blocking glasses after the sun sets- this will help increase your melatonin production allowing you to feel tired but also fall asleep. 

Do something to help deal with mental and emotional stress. Therapy, meditation, journaling. Find what makes you feel better and do it. Lose the things in your life that are contributing to your stress. Sometimes we have to see less of those toxic people in our lives. Take care of you first. You are no good to anyone else if you are not well cared for first. 

Manage your blood sugar! So important. This is second in importance to sleep. If you want to see improvements in your hashimoto’s or adrenal issues then you have to manage your blood sugar. Consuming large amounts of sugary processed or high refined carbohydrate foods will affect your adrenal health for the worse. Even consuming too much fruit at one time can be hard on your blood sugar. If you get hangry then you have an issue with blood sugar. If you wake up between 1 and 3 am then you have an issue with blood sugar. 

Inflammation in any form will stress your adrenal glands but most especially the chronic inflammation that most of us with hashimoto’s are dealing with. Chronic inflammation is increased by all the things I have just talked about along with things like parasites or infections you might not be aware you have. 

Exercise, gently. Autoimmune Strong is a good place to start. They have the most gentle exercise program I know of for chronic illness and it won’t tax your adrenals. 

Your thyroid health and your adrenal health go hand in hand. If one is not working well, the other one won’t be either. 

You can have your cortisol levels tested by a salvia test that measures your levels throughout the day. It will give you a good picture of what time of day you are lacking or having too much cortisol and then you can make a plan with your practitioner to fix it. I don’t recommend doing this on your own.  You might not find a conventional doctor who would test this or even know what to do with it so it might be a good idea to find a functional medicine practitioner who can help you. 

Some things you can do on your own to help your adrenal function are: 

Eat protein and fat at every meal, including the first meal of the day and do so within an hour of waking. This will make your blood sugar stable and your adrenals won’t have to get busy raising your blood sugar right away in the morning. Eating protein and fat in the morning will also help keep your blood sugar stable all day. 

Until your body starts to get back on track, you may need to eat some protein every few hours to help stabilize your blood sugar. If you are dealing with insulin resistance or blood sugar issues, this will help your body adjust and remain in a stable state. If you tolerate a small amount of nuts, seeds or eggs or even a can of tuna or sardines. These would be great options for you. A protein shake made of just a single ingredient protein powder (I like Designs For Health Pure Paleo Protein Powder) or even high quality beef jerky. 

You will need to figure out how well your body tolerates the starchy or more sugary carbohydrates. As I have said before, I don’t tolerate starches well, especially at lunch time so I tend to have a small amount at dinner which helps me to sleep better. If you feel sleepy after eating you know you have eaten too many carbs. Avoid grains, potatoes, sweet potatoes, winter squashes, parsnips, beans and sugary things.

Avoid fruit juices and instead consume the whole fruit so the fiber keeps your blood sugar stable by slowing down how quickly your body absorbs the sugar. 

Avoid coffee or caffeinated teas, no decaf coffee either- it usually has some caffeine in it. These stimulate the adrenals- if you are dependent on caffeine to get you going in the morning, you likely have some adrenal issues. 

Eat lots and lots of vegetables, high quality protein and high quality fats. Stick to a palm sized portion of protein, a thumb sized portion of fat and fill the rest of your plate with veggies- greens, fibrous veggies like broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, asparagus, brussels sprouts, carrots, celery, radish, onion, garlic and so on. 

Find out if you have sensitivities to foods and eliminate them. An elimination diet is particularly helpful and a cheap way to figure out which foods cause inflammation in your body. 

Don’t fast if you are dealing with any blood sugar dysregulation and/or adrenal stress. This will only make things worse. You may want to stick to a 12 hour window of opportunity for eating and make sure you are eating enough. You need more than 1200 calories to sustain yourself and to ensure your body can heal. Eat until you are full and satisfied- this will ensure you don’t have blood sugar issues as long as you are eating as suggested. 

You may want to supplement with magnesium. It is needed for so many biochemical reactions in the body and the adrenal glands are no exception. Magnesium can act like a spark plug in the body and stress depletes it. Magnesium citrate can be found in a product called Natural Calm which is readily available. It can loosen your stools though so be aware of that and back down how much you take if you need to. 

B vitamins are essential for your body and play a role in energy production. A high quality B complex is recommended. Know your source when you buy it. I don’t recommend Amazon as a place to buy supplements. 

Vitamin C is good for your adrenal glands but it also stimulates the immune system so if you are dealing with high or elevated antibodies for thyroid, you might want to be cautious. 

Licorice root is great for sluggish adrenals. It is stimulatory so don’t take it after 1 or 2 pm. It can increase energy and endurance and helps to manage low blood sugar issues. 

Ashwaganda is an herb that is known as an adaptogen which means it will help your body get or stay in a more balanced state and it can help stabilize your cortisol if it is either too high or too low. It is also a nightshade and can be inflammatory to some or stimulate your already overactive immune system. 

Ginger root also helps to keep your cortisol levels even and balanced. You can make a tea by grating 1 teaspoon of ginger and let it steep in hot water for about 10 minutes. You can strain it or just drink it. 

I think this is a good place to stop. Thanks for joining me. Have a question about your thyroid or how to manage it? Go to my website- helpforhashimotos.com and fill out the contact form. 

Please leave a rating and review on iTunes so other people can find the podcast and be helped. There are 14 million people just in the US that are diagnosed with Hashimoto’s. That is a lot of people. The more you share about the podcast, the more people that can be helped. I’d really appreciate your help on that. 

You can find me on social media at stephanieewalsntp on instagram and at Out of the Woods Nutrition-Help For Hashimoto’s on facebook. I also created a facebook group for the podcast called Help For Hashimoto’s which is a positive support group but all the action is happening in my newsletter where I send out recipes and tips for living well with Hashimoto’s. You can sign up on my website. I was thinking of making a grocery shopping list or a guide to understanding your thyroid labs to give you when you sign up for my newsletter. Will you let me know which one you prefer?

Talk to you soon! Have a great week! 

Perimenopause and menopause with thyroid issues. Episode 33.

I'd be interested in hearing you discuss hashimoto’s and thyroid medication during perimenopause and menopause, and/or how those hormones can affect your thyroid and the way your body absorbs thyroid medicine. I'm 51 with Hashimotos, Armour Thyroid (90mcg), with levels considered normal by the endocrinologist. 

I am gluten and dairy free and eating well. But I still struggle with constipation, weight gain, insomnia, facial puffiness etc--hypothyroid symptoms. In November I had the first period that I have had in about 8 months. In the weeks after that, everything seemed to be in good working order...lost the weight, digestion was great, puffiness went away. Now a few months later (with no periods), all those same symptoms are returning.

I had been on Armour from June until I saw the endo in November .  I saw the endo on 11/19 and my TSH was 4.6, Free T4 0.81 (those are the only ones they gave me and there isn't a patient portal where I can peek at others that might have been taken).  

They advised me to go up to 90mcg at that time as he likes the TSH lower.  The period that I had was on 11/13 and so when I saw him everything was going GREAT...had dropped 6 pounds without trying, sleeping well, digestion good.  Have been on 90mcg since November and am creeping steadily upwards, digestion sluggish, insomnia, etc.  Ahhh!

Michelle. 

Thanks for your question Michelle- it is quite likely there are hundreds of thousands of women in your shoes. Before I forget to mention it- work with your doctor to at minimum add in a Free T3 test. TPO and TgAb antibodies tests and Reverse T3 would also be helpful. 

This is a complicated issue and I can give you some good general information but as with everything- we are all bio individual so you will have to experiment to find what works for you. 

Women start to make less estrogen and progesterone as we near our 40’s. This alone can trigger our thyroid to slow down. It sounds like you might be on a hormonal roller coaster here which is totally possible as you approach menopause. 

I like seeing that your endocrinologist likes to see your TSH lower than 4.6. Ideally it should be around 1-2. But upping your medication might not be the solution. That is not to say you shouldn’t take it as prescribed- I’m just saying there might be things you can do that will allow you to take a dose and stay there without having these fluctuations like you are. 

You say you are eating clean and gluten and dairy free. That sounds good, but what does clean eating mean to you? 

How much sugar or starchy foods are you eating? Once we hit a certain age, those starchy carbohydrates can be a problem for some of us when we are looking to maintain or lose weight. 

Those of us with hypothyroidism whether caused by Hashimoto’s disease or not can encounter issues with insulin resistance. Our body cannot process and tolerate sugars like it used to- my body certainly can’t. This means that you will have to be very mindful of what you are putting in to your body and even what time of day you do it. 

Maybe you feel tired an hour after eating lunch- even a paleo style lunch. If it had some starches in it, and you are feeling tired- like a sugar crash- then you likely are not tolerating starchy carbs at that time of day. 

If you struggle with sleeping- falling asleep or staying asleep a bit of starch in the evening meal might help you sleep better. The only way to know is to try it for a couple of days. 

Let’s talk about what perimenopause and menopause are before we dive in to what might be happening with you. 

During perimenopause (the 2-12 years before you reach menopause) 

It can start in your late 30’s but is more commonly occurring in your 40’s. You can have hot flashes, sleep problems, mood swings, and heavier than normal periods (this part is the worst if you ask me) and these symptoms can wax and wane for a good 10 years. 

Your estrogen during perimenopause will be fluctuating significantly to the point that you will have more than you’ve ever had circulating through your body at some times and other times it might be low. It is much like the blood sugar roller coaster but is called the perimenopause roller coaster. 

Symptoms include: 

• heavy flow that is new to you or longer flow (high estrogen)

• cycles that are less than 25 days long

• changes in breast tissue: lumps, sore, swollen (high estrogen)

• waking in the middle of the night and you didn’t before

• worse or more cramping

• start of night sweats, especially before a period (low estrogen)

• migraines that are new to you or are worse

• mood swings before a period (high estrogen)

• gaining weight without changing what you are doing

You may have some or none of these symptoms. About 20% of us will have dramatic changes during perimenopause. The rest of us are lucky to have minor issues. 

Progesterone is gradually lost during this time which is kind of like a cruel joke from mother nature because it is the progesterone that helps counteract the affects of estrogen. 

It also helps us deal with stress and the loss of progesterone makes us feel more anxious, depressed and have poor quality sleep. 

Managing your diet and allowing some self care. 

• Don’t kill yourself in the gym- over exercising or doing too intense of a workout will affect your energy levels for days to come, especially if your adrenal glands are worn out or confused about what to do for you

• Learn to let stuff go- like dishes and cleaning the house. 

• Avoid alcohol- this alone can wreak havoc on your hormones at this stage in the game. It keeps us from getting rid of that excess estrogen AND lowers progesterone.

• Manage your blood sugar. Journal your food so you can see just how much starchy food and sugary foods you might be eating. 

• Take magnesium- it calms our brain, helps us sleep and regulates our brain communication with our body

• Exercise gently, especially if you are dealing with Hashimoto’s. Autoimmune Strong is a great place to start. 

If you are dealing with heavy bleeding, you need to avoid dairy which Michelle already is, avoid alcohol, eat fermented foods and lots of veggies to help keep your gut bacteria healthy. Gut bacteria clear estrogen from your body and so does fiber so eating more veggies than you already are can be really helpful. I also find my energy to be better when I eat more veggies- like 7-8 servings or more a day.  

If your hypothyroidism is not being managed well (meaning your TSH and free T3 are not optimal)  then you may have heavier periods as well. Work to get your TSH around 1-2 and some doctors think it is okay if it is a little below one (.3 to .5)— especially if you are on a natural desiccated thyroid hormone replacement- When T3 is optimal you might find a suppressed TSH. Finding a doctor that will allow your labs to look this way is another story. 

Also keep in mind that you might feel great at a TSH of 2 and someone else might feel good at .3. This is bio individuality. It is so important to know your body and learn how to tell when things are off. 

Your thyroid medication may need to be adjusted seasonally too. If you live in a climate with winter- even all for seasons then your TSH may rise in winter and fall during summer. Another reason to really be in tune with your body and its signals. 

Part of my job as a Nutritional Therapy Practitioner is to help you learn how to do this. 

Menopause starts one year after your last period and symptoms should be better. 

You will have much less estrogen and progesterone at this point. Your adrenal glands will be making estradiol in your cells and this is supposed to be enough to keep you feeling good. BUT- if your adrenals were taxed for years before this happens then you may have some issues. 

Your endocrine system is made up of the pineal and pituitary glands in your brain, the thyroid and parathyroid glands, the Thymus (works with the immune system), Adrenals glands, pancreas and your ovaries. All of these work synergistically together as a system and when one is off, they will all be off. 

You can’t just take a supplement for your adrenals and think that it will fix your issues. It will help in the short term but it is a band-aid and not getting at the root cause of your problem. 

If you have gained weight around your middle, you are more than likely dealing with insulin resistance. This means that your cells are not accepting glucose or sugar from insulin as it travels through your blood stream to bring your cells sugar. Your liver and your muscle cells are not accepting the sugar so it just stays in your blood stream and eventually gets transported to fat tissue for storage. This is why we gain weight.  

The best way to combat this is to quit sugar completely. No dessert, no sweet anything. Every time you eat sweets it makes your insulin resistance worse. Even fruit- so keep your natural sugars to below 25 grams of fructose

High fructose corn syrup in soft drinks is 55% fructose, sugar cane is 50% fructose and honey is 40% fructose. Eight ounces of orange juice has 18 grams of fructose.  So pay attention to what you are eating. If it is sweet tasting, it is likely contributing to your weight at this point. 

Starchy foods like potatoes and rice are mostly glucose and very little fructose but you might find you still have a problem with those as well and will need to test your carb tolerance with a glucose monitor. Start with sugar though. It is more important at this stage to remove sugar from your diet and then look at the starches. 

Hormone fluctuations during perimenopause and menopause can affect how your thyroid functions. 

You might end up with estrogen dominance (the highs on the rollercoaster) which can keep thyroid hormone from attaching or making their way into the receptors on your cells. This means your cells are not getting thyroid hormone creating hypothyroid symptoms. 

Thyroid hormones are similar in chemical make up to estrogen. Too much estrogen or eating too much soy can block the receptor sites as well leaving you with less thyroid hormone in your cells and hypothyroid symptoms. 

As we lose our progesterone, we may see or feel a need for more thyroid hormone. We need progesterone to get T3 which is what our cells use and need. 

Our thyroid naturally slows down as we get older and therefore will not be able to get enough hormone to our cells affecting not only our energy but creating all the other symptoms we have talked about before. 

If you are dealing with chronic stress, and most of us are, this will also affect our ability to make enough thyroid hormone. 

When your thyroid is not working optimally or you are not medicated optimally, all of your hormones will be disrupted. 

It will be important to know if you are in menopause or if you’re having a thyroid problem. If you take estrogen thinking you are in perimenopause or menopause and it is actually your thyroid causing the problems, you might end up feeling worse and the estrogen will affect your thyroid function. Vicious cycle as with so many things in our body. One can’t work well without the other. 

If you have crazy periods during your 30’s and 40’s it is more likely an issue with thyroid than perimenopause. Thyroid problems are often the cause of early perimenopause. I’m a textbook example of this. 

They make the symptoms of perimenopause and menopause worse, affect blood sugar, make you depressed, affect your ability to handle stress. 

You have options: 

• start with journaling your food to pinpoint

  • are you eating enough

  • are you eating too much sugar

  • is your ratio of protein fats and carbohydrates where it should be

  • are you eating a lot of processed foods or a whole foods diet?

• exercise

  • reduces hot flashes

  • better mood

  • lessens depression, less anxiety

  • higher sex drive

  • sleep is better

  • more energy

  • lowers insulin resistance

  • increases bone density

  • helps manage weight

• natural supplements- introduce 1 at a time and wait 2-3 weeks before adding another one

  • maca powder

    • will help your hormones adapt and balance as needed

    • can reduce hot flashes

    • supports the entire endocrine system, including adrenals and thyroid

    • can regulate menstrual cycles

    • can increase energy and stamina

    • don’t take it if you are on estrogen

  • soy- is supposed to be helpful as a phytoestrogen to help with menopausal symptoms. I’m not sure how I feel about this. Don’t supplement but get it in food form. I would go for tempeh and miso and NOT genetically modified. 

  • Black cohosh

    • helps to reduce hot flashes

    • helps insomnia, fatigue, anxiety, depression

    • helps with joint pain/body aches

  • Damiana- tea or tincture (2-3 ml 2 to 3x/day)

    • helpful for hot flashes, low sex drive and general well being

  • Dong Quai

    • hot flashes, insomnia, fatigue, anxiety

  • Vitamin D

    • helps regulate endocrine system

    • supports sleep

  • Chasteberry or Vitex

    • helpful for breast tenderness

    • balances progesterone

    • water retention

    • headaches, irritability, depression, fatigue

    • sleep issues

The Period Repair manual is a must read for every woman

Supplements suggested can be bought through this trusted source (my fullscript store)

Thyroid talk with Ginny and Danna from Thyroid Refresh. Episode 32.

In todays episode I am talking with Danna Bowman (Thyroid Nation) and Ginny Mahar (Hypothyroid Chef) who have teamed up to create a really cool interactive program on their Thyroid Refresh® website called Thyroid 30®. We talk about how they found each other to team up and create a positive space for thyroid patience to be supported, what some of the biggest mistakes thyroid patients make, how lifestyle choices make a difference in your recovery and more. Use code TryThy30 for $5 off their program starting January 13, 2019.

How does blood sugar dysregulation affect the thyroid? Episode 31.

Welcome to episode 31 and Happy New Year. 

I spend a lot of time between Christmas and New Years reflecting on my year and always being really hard on myself for not accomplishing more than I did. 

I had a great year, I have good relationships with people in my life that matter and while they are not perfect and not always great, I am working hard to show up better in those relationships. So here is to a new year full of health and great possibilities in all areas of my life and in yours too. 

I am really grateful you are here. 

I teach a class called The RESTART Program as a Nutritional Therapy Practitioner and it falls right in line with the subject matter of today’s podcast. I am discussing managing blood sugar in relation to thyroid health. They go hand in hand and one out of balance puts the other out of balance. 

My class is all about managing blood sugar and about Restarting with a new outlook on food and nutrition. It is a real food sugar detox where you learn how to eat real food to manage your blood sugar, you get nutrition education and you get support from me and from the members of the class. We have a private facebook group and we meet each week for five weeks with the detox starting on the second week.

There are no shakes, no pills- just real food. This class has been life changing for so many people and I really love teaching it. Learn more at www.outofthewoodsnutrition.com/restart 

Susan O.  “RESTART® gave me the tools to reverse pain, lose weight, increase energy, and best of all, the common sense of how we should be living and eating. Thank you for helping me make a difference in my life and my family.”

Tina T.  “I came to the RESTART® class just wanting to learn how sugar affects the body. I left class feeling better and with a ton of knowledge. It’s a lifestyle change I can do. Stick with this class, you won’t regret it.”

Melissa M.  “I now understand what I need to heal myself and my family. This class changed my attitude towards food and health. If you are sick and tired of being sick and tired all the time, I highly recommend taking RESTART®.”

You can register for class now at www.outofthewoodsnutrition.com/restart  Cost is $147 for the entire five weeks and will be taught via zoom which is free for you to download. 

Okay- on to the show. 

Why is maintaining healthy blood sugar levels or keeping your blood sugar balanced so important for your thyroid?

Most if not every organ and tissue in the body needs glucose or sugar. It is what helps us make energy in our cells so if you are lacking in sugar your cells are not getting the materials they need to produce energy so your cells will not have energy, your organs won’t and you definitely won’t have any energy. 

When you have a low level of glucose, your blood sugar is low and your thyroid won’t be getting enough energy or enough sugar to turn into energy to function. It will be sluggish and not able to produce enough hormone for you. 

When you have higher levels of glucose in the blood or high blood sugar on a regular basis, you end up with something called insulin resistance. Say you eat a meal that is pretty carbohydrate heavy of maybe pasta or bread or pizza and that gets broken down into little particles of sugar. It will cause your blood sugar to rise and your body says “I’ve got to get rid of this sugar in my blood. There is too much in here and it can damage my blood vessels. So it releases the hormone insulin which is supposed to lower blood sugar in the blood by bringing the sugar to the cells so it can use it for energy production. 

The problem when we eat all that refined carb garbage is that you are eating too many carbs for your body to handle so you are dealing with this higher blood sugar issue with the quick rise of insulin to help manage the levels of sugar in your body. It’s not good and your body- your cells eventually get tired of receiving the sugar from insulin so they become resistant to it. They are like- “No more. My cell door is closed. Go away!” 

So you have this sugar with no where to go because the cells don’t want it. It is just floating around in your blood stream. But it has to go somewhere so what does your body do?

It stores it in your fat tissue or creates fat tissue to store it. 

Now your thyroid is looking for nutrients but the cells are resistant because of the insulin resistance. The cells are refusing the sugar being transported by insulin.  No fuel for the thyroid means it isn’t going to produce enough hormone for you and you feel sluggish. You might have the TSH of 5 or 7 or 9 that your doctor says is fine when you know it isn’t fine because you feel like crap. 

Now keep in mind this is a very simplified explanation of things because I want you to be able to get the idea. 

When your blood sugar is high either from insulin resistance or because you are constantly eating all day long or because you eat the Standard American Diet then you probably are experiencing some inflammation.  We are all bio individuals- where you experience inflammation may be different than someone else.  If you have inflammation in your thyroid due to autoimmune attacks or because of something else- your thyroid cells are not able to take in the nutrients they need to function well. 

Two important nutrients are iodine and the amino acid tyrosine.  If you have an inflamed thyroid, that doesn’t mean you should supplement with these two nutrients. That is a band-aid. The root cause might be the mismanaged blood sugar and you should be able to get both of those nutrients from your diet.  

Missing these nutrients through mismanaged blood sugar is one way you can get  to an autoimmune diagnosis. 

Here is the kicker. People with high blood sugar levels in their blood and insulin resistance tend to have low thyroid hormone production which will increase your TSH. When TSH goes on the rise it can make insulin resistance worse. 

I think I can attest to this- when I experimentally went off my medication I felt and actually still am pretty puffy. I ate three cheesecake flavored M&M’s last Saturday and a couple hours later had a small patch of psoriasis on my palm and the back or nape of my neck is itchy. It can mess you up. It is a vicious cycle. 

When you have a high TSH because your body can’t make enough on it’s own, as your blood sugar lowers the cells in your thyroid are affected. We need the proper amount of T3 and T4 to maintain healthy blood sugar. The more out of control our blood sugar gets, the more our thyroid can’t function properly. It is sluggish and that contributes to insulin resistance even more. 

The best way to fix this is to fix your blood sugar balance. To keep it balanced and reset things. So obviously diet is a huge factor and that is what the RESTART Program is all about. There are other things you can do as well. 

Sleep is huge. One night of bad sleep, loss of sleep can create insulin resistance in a healthy person so for those of us suffering from insomnia, you are in that vicious cycle again and so having diet dialed in will be really important. We repair our body at night and cortisol is supposed to be low at night- if you are not sleeping both of those things are going to be messed up. No repairing of tissues, and cortisol can be high which means insulin resistance and fat storage/creation. 

Exercise. When your muscles are worked or exercised and trained, if you will, they become insulin sensitive which will lower your insulin resistance. For many of us with autoimmune disease we need to go slow and I can’t recommend enough the Get Autoimmune Strong Program. Please go to the show notes and use my link to check it out so I get credit for sending you. It helps me pay for the podcast. 

A lot of experts will recommend burst training where you do something intense for 30-60 seconds and then rest for a few minutes and do it again. I am not in the place where I can handle that so if you get exhausted from working out- autoimmune strong is for you. 

You can also use a standing desk instead of sitting desk. I got one on Amazon that sits on top of my cheap Craigslist desk for about $80-$90. It was a good investment. 

Manage stress. This along with sleep is sometimes more important than eating well. That’s not to say you shouldn’t eat well but these other two are really really important. When you are experiencing a lot of stress- mental/emotional or physical, your cortisol levels go up. When the cortisol is high, your liver will create sugar to increase your insulin and again we have a cycle we don’t want to be in. 

Cortisol is in our body to give us a burst of energy to escape danger. Our primitive mind doesn’t know the difference between actual physical danger and what goes on in our mind, or even between a close call on the road and running from a bear. It is all the same to our body. So chronic stress- not good for our body fat and our blood sugar. Unfortunately, our body prefers to get its energy or sugar from our muscle rather than our fat so we end up losing muscle and getting fatter in this scenario of unbalanced blood sugar.  

So we have this high blood sugar because of high cortisol and we have resistant cells, they don’t want any more sugar so more and more sugar gets released either through you eating something because your body has told you you need more energy so you crave some kind of sugary carb food or because you are stressed so the blood sugar levels are higher and higher- your body thinks there isn’t enough sugar because the cells are refusing it and so the levels get higher and higher in the blood and that gets shuttled to fat because it needs to get rid of it. 

When you eat matters and what you eat at night matters too. When you eat before bed, if it is a carb heavy food like a cookie or a bowl of cereal, your blood sugar will be high when you go to bed and you will have a crash around 1-3 am when cortisol is released to raise your blood sugar. Ever wake with a start or have heart palpitations at that time and then you can’t get back to sleep? That is a blood sugar issue. Then you pile on lack of sleep because you couldn’t fall asleep and you have more insulin resistance. 

Eating protein at breakfast or your first meal is important to keeping your blood sugar stable all day long. If you aren’t eating protein and you have insulin resistance and issues with cortisol, your body will take what it needs in the form of sugar from your muscles- creating less muscle and more fat. 

You may need to eat every 3 hours for a short time to get your blood sugar balanced, but don’t eat a bunch of carbs every 3 hours. Eat some healthy fats and proteins with veggies to keep your blood sugar stable and then eventually you will be able to make it from meal to meal without needing a snack. Eating all the time, snacking all the time will keep your insulin levels high all day long which means more fat storage, inflammation and stress on the body and on your thyroid. 

All this stress affects your pituitary gland and TSH is secreted from the pituitary gland. When your adrenals and cortisol are working hard to manage stress and blood sugar, there isn’t much room for your thyroid to be helped out so it takes a hit and becomes sluggish or you develop autoimmune disease.  Cortisol inhibits production of T4 and of TSH (will show up as a high TSH on a lab). 

So we have a thyroid that isn’t working. This causes a decrease in the rate the cells take in sugar (glucose). The receptors on your cells don’t know what is going on so they can’t take in the right amount of anything.  Your blood sugar is out of whack and T4 and T3 are not being secreted from the thyroid like they are supposed to either. You are dealing with inflammation because insulin overproduction will also produce inflammation. 

You are dealing with a blood sugar rollercoaster here. Sometimes too high blood sugar due to a meal you ate or stress or whatever and then low blood sugar because of the rise in insulin, too much insulin which causes a crash- when you get really tired after a meal or after a bunch of sugar. Cortisol gets involved to try to fix the problem and it starts all over again. Not good. You crave the sugar to get you out of the crash. 

The solution here- besides taking my class is to heal your gut, remove some of these foods that are causing your blood sugar to be so out of control. Figure out if certain foods are causing you inflammation, get some good nutrients in to your diet. Get some omega 3 fats, fiber and protein in your diet.  You might need chromium, magnesium, cinnamon can be really helpful in lowering your blood sugar and testing your blood sugar. I am working on getting someone on the podcast who is an expert in finding your carb tolerance. It involves pricking your finger- I’m not so good at that. I have to have my daughter do it for me so I don’t mess with it- I really need to do that though. I know there are certain foods that really spike my blood sugar and the thing of that is- it can be different for everyone. You might really react to an apple whereas someone else won’t be affected at all. I’ll work on getting a good guest to help us figure that out. 

Ideally you want your blood sugar levels to stay somewhere in between 80-100. This would be on a blood glucose monitor. You can get a good picture of your blood sugar from a Hemoglobin A1C test. This will measure the sticky proteins of sugar that are attached to your red blood cells. This causes your red blood cells to become brittle and cause damage to your blood vessels. This is how we end up with plaques in our veins. 

In The RESTART Program we don’t use any sweeteners on the sugar detox. Some safe alternatives if you are going to have sugar keeping in mind that sugar is sugar and will affect your blood sugar the same -are honey, maple syrup and maybe coconut sugar. Again- these all will do the same damage if you eat too much of it. You shouldn’t be having any more than 22-24 grams of sugar a day according to the world health organization. That is not a lot when you figure 4 grams of sugar is = to 1 teaspoon of sugar. 

Stay away from aspartame, splenda and other artificial sweeteners. Some people think stevia in green powder form or the liquid drop forms are okay- I don’t care for the taste and I don’t know that my body loves them either. Some people do okay with erythritol or xylitol- they can cause bloating and irritate your gut. Avoid agave as it is pure fructose. It will for sure spike your blood sugar. 

The bottom line here is that you cannot address your thyroid without addressing your blood sugar and your diet. 

Diet changes alone can result in weight loss, more energy, better sleep, lessened cravings, better skin, and a better functioning thyroid. 

I’d love to have you in my class. Learn more or register at www.outofthewoodsnutrition.com/restart

Check out autoimmune strong here. 

Thanks so much for joining me today.  I’m glad you are here. Please leave me a review on iTunes and share this podcast with anyone you know who might be helped by it. 

I’m sending out a recipe for breakfast soup in my newsletter next week so go sign up for the newsletter on my website if you want that. It is really good. You will also get an ebook called 5 things your doctor won’t tell you about hypothyroidism. 

Join the Help For Hashimoto’s facebook group to get ongoing support from other members and from me. 

You can find me on instagram at stephanieewalsntp but all the action will soon be in the newsletter. 

See you next week! 

Study on blood sugar and hypothyroidism

Oops! I forgot to take my medication. Plus, how’s your poop? Episode 17.

ITunes Review: 

Stephanie, Thank you so much for a wonderful podcast. I love that you keep it real while answering difficult questions for us. You have a very calming and peaceful voice and I am always so encouraged listening to your podcasts. Keep them coming. We are listening and learning. 

What do you do if you forget to take your medication? 

Half life- a half life in the world of medications means the amount of time it takes for the concentration of the medication in your blood plasma to reduce by half.  Said another way- it is how long a drug stays in your system or the amount of time it takes for the effectiveness of a drug to reduce by half. 

If you are taking levothyroxine, the half life is 6-7 days and up to 9 or 10 days if you are dealing with hypothyroid conditions. If you have hyperthyroid conditions then it can be as little as three days. Nothing seems to be easy with this disease. 

Levothyroixine is a common treatment and most likely what your doctor will prescribe unless you have a doctor open or more knowledgeable in thyroid health. 

For practical purposes we will go with a 7 day half life for levothyroxine. When you take this medication, around 80% of it goes through your system over a longer period of time, like several hours. 

According to the Williams Textbook of Endocrinology, missing a day shouldn’t have a big effect on you. They also say that T4 is absorbed very well by the body so waiting an hour to take your medication before eating might not necessarily be required. Taking it on an empty stomach will give you a more stable TSH reading though. But since we all know that TSH should not be the gold standard, that maybe shouldn’t matter. 

The reason you usually have to wait 6 weeks to have your labs tested is because of this long half life. It takes about 6 weeks before your body has adjusted to a dose. 

However, if your digestion is not working well and we are going to talk about that in a minute, then you may have issues with absorption and of creation of T3 from your T4 only medication. 

There can be an issue in concentration of medication between manufacturers which can mess with your body. So, be proactive and let your pharmacy know that you do not want them to switch your medication without your knowledge. Remember that getting this dose right is like goldilocks- it needs to be just right. 

This same textbook also says that NDT is not a good choice for treatment and that TSH is the gold standard so- take it for what it is worth. 

A NDT like Armour has a half life of 2-7 days with the T3 having a half life of 4-6 hours. So if you take your medication with T3 in it at 8am then sometime between 12pm and 2pm you have about half of the original dose of medication in your system. Your cells will have used the rest of it. But it should last you about a day. This means half is gone in 4-6 hours, another half of the half (a quarter more ) will be used in another 4-6 hours and so on. 

T3 is used up faster because your body doesn’t have to convert it like it does T4. This is why it is a good idea to take a partial dose in the morning and a partial dose in the afternoon. 

Now let’s talk about what happens when our digestion isn’t working well because this is very important for our thyroid to work well. 

Thyroid peroxidase is an enzyme. It makes thyroid hormones by cleaving off an iodine molecule and adding it to the amino acid tyrosine on thyroglobulin which then makes T4 and T3. In order for this to happen, we need to have available to us: selenium, copper, magnesium, B vitamins, zinc, vitamin A. 

You should not just go and willy nilly supplement with these vitamins and minerals. There are many factors involved here and supplementing with some of these may make things worse in the long run. So it is a good idea to either do a lot of your own research or work with someone who knows how to work with your condition. 

Our gut or gastro intestinal tract is an important factor in our thyroid health but even before that, what we eat and how we break it down in our stomach is a key factor. 

Before we even talk about what you are eating, let’s talk about how you are eating it. Are you running through the drive through before or after your kids activities? Are you eating in the car or eating while you are doing something else?  Are you relaxed or stressed while you are eating?

Any of those scenarios will mean you are going to struggle with breaking down your meal before it even gets to your small intestine where most of the nutrients are absorbed. 

Digestion actually starts in the brain. We smell our food cooking and our brain signals the production of saliva so we can break down some of that food in our mouth while chewing. Are you chewing your food well? Like 20-30 chews per bite? Really breaking it down so the enzymes in your saliva can begin digesting the carbohydrates in your meal?

Once you have chewed well, you swallow and that ball of food goes in to your stomach and stomach acid and pepsin get to work digesting or breaking down proteins. 

Do you have acid reflux after eating? (there is more about this in the audio)

Once it is broken down in the stomach and reaches the right pH then the valve between your stomach and your small intestine opens and fats are broken down by the release of bile and nutrients are extracted in the small intestine and absorbed in to the blood stream. 

Here is where your gut health comes in to play since leaky gut or Intestinal Permeability are what contributes to autoimmunity. 

We need a balance of gut bacteria in our intestines to help us convert T4 to T3 there. If we are not eating right or digesting well then we will have an imbalance of bacteria and intestinal permeability. 

We can end up with parasites, overgrowth of candida and constipation- all with their own contributions to our failing health. 

When we have hypothyroid- we have a sluggish gallbladder which means we might struggle to digest our dietary fats and then we are making thick and viscous bile which further messes up the gallbladder function. When this is not working well, we are not detoxifying as well either. so we can’t break down hormones or toxins from our environment. 

How are you pooping? No one wants to talk about it but you must be moving stool through your body and going every 16-24 hours. Your BM should be the size of your forearm from your wrist to your elbow, it should come out with ease and you should feel relieved when you are done and not like you still have to go. 

Being constipated further contributes to the “bad guys” overgrowing in your Small Intestine and causing bacterial infections, you may experience chronic pain, inflammation, digestive issues, food intolerances and Hashimoto’s. 

With all of this happening, we can also have issues dumping estrogen and so it can accumulate. This can cause hypothyroidism that you won’t see on a blood test according to Datis Kharrazian in Why Do I Still Have Thyroid Symptoms. This excess estrogen will keep the thyroid hormones from getting to the cells- causing hypothyroid symptoms. 

So you see, taking supplements without first healing the gut is pointless. It is a band aid at best. The only supplement you may need at this point is some stomach acid- Betaine HCl so you can start to break down your food and get those nutrients to your cells, kill off some of the bad guys and bring things back in balance. 

You will see improvement in chronic inflammation from changing what you eat and the way you eat it. Start with your plate. With breakfast. Make some bone broth. That is the next recipe to go out in my newsletter so sign up for that. 

So reduce inflammation by cutting out gluten, dairy products, eggs, most other grains, soy products and yeast. Yeast can feed an already out of control candida overgrowth. These are some of the big allergens, in other grains it is best to avoid corn for sure. 

This gives your body a chance to calm down so it can properly react to foods. 

You need to be on an elimination diet for 3 weeks to 3 months depending on how sick you are, how inflamed, or how long you went untreated for Hashimoto’s. In addition to this, you can do something called a FIT test

What can you eat?  There are no notes for this. It’s only on the audio. 

Why Do I Still Have Thyroid Symptoms?

Against All Grain

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