Is your thyroid preventing you losing weight?

So I often see clients who are struggling with their weight and despite being on a restrictive diet, they just can’t shift those pounds. Well, the likelihood is that there may a reason or an imbalance in the body that is preventing the weight from dropping off.

One symptom of hypothyroidism is difficultly losing weight, despite a decreasing appetite.

Thyroid hormones are vital in the body and every cell relies on them to regulate their metabolism. Hashimoto’s thyroiditis is an autoimmune disease that causes the antibodies to bind to the thyroid, preventing them making thyroid hormones. It is usually characterised by goiter and as the thyroid gland is enlarged, it makes it difficult to produce thyroid hormones.

Symptoms of an underactive thyroid

This list is by no means conclusive, but below are some of the common symptoms:

• Difficultly losing weight, despite decreasing appetite.
• Fatigue and sleepiness.
• Low mood or depression.
• Infertility and increased risk of miscarriage.
• Irregular period.
• Pale complexion, dry skin and hair.
• Hair loss.

Thyroid problems are more common after pregnancy and childbirth.

The thyroid gland requires a host of supportive nutrients to function effectively, so restrictive diets can compound the problem.

Top five ways to support your thyroid

1. Remove gluten - celiac disease and hypothyroidism both share common immunopathogenic mechanisms. This suggests that restricting gluten in patients with hypothyroidism could reduce their symptoms.

2. Vitamin D - check your levels. Try to get out in the sunshine or through the winter months, try supplements.

3. Check your iodine levels - the thyroid gland adds iodine to tyrosine to create T3 and T4, so if you are low in this, the conversion can be difficult.

4. Excessive intake of goitrogens - foods that block the utilisation of iodine. Goitrogens are mainly found in the brassica family, such as soybeans and peanuts. Typically, cooking would inactivate the level of goitrogens so avoid eating them in their raw state.

5. Environmental goitrogens - including mercury, fluoride and perchlorate, will also block iodine uptake. If you have low thyroid, look at removing these from your diet.