Home Endocrine systemHyperthyroidism How to lose weight with hypothyroidism

How to lose weight with hypothyroidism

by Alivia Nyhan
Published: Last Updated on

The thyroid gland is where the hormones involved in growth processes, human metabolism, protein production, and regulating the rest of the body’s hormones are secreted. Hypothyroidism is an alteration in the function of the thyroid gland, a fairly common condition in women over 50 years of age and after childbirth. One of its main symptoms is the ease with which the patient gains weight, added to the consequent difficulty in losing pounds.

Are you wondering how to lose weight while having hypothyroidism? In the following FastlyHealarticle, we will give you the keys and the necessary advice to fulfill your objective; it is possible!

Symptoms of hypothyroidism

No matter how much you diet, does it cost you a lot to lose weight? One of the causes may be that you suffer from hypothyroidism and that this condition prevents you from losing weight. These are the symptoms that occur with hypothyroidism :

  • Constipation.
  • Constant fatigue
  • Muscle and joint pain.
  • Weight gain for no apparent reason.
  • You can develop depression.
  • The periods become more abundant.
  • Hair and nails become weaker and break.
  • The skin becomes dry.
  • The person becomes very sensitive to cold.

If you let the disease run its course and do not take any treatment, these symptoms will increase until they reach a second phase, a phase that manifests itself in:

  • Ronquidos
  • The hands, face, and feet swell,
  • Smell and sense of taste decrease.

Can you lose weight while having hypothyroidism?

For many people, losing weight becomes a very frustrating situation, especially when you do not observe any change in your body weight after a lot of effort and work. People with hypothyroidism constantly live in that feeling, but that does not mean that it is impossible to lose weight with a slow thyroid.

Yes, you can lose weight with hypothyroidism, and the method to achieve it does not differ much from what anyone should do: eat a low-fat diet and exercise. But beyond this, several characteristics of this disease must also be treated, such as iodine deficiency in the body.

Next, we will give you the dietary keys and the necessary lifestyle habits so that you learn how to lose weight with hypothyroidism.

Eat foods rich in iodine.

Iodine is one of the essential minerals for the functioning of our body and the thyroid gland in particular. All those minerals that we need to synthesize thyroid hormones are stored in this gland. The lack of iodine among people who suffer from hypothyroidism leads to all the symptoms caused by this disease. If we follow a good diet with adequate amounts of iodine, we can help control much of the body’s metabolism, growth, and development.

These are the foods richest in iodine :

  • Marine vegetables: wakame seaweed, kombu seaweed, etc.
  • Shellfish
  • Clams and mussels.
  • Fresh cod
  • Bluefish: Salmon, albacore, sardines.
  • Blueberries
  • Strawberries.
  • White beans and legumes in general.
  • Yogurt natural.
  • Get out of the Himalayas.
  • Dairy products.
  • Potatoes.

Do not like any of the foods on this list, or for some reason, you cannot introduce them into your diet. You will always have the possibility of consuming an iodine supplement, an effective and fast way to offer your body the minerals it needs.

What you should not eat with hypothyroidism

Just as important as knowing the foods you should eat is knowing which products you shouldn’t eat. There is an element, goitrogens, which, due to their chemical composition, acts as a blocker of iodine absorption, making it difficult for the thyroid to function. The foods that contain more goitrogens and that you should avoid if you want to lose weight with thyroid are:

  • Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, and broccoli.
  • Radishes
  • Celery.
  • Corn.
  • Neighbor.
  • Soy.
  • Peanuts
  • Avocado.
  • Corn.
  • Orange.
  • Cantaloupe.
  • FIG.

How to lose weight with hypothyroidism

Eat five meals a day.

One of the most important things to keep in mind when losing weight with hypothyroidism is to keep your metabolism active through constant intake throughout the day. Often people believe that to lose weight, you have to stop eating, but the truth is that it is the opposite because if we keep our body active by digesting politics, we burn more calories by accelerating the metabolism. Here we leave you with good planning that you can use in your day to day, although you can make small modifications to adapt it to your schedules:

  • Nine h: Breakfast.
  • 11 am Mid-morning.
  • 2.30pm : Lunch.
  • 5.30 pm: Snack.
  • 21h: Price.

Another aspect that you should pay attention to lose weight with hypothyroidism is that you eat dinner at least 2 hours before going to sleep; in this way, you facilitate digestion, and you get to burn more calories before going to bed.

Low-calorie recipes

It would help if you ate hypocaloric dishes low in fat and calories to lose weight. For this, you can follow a series of tips to reduce all those unnecessary fats:

  • Don’t use fried oil.
  • You can use coconut oil as an alternative; in addition, this food stimulates the function of the thyroid gland.
  • No sauces or condiments.
  • Pay attention to the cooking mode; opt for grilled or steamed food, never cold.
  • In the following article, we explain which foods are less fat.

Practice exercise

Exercise is the other pillar on which you must support yourself to achieve your goal of losing weight. It will be useless if you have a good diet if you then have sedentary habits and do not accompany it with the practice of physical exercise.

It is not necessary to spend many hours in the gym; half an hour a day of cardiovascular exercise such as cycling, fast walking, or going for a run is enough. Walking every day has these effects on your body.

Diet to lose weight with hypothyroidism

When hypothyroidism is diagnosed, and you want to lose weight, beyond following the medical treatment the doctor considers, it is necessary to follow a good diet appropriate to your condition. Here we explain some of the critical aspects you should consider when designing your diet to lose weight with hypothyroidism.

Foods rich in iodine

Iodine is an essential element so that the thyroid can generate hormones T4 and T3; that is why it is so important to include it in the diet. In an adult without problems, the average iodine that should be ingested daily is 200 mcg. However, a WHO study warns that about 40% of the planet’s population has deficiencies in this mineral. [1]

Iodine is found in the soil; depending on how rich the earth is in iodine, its vegetables will have more or less quantity. On the other hand, iodine is also found abundantly in seawater, so consuming foods such as shellfish and fish can increase its levels. It is also convenient to monitor seaweed consumption since its iodine levels are so high that they could cause problems.

Minerals and vitamins

Beyond iodine, there are other essential nutrients when the production of T4 and the conversion to T3 is correct. Here we explain which are the most important:

  • Zinc is a mineral found in nuts, wheat germ, red meat, and seafood.
  • Iron: is another mineral; in this case, the easiest way to obtain it is through fish and red meat.
  • Magnesium: we can find it abundantly in seeds, whole grains, and nuts.
  • Vitamin Abeta-carotene is present in green vegetables -such as chard-, red vegetables -such as peppers and tomatoes- and orange vegetables -such as monitor or squash-.
  • Selenium: it is present in dairy, seafood, and whole grains.

Goitrogenic foods

There are plant foods that, due to their composition, can alter the goiter and cause problems in the thyroid gland. The substances that can change this gland are a kind of antinutrients, such as thiocyanate, glucosinolate, and isothiocyanate, making it difficult for iodine to be used and impossible to manufacture thyroid hormones. Among the main goitrogenic foods that we must control in the diet for hypothyroidism, we find:

  • Crucifers include collard greens, cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli, and cabbage.
  • Neighbor.
  • Mustard seeds.
  • Yucca.
  • Carrot.
  • Radish.
  • Spinach.
  • Peanuts
  • Pinions.

However, this does not mean that you should not consume these foods. One way to avoid their bio-biogenic effect is to ferment or cook them since this is the way these substances disappear. The heat kills its harmful effect, so we must always cook them. With nuts, it is best to toast them.

Foods to avoid with hypothyroidism

The foods that you should avoid on a diet to lose weight with hypothyroidism are:

  • Raw salads of radishes, cabbages, or red cabbage.
  • Soup or broth-based on goitrogenic foods, as we commented on before.
  • Soy and soy-based products.

This article is merely informative, at FastlyHeal .com we do not have the power to prescribe medical treatments or make any type of diagnosis. We invite you to see a doctor in the case of presenting any type of condition or discomfort.

If you want to read more articles similar to How to lose weight with hypothyroidism, we recommend that you enter our Endocrine System category .

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