Thyroxine production in the body can be largely affected by the kind of food we consume or
don’t consume. Our diet and the nutrition we provide our body can affect the regulation
and production of thyroxine. If you want to know what kind of foods to avoid in thyroid,
you’ve come to the right place. Let’s find out all the foods you must avoid during thyroid
treatment here!
WHAT ARE THYROID DISEASES?
The thyroid gland is a butterfly-shaped gland that produces and secretes a hormone called
thyroxine. Thyroxine hormones are responsible for many vital bodily functions. They are
essential to keep our bodies healthy. Any obstruction in the production or regulation of
thyroxine hormone levels in the thyroid causes thyroid diseases. Thyroid diseases can cause
many other complications so it’s important to diagnose and treat them as soon as there are
indications of thyroid disease. There are mainly two types of thyroid diseases:
1. Hyperthyroidism: When your body produces more than enough amounts of
thyroxine hormone, you develop hyperthyroidism.
2. Hypothyroidism: When your body produces less than the required amount of
thyroxine hormone, you develop hypothyroidism.
Thyroid diseases are largely affected by our diet and lifestyle, thyroid foods to avoid and
the ones you should eat can be prescribed by a doctor or physician but it is your
responsibility to follow a strict diet along with your treatment plan for better and quick
recovery.
WHAT ARE THE TREATMENT METHODS OF THYROID DISEASES?
Thyroid diseases can be treated using a variety of treatment options and medications. The
commonly suggested way of treating thyroid diseases is to take thyroxine supplements that
increase thyroxine hormone levels in the body. There are many treatments that can easily
cure thyroid diseases, but it’s important to seek a proper medical diagnosis before
administering any kind of thyroid treatment. Here are some common ways of treating
thyroid disease:
1. Removing the thyroid gland through surgical methods.
2. Taking radioactive iodine to destroy some cells of your thyroid gland to stop them
from producing thyroxine surplus and treat hyperthyroidism.
3. Taking thyroxine supplements like levothyroxine to increase the production of
thyroxine hormones in your body.
4. Medications like beta-blockers that prevent your thyroid gland from producing high
amounts of the thyroxine hormone are used to treat hyperthyroidism.
5. Following a certain diet plan and removing food to avoid in thyroid from your diet
and adding minerals and nutrients that are helpful for your conditions.
WHAT FOODS SHOULD YOU AVOID DURING THYROID TREATMENT?
What we eat and the nutrition our body gets can largely impact your thyroxine hormone
production and thyroid treatment. There are many minerals and supplements that are good
for our body in tiny amounts, but can be fatal for thyroid patients and should be avoided at
all costs during the course of thyroid treatment. The kind of foods to avoid in thyroid
depends on the condition of your thyroid and the nutrients you require or nutrients that are
harmful to you.
Here is what you should avoid eating if you’re hyperthyroid:
1. Foods like seaweed, egg yolks, dairy products, etc that contain a high amount of
iodine should be completely avoided if you have hyperthyroidism.
2. Soy products like soy milk, tofu, or soya sauce can be fatal for thyroid patients
because of the high iodine content and should be avoided.
3. Any iodized salts should be avoided completely if you have hyperthyroidism and it is
better to switch to sodium salts that have no iodine content or negligible iodine
content in them.
4. Glutenous foods like wheat, oat, rye, etc should be avoided by thyroid patients as
gluten-free diets can help in the absorption of thyroid medications and treatment to
become more effective.
5. Caffeinated beverages like coffee, energy drinks, or tea can be fatal to people who
have hyperthyroidism as caffeine can make the symptoms of hyperthyroidism
become even worse and cause your heartbeats to become irregular.
Here are the foods you should avoid if you have hypothyroidism:
1. When you’re hypothyroid, you need to eat food that has a lesser content of minerals
like zinc as zinc supplements can make your thyroxine levels to become lower.
2. Processed foods and foods that have high sugar content are something you should
absolutely remove from your diet. Baked goods are foods to avoid for thyroid during
pregnancy, even if you feel tempted as they can increase the fat deposits in your
body to a large number.
3. Fruits like strawberries and peaches can cause irritation in your thyroid gland and
make your thyroid disease worse or more complicated and it is better to avoid eating
them completely.
4. Foods like beef, pork, turkey, and shellfish have a higher selenium content and can
be damaging to your thyroid glands if taken without regulations and can cause
further complications in your thyroid gland.
5. Nuts like brazil nuts and almonds should be avoided if you have hypothyroidism as
they are fatty and contain large amounts of selenium which can worsen your
hypothyroidism.
CONCLUSION
Thyroid diseases are caused by insufficient or surplus production of thyroxine hormones in
the thyroid gland. They can be treated using several forms of treatment. It is important to
know the kind of foods to avoid in thyroid treatment so your thyroid gets only the required
amount of nutrition and can be treated properly.
