If you’ve got an underactive thyroid, you know that constant fatigue and weight gain are your constant companions, or least something you worry about.
- You feel drained of energy and life, unable to do the activities you once loved.
- You may be too overweight to the activities you once enjoyed, too, or you’re just too tired to get out and do them.
Can an underactive thyroid diet help you regain the energy and lose the weight, so that you can get back to living?
The answer is pretty complicated, because an underactive thyroid diet can never actually “cure” you of hypothyroidism.
If you follow a well balanced diet and have proper nutrition, including nutrients that can increase your energy and help you lose weight, you can absolutely take back at least some control.
When you feel better, you can also be more active, and when you exercise more, you can say goodbye to exhaustion and start feeling even better.
Your ultimate objective should be to do 45 minutes to an hour of physical activity and exercise a day, and you don’t have to exceed your abilities to it.
Simply start slow, such as taking a walk every day, and then do more as you feel like it.
The underactive thyroid diet isn’t difficult to follow, either. Really, it’s just a healthy diet that you put together yourself; it’s comprised of fresh fruits and vegetables, new proteins like skinless chicken or ground turkey, and some healthy fats such as olive oil. You should also include some low-fat dairy.
An Active Fiber supplement can complete your diet and help you retain good health, as can soy protein drinks.
Carbohydrates should be used sparingly in an underactive thyroid diet, with most of them coming from fruits and vegetables.
- Leafy green vegetables such as spinach are a good carbohydrate source.
- Whole grains, too, should be included, things like brown rice and oatmeal.
Don’t make even complex carbohydrates a mainstay of your diet, though. Instead, eat them moderately; extra fiber is important especially if you suffer from constipation due to your hypothyroidism.
If you are a vegetarian, not to worry.
You can also construct your own underactive thyroid diet, but you need to make sure you get enough protein. You can get protein from nut butters like peanut butter, and from nuts themselves.
Meat replacement products can help as well, and you should certainly get vegetables, which also contain protein.
Soy protein is an especially good choice, because it contains the 20 essential amino acids; a good naturally based protein drink can give you the daily-recommended amounts of what you need.
If you’re following an underactive thyroid diet, you should avoid foods that have a lot of preservatives; although these are good for the “shelflife” of certain foods, your body doesn’t like them at all.
Most of these highly preserved foods have lots of chemicals in them, like synthetic colors and flavors, so natural alternatives are better.
An underactive thyroid diet isn’t really special — it’s just a healthy, well-balanced meal plan that delivers the balanced nutrition you need for health, energy, and well being.
