As I do more research about my hypothroidism & diet, I'm more and more convinced that eating clean & real (aka: non-processed) food is the only way to manage my hypothyroid without medication.
My cousin was telling me that she's managing hers with diet alone. She went on to tell me that she's following a strict Paleo diet and that if she deviates at all from it, she can tell. Comparing notes about her hypothyroid issues (and Hashimotos) and what's been going on with mine, I have a feeling it'll be important to keep testing the Hashimotos indicators. It sounds like our thyroids are doing the same thing (well, hers did and mine is currently doing).
When I got home from our quick trip to MA, I started looking into the books she recommended. Looking forward to getting Practical Paleo in the mail today! I've been reading (off & on) "The Thyroid Diet Revolution"and was reading some interesting stuff. As you can imagine, there are different types nutritional plans that people will respond differently to. Below are the questions they ask to help you figure out which nutritional plan you should give a try to help you better your thyroid (and overall) health, once you know you have a hypothyroid problem.
__You have tried a low-carb diet such as Atkins, or a low-glycemic diet such as South Beach, and gained weight while following it.
__You truly enjoy eating fruits and vegetables.
__You feel your best after a meal that contains protein, starch, fat, and some vegetables or fruit.
__You need some variety in your diet.
If you have checked two or more of the previous statements, then you should start with the Free-Form Plan.
__You frequently crave things such as pasta, bread, rice, potatoes, sugary drinks, and desserts.
__Once you get started eating things such as pasta, bread, rice, potatoes, sugary drinks, and desserts, you find it hard to stop.
__After you eat things such as pasta, bread, rice, potatoes, sugary drinks, and desserts, you find yourself feeling hungry again fairly quickly.
__You find that after you eat a piece of cake or a bowl of pasta, you temporarily end up a pound or two heavier on the scale the next day.
If you checked two or more of the above statements, then it's likely that carbohydrates are a problem for you. You should start with a Carb-Sensitive Plan.
__You have tried a calorie-controlled diet such as Weight Watchers and gained weight while following it.
__You have tried a low-glycemic plan such as South Beach and gained weight while following it.
__You suspect that you probably eat too much, but you don't keep track.
__You find that you can gain weight on what others would consider a diet or "cutting back".
If you have checked two or more of the above statements, then you should start with the Calorie-Sensitive Plan.
If you found yourself agreeing with many statements in all of the categories, then start out with the Free-Form Plan.
The book goes on to say you should give your new nutritional plan 4 weeks and if you've lost a couple of pounds, stick with it. If not, you may need to tweak or completely change your nutritional plan. (It does go on to describe the plans - but that'll be a different post, I'm sure.)
We've made a lot of changes to our diet since April. It could definitely be better - as we've fallen off the wagon a little. That being said, my numbers were SO much better 2 weeks ago. I may start trying to follow the Free-Form Plan (it's basically what we're doing with the non-processed foods, just limits quantities of certain items). Trying to nail down my thyroid health has really gotten me to think differently about how I approach nutrition in my life & my clients' lives. Overall health - not just weight!
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