The standard treatment for hypothyroidism is taking daily thyroid hormone replacement medication. Of course, medications often come with side effects, and forgetting to take a pill might lead to more symptoms.
In some cases, natural remedies may cause fewer side effects and fit into your overall lifestyle better.
Natural remedies
The goal of natural remedies or alternative medicine is to fix the root cause of the thyroid problem. Thyroid problems sometimes start as the result of:
poor diet
stress
missing nutrients in your body
Changing your diet and taking an herbal supplement are two ways you can help your thyroid condition. These options may have fewer side effects than taking thyroid medication.
Also, taking an herbal supplement to help address a low or underactive thyroid may be helpful for people who aren’t responding well to medications.
Consider the following five natural remedies as additions or alternatives to your treatment plan.
Selenium
According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), selenium is a trace element that plays a part in thyroid hormone metabolism.
Many foods contain selenium, including:
tuna
turkey
Brazil nuts
grass-fed beef
Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, an immune system attack on the thyroid, often reduces the body’s selenium supply. Supplementing this trace element has shown to help balance thyroxine, or T4, levels in some people.
It’s important to talk with your doctor about how much selenium may be right for you since every person is different.
Sugar-free diet
Sugar and processed foods can lead to increased inflammation in the body.
Inflammation can slow down the conversion of T4 to triiodothyronine, or T3, another thyroid hormone. This can make your symptoms and thyroid disease worsen.
Also, sugar only boosts your energy level in the short term, eliminating it from your diet may help regulate your energy levels. Additionally, removing sugar from your diet may help your stress levels and skin.
It’s not easy to adopt a sugar-free diet, but the benefit to your thyroid health may be worth it.
Vitamin B
Taking certain vitamin supplements can have an effect on your thyroid health.
Low thyroid hormones can affect your body’s vitamin B-12 levels. Taking a vitamin B-12 supplement may help you repair some of the damage hypothyroidism caused.
Vitamin B-12 can help with the tiredness thyroid disease can cause. The disease also affects your vitamin B-1 levels. You can add more B vitamins to your diet with the following foods:
peas and beans
asparagus
sesame seeds
tuna
cheese
milk
eggs
Vitamin B-12 is generally safe for most healthy individuals at recommended levels. Talk with your doctor about how much vitamin B-12 may be right for you.
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