What is the best diet for hypothyroidism in a 25-year-old?

Question

Hello doctor,

I am a 25-year-old female.I have been hypothyroid for the last five years and taking regular medication of 50 mcg. But last month, since I was observing symptoms of weight gain and irregular cycles, I switched to 75 mcg thyronorm with the doctor's advice only. But I am concerned about my diet. I work out regularly, but I am confused about what I should eat before and after workout. I went to the gym 2 years back, lost a lot of weight, and was in perfect shape, but for some reason, I had to quit the gym, and again I gained weight. I also workout at home. Please suggest a workout meal for my underactive thyroid.

Answer 1

Hello,

Welcome to icliniq.com,

I read your query and can understand your concern.

The thyroid hormone increases body metabolism; hence its low secretion (hypothyroidism) causes weight gain and other symptoms like intolerance to colds, irregular cycles, and fatigue.

1. Along with diet control, you need moderate-intensity exercise for at least 30 minutes daily. You can easily monitor your heart rate with a pulse oximeter.

2. Calculate your heart rate maximum by a simple formula, i.e., 220-your age, which is 195 beats/min. You should target exercise such that your heart rate should be around 100 beats per minute.

3. If you cannot do 30 minutes of continuous exercise, try to do 10 minutes thrice a day. If you can do 15 minutes of resistance training, that will give you better results.

4.As for diet, avoid simple carbohydrates like sugar, soft drinks, etc. Try to burn around 1000 Calories per day. 500 calories through exercise and 500 calories by modifying diet.

You can easily get the calorific and nutritional value of any food on the internet.

You need to burn calories. Research has yet to prove much about calorie consumption in relation to eating before or after exercise. However, some research indicates that early morning fasting exercise could burn more fat. Still, exercising any time of day you feel comfortable and eating a good quantity of salad and fruit to satisfy your hunger is recommended.

I hope this helps.

Thank you and take care.