Hypothyroid diet

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  • So I am hypothyroid due to thyroid cancer two years ago, and I was doing some poking around and i came across a few websites that said that when you're hypo, you should eat five 300-calorie meals a day, spaced 3 hours apart. Has anyone else heard of this?

    http://ezinearticles.com/?The-Ideal-...dism&id=284849

    http://www.lowthyroidhelp.com/hypothyroid_diet.html
  • No, but in general you should be eating at least 2 snacks and 3 meals and space your calories out.
    I am hypothyroid and all I ever read on that kind of diet is to keep it low carb...yep low carb does not work for me. I would never stick to it. So I just count calories...
  • I don't think they're saying to be low-carb, but to avoid starches. Starches and carbohydrates are two different things.... apples have carbs in them, for example.
  • I'm also hypo and I found at a younger age (before I knew I was hypo) that a good way to keep the metabolism going is to eat many small meals throughout the day.

    Eating six 300-calorie meals in a day is an 1800-calorie diet (what I use). You would need more meals for the normal 2000-calorie diet that is recommended for the average-sized person. Of course, athletes need more calories and sedentary people need less. You should never go below 1200 calories per day, otherwise your metabolism shuts down and goes into "fat-saving" mode because it thinks it is starving, which causes you to gain weight.

    The more often you eat, the faster your metabolism is. When your thyroid is under-active, your metabolism slows down, so eating this way will keep your body constantly going and your "engine revved".

    Hope that helps
  • I have had hypothroidism for 27 years..... I do eat every 3 hours
    BUT I LIFT WEIGHTS AND cardio!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! always

    I won the over 50 figure bb contest !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    soooo IT CAN BE Done... I remember my doc in Pgh 27 yrs ago ... telling me
    (i was always thin and I gained weight))

    " you will have to work harder and exercise... remember that" thus I began my exercise program !!!!!! AND I HAVE NOT STOPPED !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
  • Nothing has helped me, as far as spacing out meals, or eating less carbs, or eating way less calories. I've been trying since 2007 to lose weight and I haven't really been able to.
    I got down to 130 once in 2006 while I was hypothyroid but wasn't treated yet (and didn't know). My health went downhill during this time and I was literally eating like 900 calories a day or less to maintain that. A hard-boiled egg here.. then a few nuts for a snack. It was bad. Then I got diagnosed and got on meds. My weight went back up though and now I am 157, my highest EVER.

    I am starting again weighing my food and using the GoWear Fit. Then, we will see if I lose anything. I am not going to mess around with specific types of meals or anything. I will just try to eat healthier whole foods and that is it.
  • If your thyroid meds are not optimized it doesn't matter what diet you are on you could have problems losing weight.
  • The only time I had success losing weight, since my thyroid was destroyed, was ATKINS - which was very successful. I was SO happy something worked becasue low cal sure didn't. ATKINS really, really, defines CARBS- none of the "good carb" "bad carb" stuff - you'll know what a carb is if you read the book and you will lose weight if you stay under his recommended daily carb intake. The book opened my eyes on hypothyroidism and losing weight and WHY low cal doesn't work with us. I highly recommend it - even if there are now some many other "newer" diets and hype.
  • I'll give it a shot, and I'm going to actually read the book. I've been skeptical of it, but what do I have to lose?
  • What has helped me actually budge the scale is follwing the low glycemic index diet. It's more of a committment to a lifestyle change. There is a book out there called the thyroid diet - it essentially talks about 3 different types of diets that depending on your body make up you should be following. One is a low carbs (low GI for me), the other is calorie counting and I don't recall the third. I know that for me the wrong carbs hurt me .. but I also have insulin resistance. Echoing iamfirmin is to stick to a solid schedule for exercising. Swimming and yoga are my saving graces - swimming is great for anyone with joint troubles and yoga is great for strenthing the core - i've heard its great for the thyroid gland as a lot of the stretches massage the thyroid. Probably one of the reasons you were told to do mini meals at 300 cals is that it keeps your bloodsugar regulated. If you are constantly raising and crashing your bloodsugar it essentially makes your body tired and can hurt in weight loss - and it totals up to 1500 calories making it also a low calorie friendly way of eating.
  • i actually don't have a thyroid so yoga won't do it any good! lol. i do like yoga, i just need to find an affordable place to do it, and time to. I usually work 11-7, which isn't bad but i just gotta get up off my my butt and do it in the morning.
  • lol - sorry about that sunflower! You did in fact mention that you had it removed!!
  • It's ok, I was half-joking, and am definitely wanting to do yoga. there's a studio in my town that has unlimited monthly yoga for $70, and they have classes 7 days a week but I need to figure out how sweaty I'll get because the earliest their classes are is 9am, and I generally work at 11 every morning. I want to check it out first and there's another studio by my house but I don't know how much it costs.

    I did pick up The Thyroid Diet, and it's pretty much saying what I know (like the introduction and meds and vitamins), and i can't wait to get into the food stuff.
  • My thyroid levels are a smidge higher than my doctor is willing to medicate.

    I do find that I lose best when I eat small, frequent meals and control my carbs. I don't have to go Atkins induction-low to lose, but starchy and sugary foods I have to watch, even the "healthy ones." Even too much fruit can slow my weight loss down more than can just be accounted for by the calories.

    I also retain a lot more fluid when I eat too many carbs. If I'm eating too many carbs, I get pitting edema (where you can leave finger prints in your flesh that stay for a few seconds). That can be a sign of severe health problems, but I've had all the tests to find underlying causes, and they all checked out fine. My doctor was even a little surprised that my heart tests came back without any problems.
  • That's pretty much exactly what I've been reading in The Thyroid diet, kaplods. Nice to know a person in real life can vouch for it!

    i LOVE carbs. I love them. It's going to suck to have to eat less.