7 Foods That Feed Your Thyroid
Increase? Do you feel depressed or lethargic? Are you missing your hair? Have you experienced strange or irregular heart beats? Can not sleep
And does it all seem to come from nowhere?
All roads can lead to your thyroid ...
Thyroid disorders, from hypo- and hypo-thyroid to Hashimoto's disease and Graves' disease.
Consider it:
Of the at least 20 million people with thyroid problems, over 60% are undiagnosed or unaware.
Women are 5 to 8 times more likely to have thyroid disease than men.
Undiagnosed thyroid disease poses another risk of cardiovascular disease, osteoporosis and infertility.
Although the thyroid gland is very small compared to most other organs, it produces a hormone that affects all cells, tissues and organs in the body!
How does the thyroid work?
The thyroid is really a miracle. This butterfly-shaped organ lives in your neck along your trachea. It weighs less than an ounce and consists of 2 wings or rags. The lobes are connected in the middle by a small piece of thyroid tissue, the isthmus.
Every cell in the body depends on the thyroid hormones to regulate their metabolism.
It's like a dance, and every step has to be done in perfect order and synchronization for the dance to be successful. Hundreds of processes, enzymes, nutrients and hormones work together so that the brain, thyroid, hormones, cells and even our DNA play a role in every step of the dance.
Without becoming too scientific, the thyroid works like this:
The key players are ...
- TRH - thyroid-releasing hormone
- TSH - thyroid stimulating hormone
- T4 - Thyroxine, the inactive form of the thyroid hormone
- and T3 - triiodothyronine, the active form
First, the hypothalamus in the brain senses that the cells need thyroid hormones so that it produces thyroid-releasing hormone (or TRH).
This tells the pituitary to produce thyroid-stimulating hormone (or TSH).
TSH travels to the thyroid gland and signals her to produce T4. Since T4 is the inactive form of the thyroid hormone, the body can not use it until it is converted to T3.
Once this happens, T3 must penetrate each of our cells into the DNA to bind to a tiny nuclear receptor so it can regulate the metabolism. As the cell metabolism increases, the entire metabolism of the body increases.
A Healthy Thyroid = A Healthy Metabolism
And a healthy metabolism = normal body temperature, healthy hair, skin and nails, hormonal balance, even mood, healthy sleep patterns and regular bowel movements.
So, it's pretty important to get checked if you have symptoms related to impaired thyroid function:
- Depression and / or anxiety and / or irritability and / or nervousness
- fatigue
- forgetfulness
- sleep disorders
- Weight gain or unexplained weight loss
- vision problems
- sudden changes in heart rhythm
- hair loss
- low body temperature
- low or no libido
The 10 nutrients your body needs for the thyroid to work
For this whole process to take place (TRH -> TSH -> Thyroid -> T4 -> Conversion to T3 -> Nuclear Receptor -> Increased Cell Metabolism), 10 key nutrients are required. These are:
- protein
- magnesium
- Vitamin B12
- zinc
- iodine
- Vitamin B2
- vitamin C
- selenium
- Vitamin D
- Vitamin A
All of these nutrients are obviously in whole foods. But apparently, individual forms of these nutrients are also found on the shelves of grocery stores and health food stores worldwide, not to mention Amazon.
Does not it make sense to take a pile of pills to feed your thyroid?
Thyroid problems can be genetic, but they are also caused by poor diet and lifestyle, extreme stress or trauma, and impaired gut health. While you can not control your genes, you can control what you eat.
And there are several foods that can lead to the healing or dying of your thyroid gland ...
7 foods that feed the thyroid gland
This list is by no means exhaustive. There are so many wonderful foods that feed the thyroid! Comprehensively, however, these foods contain all 10 important nutrients required for healthy thyroid function.
So here are 7 nutritious foods that feed the thyroid gland (not in order of importance):
Brazil Nuts
Brazil nuts are one of the highest sources of selenium, an essential mineral for thyroid health. Even mild selenium deficiency can lead to the development of autoimmune thyroid disease.
Sea Vegetables
Seegemüse - wie Nori, Seetang, Dulse, Kombu, Wakame und mehr - sind reich an Jod! Algen sind eine der am meisten konzentrierten Jodquellen. Und sie liefern auch andere Spurenelemente darunter Eisen, Kalzium und Kalium.
Nourishing Fats
A sick thyroid is an inflamed thyroid. Fats have an anti-inflammatory effect on the entire body, including the intestines, skin and thyroid.
Butter-fed butter and ghee contain a lot of bioavailable vitamin A, a nutrient that supports a healthy thyroid. They also contain cholesterol, which is necessary to support the hormone balance.
Pastured Meats & Wild-Caught Fish
Protein is needed to transport thyroid hormones throughout the body. It also stabilizes blood sugar (unstable blood sugar is common in thyroid disease).
Pasture meat contains glutamine - an amino acid needed to rebuild and strengthen the intestinal lining.
Why am I suddenly mentioning belly health? Because most thyroid disorders are autoimmune in nature; The body attacks. The healing of the intestine is an essential part of the fight against the thyroid, and the glutamine, which occurs in the animal proteins, contributes to the intestinal health.
Maca
Maca is a special food. There is energy and vitality - something that desperate people with underactive thyroid. In particular, maca can stimulate the pituitary and hypothalamus and signal that they excrete TRH and TSH (source).
Maca balances the entire endocrine system, which includes the thyroid, pituitary, hypothalamus and adrenal glands.
For those experiencing energy breaks, low libido, lack of stamina, depression, and hormone imbalance due to a poor thyroid, maca is a powerhouse for nutrition.
Fermented Foods
Since most diseases of the thyroid are autoimmune diseases, we must adapt to the intestinal health. The immune system is in the intestine. When the body starts to attack itself, the gut always plays a role.
Not only are they full of thyroid-loving vitamins and minerals, yogurt, kefir, fermented vegetables and kombucha also help colonize the gut with beneficial bacteria.
A healthy gut means a body with a stronger immune system (say goodbye to autoimmune diseases!), Normal hormone production and reduced inflammation. (Source.)
In this article we do not have enough space to analyze the nutrient data for each fermented food. So let's just include a few of them. Suffice to say, eating traditional fermented foods has a positive effect on intestinal health, which is directly related to the health of your thyroid gland.
Fiber
Dietary fiber stabilizes blood sugar and improves the health of the digestive system. Constipation is a common symptom of low body temperature and hypothyroidism. Therefore, extra fiber is a natural way to remedy and get your system moving again.
A minimum of 3 to 5 servings of vegetables per day. If you can aim for 7 to 9 portions, that's even better!
In addition to fiber, vegetables and low glycemic fruits provide antioxidants, vitamins and minerals - essential for optimal thyroid function, as you now know.
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