So I should preface my holiday cookbook guide with perhaps unstartling news: I've been told by my endocrinologist that it's time to give up being a vegan. One of the major reasons that I have, as you have possibly noticed, been sick for months, is that my thyroid has been in parlous condition. This wasn't exactly unexpected, because I have an autoimmune disease called Hashimoto's Thyroiditis that slowly kills your thyroid. Because of that, I was very careful about supplementing my soy intake with iodine, because soy can interfere with thyroid hormone.
In my case, the supplementation wasn't enough. I should stress that this is not a problem for normal people; your thyroid just ups its production a little. My thyroid, however, couldn't cope. My blood levels of thyroid-stimulating hormone shot up, I gained fifteen pounds in four months, my voice dropped half an octave, and I could barely get out of bed in the morning--I literally had to take naps two hours after waking up. I've had to cut my soy intake way, way down. Like, to "amounts so small they're not on the label".
After a little over a month, it's clearly working--I'm almost back to normal, though I'm still tired. (And I still can't fit into any of my clothes.) But it's not really possible, at least with my job, to be a vegan without consuming soy; almost all the meat substitutes are made with it, and in DC, there are basically no restaurants serving seitan. I tried to go on soy-free, but I was getting sicker, unsurprising since I was basically living on Fritos and peanut butter every time I left the house. So, the year-long experiment with veganism is at an end.
No doubt people who have resented my veganism will point to this as proof that a vegan diet is unhealthy. This is triple-distilled balderdash. It's unhealthy for me because I have, essentially, a soy allergy, just as eating a mediterranean diet is unhealthy if you're gluten intolerant. For most people, it's at worst no less healthy than any other diet.
At any rate, I'm back to eating certified humane animal products. And no doubt, many of my vegan readers will get angry. All I can say is that I did my best, and if I could figure out a way to make it work without spending hours every single day cooking, or consuming soy, I would. I'm a moderate on animal rights; I believe in animal testing, and the reason that I support veganism is that I think it's possible to do in a healthy way for most people. But I do value human life and health over animal life, and that includes mine. I'm now looking into things that I didn't have much need for months ago: buying milk from a local dairy, for example.
At any rate, please don't turn this comment thread into an excuse for vegans to yell at meat eaters, and meat eaters to gloat over me. I've actually been really sick for the last five months, though I didn't blog about it, and I'd appreciate not having that used to make a political point.
Copyright © 2009 by The Atlantic Monthly Group. All rights reserved.
Dear Megan: I'm sorry to hear that you were sick, but glad to know you are feeling better. You were so brave to keep up your work over the presidential campaign without complaining.
We will pray that you are restored to perfect health.
Blessings,
Since I publish Vegan.com, and read Megan's blog daily, I feel like I should weigh in.
I mainly want to say that I think Megan's really brave to be so forthcoming about her vegan status and her medical condition. There is so much misinformation and blatant bad science about soy products floating around the web, but it sounds like Megan's one of the rare people who truly shouldn't be eating the stuff.
Regardless of Megan's dietary status, I have no doubt that she's committed to eliminating as much animal suffering from her life as possible. I think anyone who shares that commitment deserves applause.
And, finally, diet should be all about constant learning. I hope Megan will think about continuing to discover vegan, soy-free foods that would be healthy cornerstones for her future diet.
If you don't have your health, then you don't have anything. Hope you feel better.
As someone who wishes she could be a vegetarian, but eats meat about twice a months simply because I find it tasty (I wouldn't bother trying veganism), I really admire your efforts. But I think you did the right thing by ultimately prioritizing your personal health. I hope you feel well!
Glad you're feeling better now!
Megan,
I'm vegan and have a soy allergy. Maybe I can give you some tips. First, most doctors are clueless about vegan diets. My sister in law was just diagnosed with IgAN after major kidney problems and she asked her doctor if she should go vegetarian or vegan and he said no you won't get enough protein! Meanwhile the IgAN support organization suggests eliminating animal proteins and going vegan.
I'm a body builder and get 175-200 grams a day while the average person requires 1/4 that.
Protein, fat, and carbohydrate--the three major components of common plant foods--all contain calories, in about this ratio:
1 gram of protein = 4 calories
1 gram of carbohydrate = 4 calories
1 gram of fat = 9 calories
Thus, if a potato weighing 100 grams contains 76 calories and 2.1 grams of protein, we say that it contains 2.1 x 4 = 8.4 calories as protein, or about 11% calories as protein.
According to the National Research Council, an adult male requires 2700 calories and 56 grams of protein. The 56 grams of protein represent 224 calories, or about 8.3% of calories as protein. For the adult female, the figure is about the same: 2000 calories and 44 grams of protein, or about 8.8% of calories as protein.
If wheat has 17% of calories as protein, potatoes 11%, broccoli 45%, corn 15%, and so on, then all of these foods provide enough protein on a calorically adequate diet, even if you eat nothing but potatoes, wheat, and broccoli. In fact, of the common plant foods, almost all provide more than 10% of calories as protein. Only the fruits, as a rule, contain less; but this is not going to be a problem unless one is trying to live on an all-fruit diet.
How about just bringing you own lunches to work?
ie. peanut butter and jelly?
I never eat out at work and often bring leftovers from last nights dinner. Ie. a hearty veggie soup/stew made from the night before with a roll or tortilla, or a pasta salad, a seitan sandwich, a bean and rice burrito. I can't imagine it's much easy to find humanely raised meat for lunch than non soy vegan meals? And why go back to buying cow's milk for home when you can buy oat, hemp, rice, almond or hazelnut milk at the health food store? Or instead of cereal in the morning try some oatmeal and you'll save milk. While your at the health food store, see if they carry deli slices, sausages or roasts made by Field Roast Grain Meat Co. These are soy-free delicious grain meats! You can also order them online.
If you are and athlete and need extra protein -- try rice, pea or hemp protein powders. These are packed with all 16 essential amino acids and you can get 25 grams of protein in a tiny scoop. You can add these to recipes or just make a shake. You can get US made cold processed "gemma" pea protein powder very cheap online. Just search gemma protein powder.
I'm a meat eater (and even have a hunting license), but I have a very large amount of respect for your ethical stance on food, and am sorry that it didn't work out.
Even though we have different beliefs (or, perhaps, especially because), I enjoyed your posts on diet and ethics. Just because you're forced out of veganism against your will doesn't mean that you can't keep posting on the topic. As a meat eater who is disgusted with the factory farming system (because of the cruelty that it necessarily inflicts on animals), I'm eagerly awaiting posts on the topic of humane meat consumption.
Megan,
You should be commended both on your courage in standing up for your principles and being vegan, and in your wisdom to compromise to maintain your health.
The world is a better place with you in it, especially as a blogger. Best wishes for a speedy recovery, the loss of the weight you don't want and a return to good health and good cheer for you in 2009.
Glad to hear you've figured out what was causing your health problems and I hope you have a speedy and full recovery.
Personally, I don't care what people choose to eat - it's just that surprising percentage of vegans that behave like boorish street corner preachers yelling at passers by that they are going to burn in hell if they don't change their ways - those are the ones I'd like to slap upside the head with a pound of raw bacon. You were never like that.
Mmmmm...bacon!
Megan,
Normally I make snide comments about vegans and vegetarians. The humorist in me wants to continue with "and of course this time will be no different..."
But.
I am really sorry to hear you haven't been well. Good luck going forward; indeed, you did do your best to do what you thought was right. That is a lot more than most people will ever do and I respect that.
I don't think veganism or vegetarianism is healthy and I would hope you would pass that on to others so they could heed your warning. They deserve to know what they are getting into - you deserved to know it too.
All the same, I hope you feel better. Good luck.
- Jay
Asthma and a degenerative thyroid? Secondhand smoke must be your arch-nemesis. I wish you better, and hey enjoy the fish, chicken, beef, pork (well probably not pork or beef). As for weight, well I'm not one to talk, so best of luck there.
I have not eaten meat since 1985. I do eat dairy product, eggs and fish. I can imagine that giving up all animal products would be extremely tough under any circumstances. There are different degrees of vegetarianism. It does not have to be all or nothing.
Best of luck on your complete recovery. Thyroid diseases can be bizarrely unpleasant to say the least, and my turn will doubtless come, as a mild strain of AITD seems to run in the family bloodlines.
Really sorry to hear you've been so unwell Megan. I had no idea soy put any kind of strain on the thyroid... guess it's a good thing I buy iodised salt...
Get well, and don't beat yourself up about it.
I don't care in the least about the what foods people want to eat or avoid.
But I do care about my favorite blogger to staying healthy. Life is precious. Oh, and if crackpot futurists like Ray Kurtzweil are right, we might eventually be able to live on indefinitely without needing to eat at all.
So we got that going for us.
If you want to boost your fats and oils without cows milk, try almond milk. It's more expensive than cow's milk, but it keeps a lot longer. You can make it at home if you have a good food processor. You can make oat milk at home as well.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Almond_milk
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grain_milk
I hope you feel better soon.
Megan, I've been reading your blog literally for years, and I've always found you a great read -- thoughtful, informative, and levelheaded.
I wish you all the best and hope that you return to full health.
Oh and what you eat is your business.
Had no idea about your thyroid condition; it's amazing you stayed on the vegan diet so long considering that. My advice: get thee to Chipotle. The restaurant says its meat is 'humanely raised', and you can also get a hearty vegetarian burrito there, with black beans, rice, guacamole, cheese, etc. Besides, the manager of the new Paramus, NJ Chipotle just gave me and my girlfriend a free dinner tonight, so the chain deserves a plug.
Anon.Y.Mous,
"Parlous" isn't that obscure. If she broke out a word like "pernoctate", I'd agree with you.
Out of curiosity, have you tried the foods of Indian cultures that don't eat meat and only recently heard of soy beans?
Sucks that you've been sick.
You're definitely one of my favorite bloggers, one of the few conservative writers that I unreservedly "trust", even when I disagree with your conclusions. The transition from hard progressive to clear-eyed libertarian makes an interesting read.
With the tragic failure of America's union-based auto industry and the dismal state of union-based public schools, I wish a few of my favorite liberal bloggers would start making noises in that direction as well...
Megan, eat what you wanna eat!
I have the same thing. Hashimoto's. I take Armour. It works then it doesn't. I do not know what to eat or not eat.
The sides of my neck and clavicles swell up so do my eyes. Need a new doctor. I think soy has pros and cons to Hashis. There are websites that you can do research but for me it is up and down. This summer was up this winter down and down. Hope we both get lots better.
Thank you for sharing this bit of privacy about yourself.
hmmm. I've never heard of the disease or that type of medical specialist.
Thank god for modern medicine.
I'm interested to see your economic analysis of the "buy local" movement.
I'd like to see more postings about how courageous and humane you are.
You're blogging 4 the Atlantic, for Chissakes! Get a grip!
Do your dietary habits really define "an era"?
Megan:
Get well. I'm sorry that life dealt you a bad hand in this. Being a healthy vegan is, from what I have read, complicated and exacting. The only down side I can see is that most of the vegans I know became obsessed with food and have snide attitudes toward those of us that aren't vegans. (They really rag on vegetarians, btw.) You didn't fall into either trap.
You made a courageous moral stand. I don't agree with it, but I respect it. But your morals don't trump your biology. Please eat properly and regain your health; I'd rather have your insights than have you serve as an object lesson.
It doesn't matter what you eat, as long as you stay healthy, or in your case get healthy, and are happy as a result. Life's too short as it is, no sense making more work out of the basics like food, sleep and shelter. Your tombstone won't include what your dietary preferences were so don't sweat it.
Hi Megan
Some good places around DC to get your seitan fix: Java Green on 19th, Sunflower in Falls Church, Yuan Fu in Rockville, and Soul Veg on Georgia Ave above Howard U.
I know what it's like to have medical problems get in the way of your diet, however, for me it was the opposite. I was a chef and a wine collector and I got gout at 30; a type I cannot take medication for. I was forced to quit eating any type of animal protein and quit drinking entirely. In some ways it has been very good for me, but when I eat at a really great restaurant, I hate having boundaries and going to wineries when I travel overseas is over. But I have found exciting and creative vegetarian food and have even thought about being vegan.
Glad you are feeling better though. Don't lament what life throws at you, revel in it!
I could never buy into the vegan/vegetarian idea - I figure there's a reason our eyes point forward and we have pointy teeth, but I really don't care what others eat as long as it doesn't hurt me or cost me. I do worry about people that try to raise their kids on odd diets, not realizing that what might be barely acceptable for an adult can be fatal for a kid.
At any rate, everything in moderation and concentrate on how your body reacts to what you feed it. Out bodies are marvelously complex machines, capable of very detailed feedback if you listen. Get well.
...what Peter and Secret Asian Man said.
It's hard to avoid soy if you want faux meat. Not impossible to eat vegan and avoid soy though. It would be really rough, avoiding soy and eating vegan, when it comes to restaurant food.
Something not Asian:
Fast Pasta E Fagioli
15 oz can of beans
15 oz can of stewed tomatoes
15 oz can of mixed vegetables
8 oz can of tomato sauce
1 or 2 tablespoons of dehydrated onions
1 or 2 teaspoons of Italian Seasoning
1 or 2 teaspoons of olive oil
Leftover pasta.
Stovetop
Dump in a saucepan. Heat until the onions soften.
Microwave
Dump in microwave safe casserole. Cover. Heat until onions soften. The cover is important, a few of the beans may splatter.
The dehydrated onions give it a beefy flavor. Thats the very fast version. It tastes better if you saute a medium onion first and maybe add half a stalk of celery. A clove of garlic is good too.
Most packaged Italian Seasoning is mediocre. I usually use a combination of oregano, basil, parsley and a bit of rosemary. Ditalini is the traditional pasta but anything works, elbow macaroni for instance, something about the same size as the beans. Something bigger, like ziti or spaghetti, can go in, might want to chop it up first. A bag of frozen mixed vegetables instead of the can of mixed vegetable works too, takes a bit longer. If there's no leftover pasta in the refrigerator just throw a handful of dried pasta into the soup and simmer it there - lots less than you think you need, remember it swells up.
Megan, I'm so sorry to hear about your health problems. I hope you return to good health very soon.
FYI, you may be interested in these sites:
http://soyfreevegan.blogspot.com/
and of course:
http://www.google.com/search?q=soy-free+vegan
Good luck,
Paul
I hope you feel better!
I can totally sympathize.
I used to be a vegetarian, but I could never take the extra step and go vegan. Now it turns out I have dairy/egg/gluten intolerance! Maybe I'll go vegan (give up meat)down the road, but with so many vegan-"meat" products containing gluten that would severely limit my already restricted diet at this point. Veganism is best followed by those without other limitations on their diets.
In a strange way I feel more respect for both you and your veganism due to this. I'm not normally sympathetic to vegans/veganism, but you went out there and did something you felt was right at possible personal risk. Then you reached that point where you had to say "I just can't do this anymore" and I imagine that can be hard.
Also it makes your being sick a lot have some kind of answer. Anyway good for you and I hope you get to feeling better.
So sorry to hear that.
Hemp protein is an excellent source of protein when you can have soy.
See yaoh.co.uk for hemp protein 48% and 98%
There is also yagga made in Italy from an ancient grain and lentil protein.
There is a Belgium doctor who is a innovative expert on thyroid conditions called Dr George Mouton.
Sorry - obviously that was meant to read 'when you CAN'T have soy'
Tony
Whatever you choose to eat, for whatever reason, the important thing is to enjoy it.
Bon apetit!
I'm sorry for your health concerns, and happy you're on the road to recovery. I only wish one thing: that I could be there to watch you (hopefully) savor that first bite of bacon, or the first nibble from a well-grilled NY strip steak, or (best of all) the first succulent chomp out of a pulled pork sandwich.
Not to gloat at all, I promise - just to watch the pleasure that surely would cover your face.
Anyway, here's hoping your health returns quickly and completely.
Warm regards to the writer of one of my daily reads.
May you have a happy healthy life Megan.
I hope you feel better soon, and that your dietary choices don't bring you too much unsolicited grief from others.
V. sorry to hear about your health, you did a phenomenal job of soldiering through.
While it's sad that you can no longer pursue your veganism, your health is def. the more important consideration.
Hope you get healthy soon.
Hey Megan,
I read some of the comments above. I was relieved not to see any vegans scold you, and annoyed to see one or two people use your condition for the ridiculous assertation that vegan diets aren't healthy.
As Erik says, sure sounds like you shouldn't be eating soy. I just did Kathy Freston's Quantam Wellness cleanse and it revolutionized my eating habits. She does allow soy but doesn't allow gluten -- obviously not right for you body. But what interested me was that when I did her cleanse and had to cut all sugar and gluten, suddenly all of the processed foods I was eating were off limits, and I was surviving, fantastically, on fresh fruits and vegetables and nuts and avocados and rice and beans. Anyway, it sounds to me like you shouldn't eat soy, but not that you "need" to be eating meat. There are so many other wonderful, nourishing, unprocessed choices. But if you feel the need to eat meat occasionally, just remember that most Americans get way too much protein(excess protein causes osteoporosis) and the most comprehensive study to date showed that vegans are much healthier and longer lived than the general public, but people who eat mostly vegan and occasional meat (not daily meat!) are just as healthy. If those who feel compelled to eat meat ate it occasionally, the world would be a very different place for the animals.
Keep exploring! And thank you for your compassion and your honesty.
Karen Dawn
Megan, as a fellow Hashimoto's sufferer, I also wanted to point out something that my endocrinologist warned me about in case you were unaware: If you were supplementing your vegan diet (or current diet) with multivitamins, you could be weakening the impact of the synthroid. Calcium and iron, like soy, also bind to the hormone so your body doesn't fully absorb it. If you want to take a multi, be sure you take it 12 hours after you take your hormone pill, and avoid high-iron, high-calcium foods in the hour or so after as well.
As someone who's also spent the last five months sick, with commonly eaten foods making the illness worse, (migraine, many food triggers) I'm just glad you're taking it seriously.
Wishing you well and healthy and feeling well and strong.
I recently started dating someone who is Indian and a vegetarian, and I've learned a lot from him about non-soy, non-meat protein options. He hates soy and gets most of his protein from things like dosa, idli, adai etc. -- all made with ground lentils. I'm a meat eater myself so I haven't paid attention to the protein-gram count in all of these things, but it might be worth looking into in addition to/instead of going back to meat.
I want to tell you how inspired I am that you essayed this for a year, as you are clearly someone who loves food and makes a virtue of the necessity of feeding the machine.
I'm agog to see how you transform your new boundaries into moments of delicious liberation. Because you're doing this for ethical reasons - it is entirely ethical for you to come first - let me say: welcome back to cheese. It's freaking delicious, and there's a lot of it produced at happy cow dairies.
I am so impressed with everyone's comments! Everybody is so encouraging and respectful.
My roommate just discovered Quorn brand of fake meats, as she has a family history of cancer and is trying to keep her soy intake down. This brand is not only phenomenal tasting, but contains no soy at all.
Good luck, and remember ... every meal that doesn't include meat makes a difference!
I echo the admiring comments but, jeez, trying to counter the effect of the soy by taking iodide? Biochemistry's not that simple. Ditch whatever source gave you that dumb idea.
If only you had made this announcement last Friday! "One more Great Experiment Ends". Best wishes for your speedy recovery, Megan.
Megan, I have a number of food allergies, a couple of them life-threatening. It requires adaptation to enjoy eating and get good nutrition.
Having any particular hangups about any class of food (aversion to eating meat or dairy, or just dislike of certain foods) makes the task exponentially more difficult. Freeing one's mind of preconceptions helps. People from lots of cultures experience longevity from their own cuisines, we have the advantage of picking and choosing.
So just eat what you enjoy from the list of what you can have, and learn to enjoy other allowable foods. Everything in moderation, and meat or fish are fine in their place, fishermen and farmers deserve a living too.
Most of all, be grateful for your food, it really helps to keep a positive attitude. Saying a prayer of thanks at every meal is something of value on many levels.
Glad to hear that you're feeling better, Megan.
"I tried to go on soy-free, but I was getting sicker, unsurprising since I was basically living on Fritos and peanut butter every time I left the house. So, the year-long experiment with veganism is at an end."
Is this a joke, or are you really just that lazy? Avoiding soy is not hard at all to do. Eat whole foods. The ones that aren't soybeans.
There's no happy meat! There's no happy dairy!
With all due respect, I think you got took by a less-than-knowledgeable clinician. Which wouldn't be surprising, since most know next to nothing about diet and nutrition. I am a (clinical) medical writer (conventional, western medicine). I also have had Hashimoto's for 10 years. I am also a vegan. Yawn. Nothing to it, not that it wasn't a process for me.
The thing that's missing here is that your post failed to mention whether you are taking synthetic thyroid hormones, which represents the gold standard of treatment. Of course you will feel terrible if you don't treat the hypothyroidism. In fact, if it is not treated, it eventually would be fatal (which would rarely happen in the United States, where it eventually would probably be detected). So, to blame a diet for your sick-thyroid symptoms is misguided.
Also, you yourself said you had begun eating Fritos and peanut butter out of desperation. As for some people's fear-mongering about dietary intake of soy, the questions to be resolved are focused almost exclusively on women who have already had breast cancer and who may be taking tamoxifen for prevention.
Finally, I would remind of a position paper from the American Dietetic Association and the Dieticians of Canada
http://www.dietitians.ca/news/downloads/vegetarian_position_paper_2003.pdf)
It states: "A vegetarian, including vegan, diet, can meet current recommendations for all these nutrients. [specifically, protein, iron, zinc, calcium, vitamin D, roboflavin, vitamin B-12, vitamin A, n-3 fatty acids, and iodine)] Well-planned vegan and other types of vegetarian diets are appropriate for all stages of the life-cycle including during pregnancy, lactation, infancy, childood, and adolescence."
I see so many articles like this. I hope it doesn't further confuse people. It arises out of confusion. Of course, I am glad you are feeling better. As I noted, I, too, have hypothyroidism of the Hashimoto's variety--like millions of other Americans (it is quite common)--but at no point has it made me want to stop being vegan.
As for "happy meat," no such thing. I heartily recommend reading "Putting Meat on the Table," a project of The Pew Charitable Trust and Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health."
http://www.pewtrusts.org/uploadedFiles/wwwpewtrustsorg/Reports/Industrial_Agriculture/PCIFAP_FINAL.pdf
This report found unacceptable public health risks from factory farming, along with the obvious humane issues and environmental harm.
Megan, are you at all sentient and aware of what you said, say, thirty seconds ago?
Jesus Christ.
Megan,
I hope you get well soon. I also hope you take some of the advice offered in the comments section so far regarding veganism-without-soy and find your way back to (non-soy) veganism some day.
You mentioned that you are “moderate on animal rights”. It seems the term “animal rights” is used by vegans and the media alike for just about anything that even remotely hints at the most trivial benefit for animals, which is to say animal rights and animal welfare have become synonyms.
I think of animal *rights* as categorically rejecting the institutional exploitation and killing of animals and animal welfare accepting the institutional exploitation and killing of animals. As such, any claim to support animal rights would entail veganism as a moral baseline and a rejection of the use of animals in experiments. In my book, you’re probably a strong animal welfare supporter, but not currently a rights supporter.
First, I applaud you for trying and for being honest. I am not attacking you, just want to put my two cents in, thanks! :)
Second, Fritos and Peanut butter? I am vegan and don't eat either of those things. I eat whole foods; leafy green vegetables, fruit, seeds and sprouted grains.
It's very simple, unless you are impoverished, to go to a store and buy real, whole food and prepare them, eat the food and nourish your body.
I became a raw vegan while living in a one room SRO with no kitchen and I am still raw vegan today. All the equipment you really need is a knife and a cutting board
I will never eat any sentient non human animal. Not because of my health but because there is no such thing as humane slaughter.
I wish you the best and hope you are able to open your eyes and your heart to the real reason to be vegan.
Stop the unnecessary slaughter of sentient non human animals. You don't need to eat animals (or soy) to enjoy a complete vegan diet. Arm yourself with knowledge.
Lastly, I hope that this is not the end of the road for veganism for you. It sometimes takes years to transition. I am 41 and just made it here after swearing off meat the first time at 11 years old
o_0
It isn't easy when it seems like the whole world is screaming at you that you are wrong. Don't listen.
Best of health to you, whatever you do.
Zucchini Breath.
Seeing as how you're ditching veganism (albeit under duress), I suggest you examine how elite athletes address nutrition: Whole foods and balanced nutrition, including meat, veggies, fruits, grains and healthy fats. Sure some like Michael Phelps (and some other ultra endurance athletes) just pile on calories, but most athletes go for high-quality fuel (and also account for things such as nutrient timing).
If you're at all interested, I'd recommend trying out the Precision Nutrition system put together by Dr. John Berardi, ph.D., which you can find at his eponymous website johnberardi.com .
Best of luck.
Zucchini Breath,
Why aren't you troubled by eating plants? Don't they deserve to live too? How can you be sure they aren't "sentient"?
Megan, glad you are feeling better!
Referring to CJS's comment, it should be noted that Scott Jurek has dominated the elite ultra marathon world over the past 8 years, the whole time on a vegan diet, with course records and annual first place finishes.
Whole foods are the best, of course, but in my experience (and apparently Jurek's experience as well) the animal products aren't necessary for optimal endurance performance, and are more likely detrimental (particularly dairy). You can check out Jurek's website at www.scottjurek.com
Megan, I'm horribly disappointed in you. It took you 5 MONTHS to accept that you needed to change your diet? And the catalyst was a dramatic change in your voice and weight?
That is horrifically unhealthy and makes me very concerned for you. Sorry to sound like your mom and the rest of your family. I'm excellent at getting other people to take care of themselves while not so much myself.
The good news is that you can have some tasty, tasty steak, and prosciutto, sashimi, bacon, veal... Excuse me I need to go have a Homer Simpson drool moment.
I do respect the ethical analysis of vegans, especially Jains. But as was already mentioned, we have sharp teeth, forward oriented eyes, remarkably adept hunting instincts, and a distinct inability to process vegetable matter (cows see grass as food, we see it as fibre or something that makes starving people sick as they try to fill their bellies - what that means for our ability to be vegans I'll leave as an exercise for the reader). Vegans, Dalai Lama, Greenpeace - anti-human but sincere and well meaning.
Remember, cows would eat you if they could!
Be well.... regardless of what you eat.
Anti-human? Really? Is it a uniquely "human" trait to eat whatever appeals to your sense of taste without any ethical concerns whatsoever, that the desire to eat with more consideration is "anti-human"? Forgive me for thinking humans may at least aspire to more.
Similar sentiments appear to be common among those who are most irritated by vegans and vegetarians. I suppose this is considered a compelling argument for meat-eaters.
I'm sorry you've been ill for awhile. May I suggest pescavegetarianism: eating no meat, except for fish. I've been a pescavegetarian for more than 5 years. I find the fish satisfies my "taste for meat", and I'm also happy to not eat much eggs or dairy products. So I'm not hurting "land animals" (cows, pigs, etc.), and I have a diet I really feel I can live with for the rest of my life.
Just a suggestion... you're kind to the land animals, and you still get to eat many types of foods!
"I will never eat any sentient non human animal."
Could you elaborate a bit here? I'd take it eggs would be okay then because eggs, the kind we eat anyway, aren't even really baby chickens. How about shrimp or clams? I don't know how advanced they are neurologically speaking. I do believe there are edible animals with extremely simple neurologies. For example sea cucumbers are apparently edible and, as I recall, they are basically brainless.
As someone with their own set of food/health interactions, I can sympathize with the frustration of having your body make decisions for you that you might not make otherwise. Here's hoping you start to feel good soon.
There is an increased risk of osteoporosis for those who take thyroid supplements. Doctors often compensate for this by prescribing barely adequate doses of thyroid supplement.
In other words, often times doctors do not index their doses by what is understood to be an idea TSH level in a healthy person, but by what is considered to be an adequate (barely) TSH level in a healthy person.
Studies have shown that individuals with thyroid cancer, who take TSH suppressive doses of thyroid supplement, can effectively offset their risk of osteoporosis by taking a 1000mg calcium supplement. (Though these very studies still dutifully warn against the dangers of osteoporosis that comes with over supplementation).
So, if a doctor gives you too much thyroid supplement (levothyroxine, synthroid, thyroid extract, whatever), he's exposing himself to liability if you develop osteoporosis. Rather than prescribe you the appropriate dose, ( aiming for a TSH level of around 1, or 1.5) the medical community has set a Wide margin that’s designed not to eliminate liability, but to eliminate even a small Risk of liability. Your doctor, in turn, is simply following standard medical guidelines in under-prescribing.
One might object that second guessing a doctor’s judgment is a bad idea. But doctors are not individually making judgment calls regarding appropriate doses for a given patient. They’re collectively looking up guidelines that are irrespective of the doctor’s own judgment or the patient’s situation. These guidelines, in turn, are drafted in no small part (in my opinion) not with the patients best interests in mind, but with the menacing sue happy lawyers in mind.
You might consider, McArdle, that your thyroxin dose (and your doc might balk at providing you Any thyroxin, so long as you’re within the ‘low normal’ TSH range, even if you feel like crap, and even if your free t4 and t3 levels are in the tank) is not ultimately being determined by your doctor, but by your lawyer.
You can go shopping for a cooperative doctor, or you can find an alternative medicine (AM) practitioner who’s licensed to prescribe. Although AM’s are frankly quacks, they’re often more cooperative than a doctor. So, if you’re reasonably intelligent, have good research skills (you know how to use Google scholar), and you have the capacity for objective and critical thinking, a naturopath or some other crystal wielding nutter with a prescribing pad can be the way to go.
If you do go with some AM guy, they’ll likely want to push Armour thyroid (thyroid extract) instead of the synthetics. Although the medical community prefers the synthetics to the extracts, I haven’t seen any rational for one or the other that seems particularly scientific.
Some people claim that the synthetics doses are more consistent, and I’ve read Armour press releases leveling similar charges against their synthetic competitors. Extracts do contain calcitonin and T3 but their importance still remains a matter of conjecture. Many people make claims, but few studies seem to conclusively prove or disprove their importance.
Also, though it rare, you might consider the possibility that you have some sort of pituitary disorder (or adrenal disorder), and that you’re suffering from low cortisol levels as well. (So That’s why you’re so tall. heh). Mind you, I wouldn’t mention that specifically, but ask you doctor to test your cortisol levels, “just to be safe”. Maybe that would be a waste of your time, but it might be worth looking at. If you decide to do so, demand that your doctor give you the specific numbers from the cortisol test. He might tell you you’re fine because you’re ‘low normal’.
I had a relative with an endocrine disorder affecting several hormones. But they were barely within the low normal range, so the doctors refused to treat. Never mind this person only got out of bed in their bathrobe for 4 hours a day on a Good day. Since this person finally managed to get treatment, they are happy and back to work.
You need more drugs.
Or so sayeth Quoth.
I'm confused about why someone would go from complete vegan to complete omnivore - eating everything and everyone. Seems like there are places in between, like pescatarianism, or vegetarian, or vegan plus eggs.
At the very least ditch the dairy. Dairy is so terrible for you. There's really no reason at all to consume it. Read The China Study.
But ultimately, I'm really mostly confused by the assertion that "meat substitutes are almost all soy". That's just plain false. There's seitan, for example. And there are plenty of great sources of protein that don't involve animals or soy like beans and nuts. You know, there were vegans before there were commercial faux meats. Somehow they managed...
You know, it's one thing to admit that it's difficult to sustain an unpopular lifestyle without more help (like more restaurants that serve seitan), but it's another to use your illness as an excuse.
PS - here's a listing of vegan-friendly restaurants in DC: http://www.happycow.net/north_america/usa/district_of_columbia/washington/index.html
Teaism at Penn Quarter as a seitan curry. HappyCow is okay but there are way more vegan-friendly listings on VegGuide.org
Here's a link to the Teaism entry on VegGuide:
http://www.vegguide.org/entry/3007
You don't need mockmeats to be a vegan. India has nearly 1 billion people who live, mostly by personal and religious choice, on a vegetarian diet. Unlike East Asians, Indians don't have any mockmeats in their cuisine and Indian food is very vegan-friendly, particularly South Indian food. Check out Nirvana on K Street which doesn't have any soy, but has lots of vegan options.
Never commented before, but just wanted to say hang in there on the thyroid stuff. It takes a while. I spent a couple years in the thyroid crumminess. Blech! For some people, it's all pretty simple: the right med, the right dose, back to normal. But it's not been that way for me nor (so it sounds) for you. You're sharp and a researcher-type, so I'm sure you've been hacking your way through all the thyroid reasearch, etc. You don't need that here -- I just wanted to say that for me it sucked mightily, and gradually it has gotten better (with more and more med over long stretches of time) and I wanted to say that --just for the glimmer of hope, etc etc etc. Best of luck and health.
I dont' understand why you can't be vegan? I don't eat soy or gluten. Seaweeds contain well-absorbed iodine; and a supplement would help too. Many vegans don't. Look to Dr.Fuhrman at Dr. Fuhrman.com. He has successfully treated many, many, people with Hashimoto's Thyroiditis. He will actually tell you if you indeed do need some animal products.
He's not a "vegan doctor" but prescribes plant-based diets as optimal. He treats people on all types of diets from raw to standard Western junk.
If you want to be vegan, he will accomodate that; but if you have special needs, he will also recommend what is best. Most of the time, people who think they need meat and are told so by well-intentioned doctors, do not need it at all.
If you really care about it, then I think you should contact him.
If you can count on meat-eaters using the smell and taste of meat ("mmmm...bacon!") as a legitimate persuasive technique in these conversations, you can also count on excessive self-righteousness and judgment from some vegans and vegetarians. If you take Megan's description of her own health at face value (and you have no reason not to) then her illness is not an "excuse"; it's a legitimate hurdle to practicing animal product-free eating. From a practical standpoint, demeaning someone's particular health concerns while at the same time recommending they hunt high and low for food items most people have never heard of, is not going to win many people over to your point of view.
You can't be vegan because you are allergic to soy? What a crock of shit. You give veganism a bad rap with this bullshit. "ALL VEGANS HAVE TO EAT FAKE MEAT MADE OUT OF SOY TO LIVE" is basically your argument. You can't subsist and thrive on a diet of fruits, vegetables, grains, and beans (ex-soy)? You want convenience? Go to the grocery store and get some hummus. Moron.
About the weight...is 15 lbs on a 74 inch frame really that dramatic?
Megan- The most important thing is your health and I'm glad to see that your's has improved. Best of luck to you. You don't need to make excuses for anyone on either side.
Have you been tested for gluten intolerance? The blood tests are often inaccurate. The enterolab tests are controversial, but many people have found them helpful in deciding to trial a GF diet. Dietary response is the true test. Best wishes.
It's unfortunate that no objective piece on veganism can ever be placed in a mainstream forum without inviting the usual batch of ill-informed and predictable antagonism from non-vegans, the bulk of whose objections to the vegan diet can be quickly condensed into a treatise on the taste of meat, how meat tastes, we have pointy teeth, vegans are inhealthy, and of course bacon, cheese, NY strip steaks and pulled-pork sanwiches are all "freaking delicious".
If nothing reading some of these comments reminds one that ignorance is truly bliss, if not beatific.
I am very sorry about your situation, Megan, but if it is health-related then it is absolutely something out of your control. I wish you luck and hope it works out, and that you may in some way return to your diet of choice some day.
A pervasive problem with all too many of these posts are that we see mere conclusions without any specific scientific sources for these conclusions. I am far less interested in what people "believe" than the sources of those beliefs. I'd hardly know where to start with anyone innocent of Joel Fuhrman, John McDougall, Caldwell Esselstyn, T. Colin Campbell, et al. It's more than a bit irritating to see so much comment about a very personal - fairly rare at that - problem with soy being made into a reason for not being vegan. Indicative of the low level of discussion is the citing of Frito chips and Peanut butter. Give me a break. At last summer's International Vegetarian Congress in Dresden, Germany I ran into a great variety of vegans - SOME on a similarly bad diet. In a general sense the fewer Frito chips we eat the better. Ditto with peanut butter (most common varieties are loaded with very unhealthy trans-fats). DUH.
Ew, soy. Uh, most vegans I know don't eat much soy except in the beginning, "I'm going to eat vegan junk food versions of omnivorous junk food" transition phase.
Well, good luck. Do they think dairy will *help* your body? I would maybe talk to some more knowledgeable doctors, ones that don't think vegans subsist on tofu and Boca burgers.
I have thyroid disease, hashimotos and I am vegan. I have found that I need to supplement with nutrient rich foods including the hemp family including plenty of fresh raw comestibles, as there is no other way for me as I have a plethora of other allergies to many of the staples of vege-dom (soy, wheat, potato).
One size does not fit all and in the process of your disease you may find that you are not able to eat meat either as autoimmune disease is a nasty mistress that can constantly evolve. I had to stop eating fish and meat also as my system became increasingly intolerant and digestion suffered.
I have found that by far for me, being vegan has helped my autoimmune thyroid disease which has now stabalized. Thank you and all the best
I'm a hypothyroid vegan with rheumatoid arthritis. My thyroid was (probably) destroyed by a combination of stress (auto-pedestrian accident, three surgeries) and too much soy products of the TVP/protein isolate variety.
It can't be stressed enough that you need to be optimally medicated. I take Thyrolar, which is a T4/T3 combination, and my TSH is something like 0.1, which my doctor thinks is bad (hyperthyroid) but I have no symptoms and feel great. I lost 47 pounds on a vegetarian diet. I gained about 18 of them back and now that I'm vegan it's proved a bit difficult to lose them, but I blame menopause, not veganism.
My husband makes our own faux meat substitutes with tofu and gluten. It works out to be about .5 oz. soy per 3 oz. serving. I have found that the occasional tofu, soy milk or yogurt doesn't do any harm. I alternate the above faux meat with beans, nuts, rice, pea and hemp proteins. Oatmeal with pea protein is incredible. I use almond and rice milk most of the time and there are now coconut milk and rice yogurts which are pretty good.
Finding a conventional vegan health professional is tough; I haven't found one locally, but if you do a lot of research you can heal yourself.
Best of luck,
f
Hello,
Thank you for sharing your story. I also have Hasimoto/Hypo and have been struggling since 1993 with it. I've learned what my body can and cannot tolerate. Soy is a major one. But oddly Peanut Butter makes my body ache after eating, so I'm assuming peanuts may be a problem.. I do much better eating more protein/less carbs. Sadly peanut butter is not one of the proteins. Good luck to you and make sure you get plenty of B complex...Take care.
Dear Megan,
I was diagnosed with Hashimoto's hypothyroidism last January after fighting with medical people for 2 YEARS to test my thyroid.
I was a lacto-ova vegetarian for many years basically because it was easier than dealing with meat. Cheaper too. My boys' dad is from India and, the person who said that Indians are vegetarians by choice obviously hasn't been to India. The people eat what they eat because it is cheap. Period. Cows give milk and chickens give eats, so it is smarter to NOT eat an on-going source of food. (Eat the chicken or cow=no eggs or milk) As others have mentioned though, a diet balanced in legumes and grains can provide enough protein - even absent soy. I hear that you eat out a lot and that does make life difficult to remain healthy - on any diet. (BTW, my MD bf says that there are minute amounts of thyroid hormone in the meats which is why, when I do eat it, I get a jolt for a day or so. There is also the iron and B12 issues, which can be dealt with in pill or drop form.)
Because my sister tried the "gold standard" for thyroid care, Sinthroid and Cytomel and it FAILED HER MISERABLY, I knew it probably would behoove me to tell my doctor. Armour Thyroid has worked for her, me and my other sister who was diagnosed this year. I moved to another state and went through three doctors before I found one that treated me as a whole person. I recommend D.O. because their training is in that direction. Also, I treat to my free T3 and free T4 levels, rather than TSH. TSH is the most indirect way to treat because it tells one how the pituitary is functioning rather than the thyroid. (My TSH is 0.003, while my FT3 and FT4 are in the mid-normal range.)
Also, you might want to push your doc to test your Ferritin (stored iron) levels and adrenals. If either or both are low, whatever meds you take will be less effective.
Best of health to you...
I have hashis, too, and found a long time ago in the early 80s that I could not eat soy as it made me sick, and learned later after doing some research that it interferes with thyroid. Back then my endocrinologist( no longer my endocrinologist) treated me like I was nuts when I mentioned the thyroid/soy connection. Now any sound endocrinologist knows this connection.
Lately I've started getting hashi symptoms ( particularly "jitteriness" and digestive symptoms ) from other foods. I did some research/talked to my endocrinologist and learned that foods high in fluoride( soy is one, many teas are also, and there is a whole list you can GOOGLE for fluoride amounts in many foods)also are problematic for people with thyroid conditions/hashimotos. I started my research when I got really sick ( bad digestive upset and extremely jittery) when I drank Rooibus tea for the first time, and learned it is is loaded with fluoride .
So if you have hashis or other thyroid diseases, read up on fluoride and thyroid diseases and avoid foods that are high in fluoride.
I have been a non-strict vegan (i.e. do eat eggs, fish etc.) off and on for years. I have Hashimoto's disease and usually feel better on gluten free, vegan diets.
During my early (30 years ago) stints as a vegan, sometimes due to meat shortages), I never even considered soy protein. I was quite well and satisfied with other plant protein sources.
I was pleased to see the links to non-soy vegan sites - Thanks much.
I have been a vegan for ten years, and struggled with Hashimoto's myself for the last 5 years. This summer I faced a similar dire warning from two different doctors and made the compromise of adding fish to my diet twice a week. Manage the other days using nuts and grains and legumes, but also carefully weigh and measure. Still can't lose weight, but the careful portion control does let me maintain and not gain. Also stepped up my walking from 2 miles to three ...
Feel free to contact me if you need encouragement, moral support, (commiseration?) -- and I appreciate your openness with your struggles.
Dear Megan,
I, too, have Hashimoto's, had a partial thyroidectomy a year ago because of a goiter, and think I have just finally figured out 2 weeks ago that soy was the cause of many lingering effects. Immediately upon going off of soy, I lost 5 lbs. in a weekend, seemingly because of the effects of soy on water retention (and thus hypertension). More importantly, the mental effects have seemed to clear up - I was extremely tired after eating soy and my brain would just not function. I found myself having to search for words and stuttering in the process, quite a problem for a teacher when lecturing. I haven't had the intolerance for soy tested for - have you had any anti-body checks for it? If so I'd like to know what you had done. I'm also planning a soy "challenge" by eating some soy flakes, but don't want to do it yet because I don't want to feel that bad over the holidays.
Good luck (to us both!) on recovering health,
TJ
Megan, you don't technically have a "Soy allergy". Soy is a goitrogen, it interferes with the thyroid's ability to uptake essential iodine which is why people with thyroid disease need to avoid it. However, there are other foods that do too. For example, peanuts. You mention eating peanut butter. You shouldn't be. Switch to almond butter or a host of other nuts (avoid pinenuts). Raw spinach, broccoli and several others should be avoided too for the very same reason. Google what goitrogens are and compile a list of foods to avoid or avoid raw. Now that you know you have the diseae you need to be very proactive in learning all you can and there are some great sites out there like:
www.stopthethyroidmadness.com
I have been suffering from thyroid disease a long time and can tell you from experience avoiding these foods really helps. I never considered myself vegan but I guess I pretty much am since I avoid meats, and dairy. However, there are tons of foods to get protein from like organic brown rice products (if you mix with beans in a meal you get a complete protein), quinoa, etc.
I think you are misinformed that you can't be vegan and have thyroid or any other autoimmune disease. Many people are doing fine with a vegan diet so if you really want to go vegan, you can. Either way, good luck to you. I hope your health improves and please check out that site. It lists supplements, further tests to have, all kinds of tips, other patients experiences, etc. You might need medication too.
To Erik from Vegan.com, I have to say one of the things that INFURIATES me about all the vegan and vegetarian magazines, websites, and food industry in general is all the darn soy they use. Forget people like me for a moment that have thyroid disease. Did you know that soy is one of the most contaminated crops in the country and world? They use sewer sludge to fertilize the crops and most are GMO. No one should ever touch the stuff unless it is certified organic and non GMO and even then, if you don't have any diseases I would only eat in moderation. There are so many alternative beans they could be using and every time I read a magazine promoting soy I stop reading it because it tells me the publishers don't know anything about good health.
fkwan, gluten and soy are both bad for thyroid patients.
Try avoid both completely for two months and report back if you lose weight. I am willing to be not only will you, but you will feel better too.
Dear Megan,
First, I commend you for surviving your struggle and for writing about it so eloquently and publicly. That takes courage.
I have hypothyroidism (but not Hashimoto's) and am also gluten intolerant, which I learned two years after my thyroid disease was diagnosed. I *had* been eating as a vegetarian (but not vegan) before my thyroid disease was diagnosed and found out that there is some research that overconsumption of soy might actually trigger hypothyroidism in some folks. So I started eating meat again (organic, free-range, humane) and stayed away from the soy. I now can eat soy IN MODERATION, and usually in its fermented form (so in tamari or in tempeh).
After my thyroid was "corrected," it started acting up again, and it turns out I needed to stay away from soy and also switch to a bio-identical hormone (in my case, Nature-throid) rather than Synthroid/Levothyroxine/Levoxyl/etc. If you are taking synthetic thyroid hormone, try a bioidentical hormone like Armour Thyroid or Nature-throid and see if that helps you. Also, be sure that--if you are taking a synthetic--that you're taking the same brand (even if it's the same generic brand) every month, because the companies use various fillers/binders that can change the way your body processes the hormone. Armour and Nature-throid are derived from animals, which can be a hard thing to handle. But they are truly the only drug that works for many, many thyroid patients.
Make sure your endo is checking your Free T3, Reverse T3, and Free T4 in addition to your TSH. T3 is the thyroid hormone that makes us feel energetic and well. Synthetic thyroid hormone only replaces T4. If your body is having trouble breaking down T4, and you are taking only a synthetic hormone, you won't have any T3, and so even though your TSH might be "normal" (which is itself a debatable number/concept), your thyroid could still be out of whack. (Hence continued weight gain and lack of energy.) You could also try supplementing your synthetic hormone with Cytomel, which is pure T3. Some people take Cytomel with their synthetic T4, some people take it at various points throughout the day, etc. It's a process! I agree with Dean above that "stopthethyroidmadness" is a good web resource for these sorts of issues. Mary Shomon is a knowledgeable patient advocate and a great resource.It's shocking how little most MDs know about the thyroid, especially regarding nutrition and thyroid disease.
Finally, be careful about replacing soy with wheat and other glutenous grains. People with autoimmune and other thyroid diseases are at increased risk for celiac disease and gluten intolerance. And eating too much gluten can, in some people, trigger the intolerance.
Remember that too much of anything can trigger allergies/intolerances in people, so be sure and vary up your diet. Don't have brown rice and beans every day, or potatoes, or peanut butter, or what have you. Mix it up! Find your safe foods and rotate them. I think another thing that has helped me is remembering that it won't necessarily always be this way. Our bodies are always changing, and maybe someday you will be able to eat soy again (in moderation). Maybe not. Who knows?
My recommendations for vegan, soy-free, gluten-free, high-protein foods/resources:
--almond milk, yum!!!!
--beans, rice, quinoa, amaranth, millet, wild rice
--Bob's Red Mill products for quality and delicious grains and beans (bobsredmill.com)
--Indian, Ethiopian, and Mexican cuisines
--www.glutenfreegirl.com and www.101cookbooks.com
--your local Whole Foods/Wild Oats/health food store--surely they have classes or other resources about dietary restrictions?
GOOD LUCK! I am looking forward to reading more about your food/thyroid journey. Remember that you are NOT alone. Dietary restrictions SUCK, but we are all in this together. :)
Megan,
Sorry you have been feeling bad. I was diagnosed with hypothyroid and take Armour it worked great at first. then my doc reduced the dosage now most days it doesn't work. I gained 35 pounds in 3 years. I am a double digit diva and hate the way I feel and look. Somedays I wanted to SCREAM!!!! Why can't I get help!!!! Then I found this amazing book and website.....the book is Living on Live Foods the website is www.alissacohen.com this is a lifestyle like vegan only it is rawfooders.....so what I am learning is that Bvitamins and plant proteins are better for us than the soy that you write about. rawfooders do not eat meat because that kind of protein does not assimilate into the body like the plant proteins, your body will actually heal itself in the right "toxin free" environment, you may want to try the raw food lifestyle for a while. I know that changing from coffee to mate tea and taking natural B-12, B-6 & folic has helped me have more energy.....I'm getting my vitamin D levels checked also...... Alissa also owns a raw food restaurant and you can get your orders delivered the restaurant is in Boston and the name is Grezzo's on www.alissacohen.com you can find a link to her restaurant. Hope you get to feeling fine in 2009!
Hello Megan,
You have my entire sympathy as you struggle with thyroid disease, especially Hashi's which takes its own time to resolve, driving you crazy in the meantime, and complicated food choices in your diet. It's not easy.
I know that, having been allergic to eggs all my life, having thyroid disease as a teenager and being treated with radioactive iodine, so now I don't have any thyroid gland at all. (I don't recommend RAI for anyone).
I also have a huge allergy to soy, which is very very hard to live with, because it's in tons of stuff, including chocolate. Anyone wants to Google in "alternate names for soy" is in for a surprise. My allergy to soy makes my blood pressure drop, and my heart beat erratically. Almost all bread products these days are made with soy flour, straight soy protein, so you gotta watch out for that. My solution was to buy a bread machine.
I have just recently been diagnosed with Celiac disease - another autoimmune disease, so it's just FUN FUN FUN these days. I would love to learn how to cook Indian food myself, but so far my attempts have been awful and inedible.
Okay, enough complaining from me. Sorry you have been getting some really nasty posts Megan. One poster obviously did not realize that soy interacts with thyroid medication, basically knocking it out. When you have thyroid disease it's basically no soy protein at al;, and that's the bottom line. Two exceptions (unless allergic), soy oil and Kikoman brand soy sause. Both are so processed that all the bad stuff is gone. Otherwise, there's no soy for you and me. Hey, if other's don't like it, they are free to live their lives their own way and keep their mouths shut while we struggle to live with the hand we've been dealt. That's MY philosophy.
Big hugs, Ann
Hi Megan~
Went to see my physician on Monday, and was prescribed 0.50MG Tab 50MCG of Synthroid(Name Brand not generic).
I too was told my TSH Level was elevated, meaning I was told I had Hypothyroid, or HASHI. I do not like taking any kind of medication if I don't have too.
My body is very sensitive to whatever it takes.
I was prescribed this most likely due to the fact that I informed her that my hairdresser noticed a bald patch on the left side of my hair line underneath and a small one on the right side had also started. My Hairdresser said to get in and see your Primary soon.
I did have my annual blood work done, and I had a same day appt the following day with my Primary. Told her that I have been overly stressed/my hair had fallen out(Alopecia)and it had also accellerated with dying my hair. I told her I wasn't feeling like myself and my scalp was burning and tingling due to the inflammation.
Needless to say, I felt really bad. She had prescribed the medication above along with a cream for my scalp. I can only say, both are horrible.
Taking the Synthroid medication for only 5 days, has made me jittery,cold,hot,itching,neck aches, feel as if you are on high alert, etc.
I had to cut back on my own today to 1/2 of the daily dosage. Not really seeing much of a difference.
I am going to call tomm to contact my Primary and follow-up.
I do like the information posted by
glutenandsoyfree regarding trying the Bio-identical Hormone (Nature-thyroid) or Armour-Thyroid). I will definitely look into that.
I so appreciate all the feedback from everyone's posts. I am on a long journey as all of you have been on. I have been basically healthy all of my life except for this blasted menopause. My hats are off to all of you ladies.
If you have any suggestions, please feel free to keep them coming.
:)