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#23 Thyroid and diet - is your thyroid contributing to weight gain
31 Plays1 month ago
The Bean Talk – Episode 23: Thyroid and diet - is your thyroid contributing to weight gain?
In this episode, Riannon and Jeremy unpack the often-overlooked role of thyroid health in energy, mood, metabolism, and fertility. If you're constantly tired, gaining weight, feeling foggy, or struggling with your cycle or postpartum recovery, your thyroid might be part of the picture even if your GP says it’s “normal.”
They explain the difference between hyper and hypothyroidism, why standard tests often miss key issues, and the essential nutrients that support a healthy thyroid, including iodine, selenium and iron. Riannon also shares her own recent thyroid discovery and how she’s supporting her health naturally.
Connect with Riannon and Jeremy on Instagram @mungbean_health or visit mungbeanhealth.com for expert support.
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Transcript
Introduction: Meet the Hosts
00:00:00
Speaker
Welcome to The Bean Talk with me, Rhiannon, your fertility fairy godmother, joined by my trusted partner in life and in the mission of Mungbean Health, Jeremy.
Balancing Family and Routine
00:00:10
Speaker
Here at Mungbean Health, we're on a mission to unlock the secrets of fertility and natural wellbeing one episode at a time.
00:00:17
Speaker
Hello and welcome to another episode of The Bean Talk with Rhiannon and Jeremy. Welcome back guys. So nice to have you. were trying to brainstorm our little bean and big bean. yeah and not a lot's been going on over here except for work and not much play to be honest with you.
00:00:35
Speaker
so going to be a bit boring for you this week, but I definitely say little bean would be just like holding routine, which is probably a big bean to be honest, because it's hard sometimes. A little bit more routine. Jeremy mentioned in our brainstorming that The kids have been going to bed a bit earlier and a bit more of a routine, which has been good.
00:00:55
Speaker
So that's a good little bit. It gives us a little bit of time to re relax. I think as well, there's always that shift when you have children of like when they're growing up. So Evie doesn't have a day nap. It'd only be if she was like unwell or something.
00:01:08
Speaker
Tatey doesn't need a day nap. Gosh, sometimes he's really overtired by the evening so he could do with it, but then if he goes to sleep, he'll be up all night. Yeah. so For the last couple of months, it's been quite annoying where it's okay. He needs a nap. Otherwise, he's screaming by 5 p.m. and just unhappy.
00:01:24
Speaker
if he has a nap, he's up till 11 o'clock at night.
Health Checks and Thyroid Discoveries
00:01:27
Speaker
Picky battles. Seriously. so we now i feel like he's just like shifted into the next sort of phase. I thought it goes quick.
00:01:37
Speaker
Wouldn't mind a nap in the day, though. I know. Seriously, how could it be day nap? Gosh. Kids, honestly. don't know what they've got. They don't know what they've got.
00:01:49
Speaker
So, yeah, definitely I'd say routine. That's, yeah, that pretty much sums up our big bean, little bean. More routine in the little places and the big places. I'm trying to get up, like, earlier, just to have that more time in the morning.
00:02:00
Speaker
Yeah, definitely getting up a little bit earlier. I don't know if we've mentioned it before, but Jeremy's definitely not a a morning owl. He's a night owl. Oh, wait, a morning person? A night owl. He's a night owl. But yeah, even I've been feeling quite tired lately.
00:02:13
Speaker
to let you know, though, like we have a very full schedule. So it's not like we're just doing nothing. we do, you know, we do pack it quite full in our schedule.
00:02:26
Speaker
So it makes sense as to why we're a little bit more tired. And I'm noticing that as of probably the last couple of months, and obviously I'm still breastfeeding and like Romy's still up in the night sometimes all the time. But if he's like teething, he'll be up more or he has a sniffle or something and he's teething at the moment. So I am feeling it. However, this did lead me to obviously ask the questions of, What's going on? What's low? Is my iron low? am My B12 low? Is it my thyroid? I've done a little bit more investigating. Iron's definitely improved, but my thyroid is.
00:02:59
Speaker
ah My thyroid's actually functioning okay. it's I'm low in iodine. So I did a urine test to check my iodine levels because obviously iodine's very important for thyroid function. And your girl's iodine's low.
00:03:12
Speaker
So that would definitely be impacting that thyroid. It's not functioning at its full capacity. I think the thyroid is such an important thing to discuss. And I feel like in our clinic, obviously we deal with a lot of fertility cases and mums and anyone can really do with some thyroid support, ah but definitely looking into it first.
Understanding Thyroid Function
00:03:32
Speaker
So doing the testing.
00:03:33
Speaker
So the thyroid is actually a small butterfly shaped gland that sits in the neck and plays a crucial role in your overall health. The gland actually secretes hormones.
00:03:46
Speaker
such as thyroid stimulating hormone or TSH, as you might've heard, T4, and also T3, you may have heard. So thyroid hormones affect virtually every cell in the body from protein synthesis to enzyme activity, to playing a critical role in the determination of energy expenditure. that's why obviously it definitely links in with my energy.
00:04:10
Speaker
An overactive thyroid, which means it would produce too much or excess T3, T4 or both, results in hyperthyroidism, which is hyper, faster. This can sort of play or manifest in the body, should I say, as frequent but bowel movements that are usually quite loose and weight loss.
00:04:30
Speaker
An underactive thyroid, which is more common and more of what we definitely see in clinic, is hypothyroidism. which you would have heard about before, probably hypothyroidism rather than hyper.
00:04:45
Speaker
Hypo is the slow one. And that's associated with the symptoms of constipation and unexplained weight gain. See how one's going one way and one's going the other way. Think of it like a dial in the body.
00:04:57
Speaker
It's going either up where it's overactive and everything's moving too fast, anxious, losing weight, bowels moving too fast or slowed right down.
00:05:07
Speaker
which is hypothyroidism or underactive. It's not working as well. And that's associated with that real slow bowel constipation, really slow metabolism, weight gain, slow liver.
00:05:18
Speaker
Usually we get a buildup of crap essentially in the body. We're not detoxing as well. And yeah, it's neither are a good time. So you really want the thyroid to be functioning um balance balance.
00:05:29
Speaker
And we do see it in men as well as women, but it is a lot more common in women. But then I also think like it's usually women. who are going and looking after their health. So we see it a lot more. yeah But also obviously, yeah, different hormone structure and everything as well.
00:05:44
Speaker
So metabolism and energy. When the thyroid levels are balanced, the metabolism runs smoothly, keeping the energy level stable and steady. And underactive or overactive thyroid can lead to the weight changes and fatigue.
00:05:57
Speaker
So from cardiovascular health perspective, your thyroid actually affects your heart health. blood pressure and cholesterol levels. This is why often with clients that have thyroid issues, they will have heart palpitations.
00:06:10
Speaker
Also with mood and mental health, changes in thyroid levels can contribute to fluctuations in mood, depression, anxiety, brain fog and memory issues. Reproductive and hormone health that definitely is linked in there because low or excess thyroid hormones interfere with the release of hormones from the hypothalamus and pituitary gland affecting reproductive
Comprehensive Thyroid Testing
00:06:34
Speaker
health.
00:06:34
Speaker
So it definitely does play a major role in that fertility. And that's not to mention even thyroid antibodies. And we do see issues with thyroid antibodies ah that can often be a cause of reoccurring miscarriage.
00:06:47
Speaker
Also, thyroid antibodies is something that we like to check with our clients postpartum as well, because often the thyroid can be a bit funny postpartum. It's almost like it's been busy. It's been, it's grown this baby, helped fall pregnant, grew the baby, then postpartum breastfeeding as well. But it's just, oh my God, okay, now I can relax. And then it can just be a little bit weird.
00:07:07
Speaker
which yeah, we do see. So that's why we like to check the thyroid antibodies. Thyroid issues can be huge postpartum and obviously contribute to low energy and all the things and can just be brushed off as postpartum. But yeah, something we like to check in. Supporting your thyroid through diet. So there's some beautiful ways that we can actually do that.
00:07:27
Speaker
Thyroid is very dependent on nutrients like iodine, selenium, zinc, iron as well. And so many people are iron deficient. Vitamin A and tyrosine to function um effectively, we need all of those.
00:07:41
Speaker
Now don't self-prescribe. Definitely you can get more in through diet, but definitely don't self-prescribe with supplements unless your practitioner has told you or you've actually had testing done, especially for things like iodine.
Nutritional Support for Thyroid Health
00:07:53
Speaker
Iodine is actually required for the production of T4 and T3. hormones so we can get that through seaweed this is actually one of the richest sources of iodine and we actually like the chips don't we and sushi and sushi the kids don't really eat the sushi that's wrapped in the seaweed though but they like the seaweed chips that you can buy like the sheets yeah yeah we get just an organic one put it into evie's lunchbox and tatie likes them they're a good time fish and seafood cod tuna oysters are all really rich
00:08:27
Speaker
You'd be pretty good with your iodine, I reckon. Jeremy loves his oysters and sushi. Eggs, particularly the yolk, is really rich sauce, which we have most mornings as well. Look at you go, ticking it all off.
00:08:41
Speaker
Cranberries, interesting enough. Prunes as well. Dulse flakes, which are a seaweed. Pretty sure they're seaweed. not like ah I guess kelp is a seaweed as well.
00:08:53
Speaker
Yeah, they're little flakes that you can put on your food. We do recommend them to clients. We've also got a salt downstairs that's got that in there. Selenium, so this aids in the conversion of the T4 to the T3 hormone and protects the thyroid from oxidative stress.
00:09:10
Speaker
So foods that are rich in selenium include Brazil nuts. This also comes down to the soil and how rich it is. So sometimes we can do all the things with diet, but if we're not eating really good quality and it's not coming from a good place or a good source,
00:09:24
Speaker
then yeah it won't be the best but brazil nuts are a good one sunflower seeds and smashing um you have actually you've been having a lot of sunflowers yeah your thyroid would be just loving you right now and seafood tuna sardines prawns salmon eggs particularly the yogurt as well meat and poultry so beef chicken lamb and turkey organ meats like liver Cottage cheese is a good one. And also mushrooms, shiitake and button to be.
00:09:56
Speaker
So how the thyroid works, just so you've got a bit of an idea. So the thyroid sits in your neck here and it talks to your brain and your brain tells it to make hormones. And that's exactly what it does. So the TSH or your thyroid stimulating hormone is purely the thyroid being stimulated to create the hormone.
00:10:13
Speaker
So it's not actually a thyroid hormone. It's a pituitary hormone, pituitary gland talking to your thyroid, telling it to do a job. So when they just test your TSH, very frustrating because it doesn't tell us the whole picture. It just tells us is your brain talking to the thyroid. Yeah, it doesn't tell us if the thyroid's listening because to test that we need to test our T4 and then we actually need it.
00:10:36
Speaker
but Then cool. Okay, we test T4. Amazing. It tells us that the thyroid's working. Do we even know if we're then converting enough into T3 to work on the active tissues? Oh, wow. So we need to test the full thyroid picture. That's why it's so frustrating when they go, oh, TSH is looking great.
00:10:51
Speaker
it's ah But we can't see, yeah, is the thyroid being produced by the sorry is the hormone being produced by the thyroid? And is it even being activated to work on the tissues? Yeah, and if it's not, yeah, it could have great communication and not actually producing what it needs.
00:11:05
Speaker
I've worked for a major thyroid clinic before, and I reckon 85% to 90% of my clients there had a totally fine TSH, but an issue with the T4 or the Right.
00:11:17
Speaker
And they also, the reference ranges, don't get me started, honestly. TSH is huge. They are happy for you to be anywhere between 0.4 and 4.0. four point zero Whereas for us, I definitely want you to be like 0.4, it's the same starting place, to 1.5 to 2 max. So in there, I'm looking, I'm going, okay, suboptimal, but between 1.5 to 2. happy to go to 4.
00:11:41
Speaker
Right, and that's why you could be feeling crap. Yes, so you go into the doctor, you go, I'm tired, I'm constipated, I'm moody, I've got brain fog, my hair's falling out, and they'll go, oh, it sounds like thyroid, let's test your thyroid. And then they look at the range and they're like, oh, you're within range, you're fine, it's not that. they test just the TSH and then you come back in, yeah, oh, look, we've got your thyroid, oh, you're 3.9, you're still within range even though the range ends at 4. 3.9, oh, you're all good, see you later, and you walk out of there feeling like absolute crap.
00:12:10
Speaker
Because you're like, okay, cool. What do I do now? Whereas for us, we're obviously looking at the optimal range. In the optimal range, you're not going to be getting any of those side effects like say it's underactive, like constipation, moody, hair falling out, weight gain, those sort of
Production and Testing of Thyroid Hormones
00:12:26
Speaker
things. Or if it's overactive, you're not going to be anxious. You're not going to be pooping all day, every day. You're going to have all these gut issues and be losing weight uncontrollably.
00:12:35
Speaker
So yeah it's definitely something that we look more into. Zinc is needed for regulation of thyroid hormone production as well as immune health and important for overall thyroid health as well.
00:12:47
Speaker
Things like oysters, you're good mate, you're good. Red meats, lamb, beef, shellfish, crabs, lobster, yum. That's a good excuse to go and have some crab and lobster. You need more zinc.
00:13:00
Speaker
I have actually told a couple of clients before to have more Shellfish, and I remember one of them sent me a photo of her beautiful, like, seafood platter. i was like, yeah, she's a naturopath, made me. I love seafood platter. Same.
00:13:11
Speaker
Oh, gosh, it's crazy that some lots of people don't like crustaceans and seafood. Yeah, lots people don't like seafood at all. Yeah, at least once a year. Save up for a seafood platter and it's healthy. yeah It's iodine. You need it. Just not if you're allergic, please.
00:13:26
Speaker
Legumes, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, dairy, which just be mindful of that good quality and not overdoing it. and eggs as well. Iron, very important for the thyroid. Again, why that postpartum picture women can struggle because you've just had a baby you've bled, maybe you've been bleeding for six weeks postpartum and you've lost a lot of blood in delivery and your iron was already low because you didn't lift it prior in preconception.
00:13:51
Speaker
now it's even lower and now your thyroid suffering as well yeah a bit of a cascade so healthy iron levels are essential for thyroid health iron deficiency impairs thyroid hormone production so heme iron sources are red meats like beef and lamb which you also want to slow cook so it helps to essentially break down the bonds to help you absorb the iron better is the easiest way like i can explain it because you're only chewing on it and just breaking it down and then it's happening in your digestion until you pass it.
00:14:22
Speaker
If you slow cook it for eight to 10 hours in slow cooker, you're already jumping ahead by breaking down the bonds to help. So beef and lamb are good options there. So get that slow cooker out. Chicken and turkey, organ meats like liver, seafood like sardines, mussels, clams and oysters.
00:14:39
Speaker
And then you've also got your non-heme sauces like legumes, like lentils, chickpeas, black beans, kidney beans. We've got tofu and tempeh. I do usually recommend to go tempeh.
00:14:51
Speaker
We've got dark leafy greens, pumpkin seeds are a good source and sunflower seeds as well, almonds and cashews. So a good handful of nuts or seeds, and like a bit of a mix every day is great.
00:15:02
Speaker
It's a good option. Vitamin A as well is really important. It's important for regulating the production and the metabolism of thyroid hormones. Vitamin A also enhances the sensitivity of tissues to thyroid cells, ensuring that cells respond properly to hormonal signals.
00:15:20
Speaker
So beef liver is a really good one. And if you're not into eating it, we do actually have supplements. We do actually sell a supplement on our online store, Primal Energy. And that is a beef liver supplement.
00:15:31
Speaker
It's good. I take it. Really good. Yeah. It's a nice little easy one that you can take. Cod liver oil. We have salmon, mackerel. Mackerel is so good people have Most people haven't tried mackerel. And whenever I tell them and they try it, they actually love it.
00:15:45
Speaker
Yeah. Because I did the same with you. i was like, you have to try it But everyone's like, well, it's probably like sardines, but it's nice. Good quality mackerel in oil. And then you just put some fresh lemon with it and salt and you can just eat it.
00:15:56
Speaker
It's delicious. put on crackers and that if you wanted to. Eggs, again, particularly the yolk, sweet potato, carrots, pumpkin, and also dark leafy greens are important for that vitamin A.
00:16:10
Speaker
We've also got tyrosine. So tyrosine is actually a building block for thyroid hormones. Tyrosine and iodine combine to make T3 and T4 hormones.
00:16:21
Speaker
And I actually love tyrosine. It's really good for mood as well. So when I have a client that has issues with their thyroid and they have a lot of issues with their mood, then I will usually jump in and make sure that they've got enough tyrosine.
00:16:33
Speaker
And you can get this through diet via chicken and turkey, salmon, tuna, and mackerel, cottage cheese, yogurt, make sure good quality, organic. Egg, again, eggs are really important and great for each day or every couple of days, but this one is specifically the white. So look, eat the whole egg and your body will be happy. Your thyroid will love you for it.
00:16:55
Speaker
Beef and pork, tofu and tempeh, legumes, pumpkin and sesame seeds again, and quinoa as well. So I do know that turkey's quite high in that as well. So making sure that we're getting turkey in, which again is a bit more of a rare one for people. so instead of using like chicken mince, try doing turkey mince. Yeah.
00:17:16
Speaker
You can get it from most places. And turkey sandwiches you
Impact of Gluten on Thyroid Health
00:17:19
Speaker
do are pretty good. Yes, turkey and cranberry and like rocket. And bit of camembert. Yeah, little bit of no cheese. Avocado. Yeah, on on a Turkish focaccia. So good. And toasted.
00:17:30
Speaker
good. So good. I remember when I worked at the sandwich bar when I was younger, I used to absolutely love making those. And, yeah, I make them sometimes for us. They're good. They're a good time.
00:17:41
Speaker
Also another note that I would like to bring up is gluten and the thyroid. Yeah. the There is definitely an issue. There is a protein in the gluten called Glydin, which has a similar amino acid structure to thyroid tissue.
00:17:57
Speaker
So when gluten proteins pass through the gut lining into the bloodstream, your body flags the molecule as a foreign invader if there is gluten sensitivity or celiac disease present.
00:18:08
Speaker
So the result being the release of antibodies to attack the molecule, naturally resulting in more inflammation in the body. Because of the molecular mimicking that happens, these antibodies may mistakenly target the thyroid thinking it is gluten and then damaging the thyroid tissues.
00:18:30
Speaker
It can actually really start to eat up that thyroid tissue, which is insane. I've had clients with scans that have come to me with the thyroid antibodies and it starts to eat away at the thyroid tissue. It's It is quite crazy and gluten. So pretty much the easiest way that I like to explain that for my clients. And so they've got an easy understanding is that when you're eating gluten, it has that mimicking effect. So your body's not sure, is it gluten or is it not?
00:18:57
Speaker
And it gets really confused and it starts to flag the wrong issue and then starts to target the thyroid tissue. it starts to think that the healthy thyroid tissue is actually a problem. Yeah.
00:19:08
Speaker
So it's, I know, it's crazy. So it's easier to just avoid gluten. Yeah. I know. It is insane. So I know it's crazy. Avoiding gluten, particularly when there's an autoimmune condition present.
00:19:23
Speaker
So something like Hashimoto's or Graves' disease is absolutely paramount. Like you must, you have to avoid gluten. I know it's hard and I know everyone loves bread and everyone loves pasta, but your health and your thyroid is way more important.
00:19:38
Speaker
Yeah. It's just insane. it can absolutely drastically support your overall health because remember the thyroid, it's not only, think of it like how fast everything's working. So like that dial again, how fast or slow the bowel's working, how fast or slow the liver's working to detox, how fast or slow metabolism's working.
00:19:56
Speaker
Like it's so important for so many other factors that it's not just about, oh, I've got a healthy thyroid. It's, I feel good. I've got energy. My metabolism's working well, all the things.
00:20:08
Speaker
it's insane yeah so definitely one to look out for so thyroid yes absolutely and if you have no idea what you're doing we look after your thyroid for you so you can put that onto us because that is a big thing that we look at with all of our clients if there's any red flags i'd say with 99 of our clients we're doing a thyroid test on you i guess it comes with the territory of again fertility and postpartum and tired mums, but very
Conclusion: Importance of Thyroid Health
00:20:36
Speaker
important. I can't stress it enough. If you go to the GP and they've checked your thyroid and everything's fine in quotation marks, everything's fine, but they've only tested your TSH, then we don't know for sure. They're actually not sure.
00:20:50
Speaker
And we yeah need to investigate further. So we can definitely help you order some testing privately, which tells us the whole thing. And you don't need to go and beg your doctor for T4 and T3. It sometimes can actually be out of their hands though.
00:21:04
Speaker
They can write down a full thyroid panel, but now they used to be able to do that specifically. Now it's the pathology. So if the pathology, when they're testing, if the TSH comes out of range, which remember it has to be crazily out of range.
00:21:17
Speaker
If it's out of range, then they'll go on to test the T4 and T3 if the doctors ask. If it's under that 4.0, then 0.4 to 4.0 in that range, then they will actually say, no, they're not going to do it.
00:21:29
Speaker
So they'll be like, no, they're fine. They're within range. but I haven't even tested the T4 and T3. Exactly. That's what I mean. Testing the T4 and T3. I don't know. They just think, yes, I know. It's it's frustrating. so It's very frustrating. Anyway.
00:21:41
Speaker
So yeah, we'd love to support your thyroid and yeah, get you feeling better. So if you don't know where to find us, please find us on Instagram, mungbean underscore health or on our website at www.mungbeanhealth.com.
00:21:57
Speaker
And yeah, we can't wait to help. yeah See you soon. Bye.
00:22:07
Speaker
And that's a wrap on today's dose of wellness. I'm Rhiannon, your fertility fairy godmother. Thank you for joining us. Stay connected with us on Instagram at mungbin underscore health.