hypothyroidism, metabolism and weight-loss.

[tiay]

oooh, such big words.

I was born July 1986- the Chernobyl disaster took place in April of that year. For once, the Irish health care system did something right and started screening all newborns for hypothyroidism.

Of course, it could just be genetic. But, frankly, the above story is just way cooler, plus none of my relatives have it or even any symptoms of it.

Aaanyway, that's not really what I was getting at; having always taken Eltroxin (150 mg; aka Levothyroxine) my thyroid levels have been good and it hasn't been much of an issue for me, unlike those suffering from undiagnosed thyroid conditions. Presumably my parents ground up the pills and dissolved them in milk when I was a baby.. never really thought about it much.

I was wondering how the fact that I artificially regulate my thyroid hormone levels affects my metabolism, my bmr, etc., and how that ties in with weight loss. Since I didn't have any unusual problems loosing weight as I was worried I would, this was just an anecdotal thought I was toying with.

hower, I just stumbled upon this:

Some experts contend that as little as 30 mg of soy isoflavones will cause trouble by competing with hormones for the same receptor sites on cells. Because of that, they can cause endocrine disruptions. The endocrine system may mistake the isoflavones for a hormone and not send out signals that the hormone needs to be produced [...]

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and furthermore:

Soy isoflavones can also wreak havoc on the thyroid by causing anti-thyroid antibodies to be produced. This would create a situation in which the thyroid would attack itself just as in autoimmune thyroiditis.

holy shit! that sounds scary. Of course, all this is disputable... still, I thought it was worth a mention, seeing as thyroid issues affect a lot of people.

 

[theleip]

Some experts contend that as little as 30 mg of soy isoflavones will cause trouble by competing with hormones for the same receptor sites on cells. Because of that, they can cause endocrine disruptions. The endocrine system may mistake the isoflavones for a hormone and not send out signals that the hormone needs to be produced

Soy isoflavones can also wreak havoc on the thyroid by causing anti-thyroid antibodies to be produced. This would create a situation in which the thyroid would attack itself just as in autoimmune thyroiditis.

Soy isoflavones has been shown to disrupt thyroid function but ONLY when iodine properties in the body are low. In general lack of iodine is going to be much worse than the presence of Soy isoflavones. This is very common in women who get so obsessed with not being bloated and water gain that they try to cut out sodium and iodine and end up putting their electrolytes into a tailspin. This also lowers body temperature and disrupts thyroid function, again much worse that Soy isoflavone.

Soy isoflavons are a class of phytoestrogens, meaning they are a plant source of estrogen like activity in the body. Depending on everything from your culture to what kind of enzymes you produce or bacteria effects how you are going to react to this. It is studied that the problem for the western culture lies more in enzyme activity more than anything else as eastern culture consumes upwards to 70mg on average a day an meet with no problems with regulating the extra hormones.

Here is where the real problem lies and how easy it is to avoid having any negative outcomes of soy affecting your life. Soy is becoming a highly used in mass producing. Its cheap, its easy to add into products and the average american thinks its healthy. Soy is the new trans fat. It is being produced in the wrong manner, and we are all going to be the worser for it. In most cases nothing more than unhappy tummy's but for some it can lead to more serious problems. The fix?

Stick to a diet of 1 ingredient foods. Want a Smoked chicken and mozzarella sub with tomato and basil? Great have it, just buy the tomato, mozzarella, chicken and basil on your own. 85% of your food should be just 1 ingredients, should be that one item. If not you should know exactly what they are, for example here is a multi ingredient item you can go for...

Organic Pure Bar-Choc Brownie-
Ingredients
Organic Dates, Organic Walnuts, Organic Agave Nectar, Organic Almonds, Organic Cashews, Organic Brown Rice Protein, Organic Cocoa.

That is multi ingredient at its best.

 

[tiay]

thanks for the in-depth reply, Leigh P.

I guess since my levels are already likely to be a bit wonky, it'd be best if I didn't have soy on a daily basis.

damn, wasn't soy supposed to be our saviour or something? I am always sceptical of these things, though. Don't a lot of people have soy allergies?

I was once talking with someone and mentioned having an under active thyroid, and he said oh my sister has that, she's on a special diet. And i'm like.. what? diet? huh? So I asked my doctor and he said there was no particular diet for it. I think it may have to do with goitrogenic foods, however once cooked the effect is so minimal it's not worth mentioning.

I've heard the 1 ingredient thing before, but I don't understand it at all.
Say I hypothetically have breakfast consisting of; yogurt, made of milk (as a side note, I can't find a good nonfat yogurt without pectin in it), cereal made of only whole grain wheat (again, haven't found this in the states), raspberries, and some 100% whey protein powder.

say I blend it all together. It's obviously not just one ingredient. But it's still good, right? does it count towards the 85% of 1 ingredient foods? Or do you actually sit down to a cup of chopped tomatoes for dinner, or have ONLY oats without milk or anything for breakfast? This is how I would interpret it when you say "85% of what you eat should only be ONE ingredient, just that one item". If you're having oats with milk, it isn't one ingredient and it isn't one item anymore!

The Chicken/tomato/mozarella/basil sub isn't 1 ingredient. And how come you buy the stuff extra? Are the tomatoes at Subway somehow laced with preservatives?

Is the 100% wholewheat cereal automatically better than a cereal containing, say, whole wheat, oats, millet, buckwheat, flax, almonds, pumpkin seeds and raisins?

I guess this is similar to the cookie ingredients you mentioned, which you did call a multi-ingredient food. I find it hard to imagine anybody eating only 1 ingredient for a meal without somehow having to mix at least two together! am I taking this too literally or something?

really, shouldn't the rule be called "avoid those long lists of ingredients on products, that you don't even know what they are"?

 

[theleip]

damn, wasn't soy supposed to be our saviour or something? I am always sceptical of these things, though. Don't a lot of people have soy allergies?

Well just like most things in our culture little is what it seems. Changes are if they have to say something is good for you, it isn't. And yes a lot of people, especially Americans have soy allergies or intolerances.

I was once talking with someone and mentioned having an under active thyroid, and he said oh my sister has that, she's on a special diet. And i'm like.. what? diet? huh? So I asked my doctor and he said there was no particular diet for it. I think it may have to do with goitrogenic foods, however once cooked the effect is so minimal it's not worth mentioning.

If you are having a problem with decreased thyroid function there are foods you can eat to help with that. One of the best things you can do though is increase your protein intake, especially protein high in essential fatty acids like salmon, best of both worlds.

I've heard the 1 ingredient thing before, but I don't understand it at all.
Say I hypothetically have breakfast consisting of; yogurt, made of milk (as a side note, I can't find a good nonfat yogurt without pectin in it), cereal made of only whole grain wheat (again, haven't found this in the states), raspberries, and some 100% whey protein powder.

say I blend it all together. It's obviously not just one ingredient. But it's still good, right? does it count towards the 85% of 1 ingredient foods? Or do you actually sit down to a cup of chopped tomatoes for dinner, or have ONLY oats without milk or anything for breakfast? This is how I would interpret it when you say "85% of what you eat should only be ONE ingredient, just that one item". If you're having oats with milk, it isn't one ingredient and it isn't one item anymore!

Ha I think you are misunderstanding. You can COMBINE ingredients to make a meal. Here is a great example...

You can go to the store and buy a can of chicken soup with veggies that list out the ingredients like this...

Progresso Chicken and Veggies-Chicken broth, carrots, chicken meat, potatoes, modified food starch, hydrogenated vegetable protein, soy, carrot puree, autolyzed yeast extract, natural flavor, sodium phosphate, soy protein isolate, calcium chloride, soy lectin.

Homemade soup-Chicken Broth, Carrots, Chicken, Onion, potato's, spices

That is combing 1 ingredient items to make a meal. Make sense. It doesn't have to be so literal.

I guess this is similar to the cookie ingredients you mentioned, which you did call a multi-ingredient food. I find it hard to imagine anybody eating only 1 ingredient for a meal without somehow having to mix at least two together! am I taking this too literally or something?[/QUOTE] Ha yes a little bit. Refer to above.

really, shouldn't the rule be called "avoid those long lists of ingredients on products, that you don't even know what they are"?[/QUOTE]
This is correct, I live by the if you can't spell it, say it or tell me where it grows from then you shouldn't be eating it.

 

[tiay]

Well just like most things in our culture little is what it seems. Changes are if they have to say something is good for you, it isn't. And yes a lot of people, especially Americans have soy allergies or intolerances.

yeah, it's become more commercialised, I get the feeling. And they keep changing their minds, too. Eggs are bad! No wait, they're good! I figure if it's something that people have been eating for a million years, it's probably ok. There's something to be said for genetics too.

why particularly Americans? I mean they're really European by origin- i'm genetically German.

If you are having a problem with decreased thyroid function there are foods you can eat to help with that. One of the best things you can do though is increase your protein intake, especially protein high in essential fatty acids like salmon, best of both worlds.

hm, thanks for the advice

it's always the protein isn't it? Maybe I really should get some kind of protein supplement on top of my regular diet. I have protein bars sometimes.. but they have too many complicated ingredients, and it says something like frequent consumption may have a laxative effect. ... heh, wouldn't mind a laxative effect at the moment- still whatever causes that can't be good on a regular basis. How about whey or egg protein powder, plus of course fish/chicken/etc? I keep hearing conflicting stuff about which protein is best... which makes me think there isn't a best.

Try as I might I am a student and I am not made out of money.. meat is expensive. I promise I'll try to like salmon.. again. It hasn't worked so far. Maybe i'm just addicted to the mercury in tuna?

Ha I think you are misunderstanding. You can COMBINE ingredients to make a meal. Here is a great example...

You can go to the store and buy a can of chicken soup with veggies that list out the ingredients like this...

Progresso Chicken and Veggies-Chicken broth, carrots, chicken meat, potatoes, modified food starch, hydrogenated vegetable protein, soy, carrot puree, autolyzed yeast extract, natural flavor, sodium phosphate, soy protein isolate, calcium chloride, soy lectin.

Homemade soup-Chicken Broth, Carrots, Chicken, Onion, potato's, spices

That is combing 1 ingredient items to make a meal. Make sense. It doesn't have to be so literal.

so, you're saying the homemade soup is better, right?

Ok I see what you mean!

but still, who called it the '1 ingredient' rule? Neither of those is made of one ingredient, the one ingredient rule does not help you tell which is better, unless you're simply going on which has *less* ingredients, but that doesn't guarantee that it's better in all cases.

And how can you take that not literally? If you say, "knock yourself out!" and I proceed to actually render myself unconscious, that's taking a symbolic meaning too literally. However, if you say, "if you want to be stylish, you must obey the 1 color rule- all clothes in one outfit have to be of only one color." so, you'd assume that wearing more than 1 color therefore violates the rule, and isn't just taking the rule less literally, it's either 1 or it's not, I don't see any flexibility. It's like saying "85% of your food should be just that one item- but you can combine them!" um.. oo-kay, that'd make it not be one item then.

DISCLAIMER: I realise i'm totally nitpicking and raving btw, please disregard completely, i'm in a silly mood tonight, I really hope you don't take any offence. Maybe I should join the debate group at college to talk about things that actually matter, since we agree on the meaning of it anyways

This is correct, I live by the if you can't spell it, say it or tell me where it grows from then you shouldn't be eating it.

Amen to that.
On that note, I have to say that the kashi frozen chicken meal thing I stole from my boyfriend recently was really tasty, the ingredients were pretty simple. Did have a bit much salt though but not too bad.