Anxiety and Hormone Balance
Caffeine and Alcohol
Caffeine, especially late in the day, can disrupt sleep patterns. A healthy lifestyle, which includes adequate sleep routines, is crucial to treating hypothyroidism. For this reason, we recommend avoiding caffeine after 12 noon. Alcohol can also disrupt sleep patterns, provides “empty” calories, and overall does not provide many health benefits. We recommend limiting alcoholic beverages to no more than one or two drinks per week.
Hypothyroidism Meal Plan Ideas
If you have hypothyroidism, it is crucial to eat enough calories and nutrients to support your body’s needs. Extreme calorie or nutrient restriction, as seen in many popular fad diets, has a negative impact on your thyroid function. For instance, short and long-term dieting can increase your reverse T3 levels and may result in a 50 percent reduction in your active T3 hormone (4). Too much reverse T3 and/or too little active T3 hormone can worsen hypothyroidism and make weight loss even more difficult. Curious about intermittent fasting? Read our article on intermittent fasting and hypothyroidism.
A high-quality hypothyroidism meal plan should include adequate amounts of protein, fat, carbohydrates, and phytonutrients from non-starchy vegetables.
Breakfast
Aim for at least 20 grams of protein with each breakfast. If you find yourself running short on time in the morning, consider meal prepping on Sunday!
- Overnight oats with nuts/seeds, berries, collagen powder, and plant-based milk
- Veggie-rich egg bake with roasted sweet potatoes or winter squash
- Sauteed chicken sausage hash with bell peppers, spinach/kale, sweet potatoes, avocado
Lunch
We love using our doctor and dietitian designed Root Farmacy® meals for a nourishing lunch! These recipes that we include in our functional medicine programs are gluten-free, dairy-free, and rich in nutrients important for thyroid health, like vitamin B12, zinc, and selenium. Plus, we use local and seasonal produce whenever possible.
Afternoon Snack
Adding an afternoon snack helps to keep your energy levels high and prevents blood sugar dips that may lead to sugar cravings.
- Fruit and nuts or nut butter
- Carrot/pepper strips with hummus or guacamole
- Sardines on a handful of seed-based crackers
- Root Reset Protein Powder mixed with water or a plant-based milk
Thyroid Hormones
Thyroid hormones regulate many vital body functions like metabolism, growth and development, heart rate, and body temperature. Hypothyroidism occurs when your thyroid gland does not make enough thyroid hormones to meet your body’s demand. On the other hand, hyperthyroidism occurs when your thyroid gland produces too much thyroid hormone. Both of these conditions may cause anxiety.
What May Help
If you suspect a thyroid disorder, we recommend asking your doctor to run a full thyroid panel to rule out hypo- or hyperthyroidism. A full thyroid panel includes:
- TSH
- Free T4
- Free T3
- Thyroid Peroxidase Antibodies (TPO Ab)
Thyroid antibodies are ideal to include in a thyroid panel to screen for an autoimmune disorder called Hashimoto’s thyroiditis. Hashimoto’s is the most common cause of hypothyroidism. Treatment for these conditions vary, but correcting a thyroid hormone imbalance can often reduce symptoms of anxiety. Our Thyroid Support supplement contains all of the important nutrients you need to support healthy thyroid hormone levels and conversion. We often order a full thyroid panel for members of our functional medicine membership program.
Vitamin D
You may be surprised to hear that vitamin D is actually considered a hormone. Vitamin D deficiency is fairly common, especially in people who live in colder climates with less sunlight during the winter. Research suggests that a vitamin D deficiency is associated with mental health disorders, like anxiety. Fortunately, increasing vitamin D levels may reduce symptoms of anxiety (1).
How to Treat
You can request a vitamin D blood test through your primary care doctor. Most conventional providers consider a vitamin D level greater than 30 ng/ml as normal. However, updated research and clinical practice suggests that an optimal vitamin D level is actually closer to 50-70 ng/ml. Most people require a vitamin D supplement, at least through the winter, in order to achieve this ideal range. Read more about optimal vitamin D levels.
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