Yesterday, at Whole Foods, I ran into someone I know who works there. She wanted to know more about a Whole Foods Plant-Based Diet. We chatted for a while about this and that. As we were talking another woman kept circling around us. I told ‘my friend’ what my NP had said to me several years ago, as my thyroid had started to go downhill, that she’d never seen anyone recover as fast as I had and that she believes it is due to my vegan diet. (My NP is not a vegan, btw.)
This other woman abruptly butted in. She was VERY angry with me for telling my ‘friend’ this about my thyroid. Frankly, I thought she was going to punch me, she was so angry, as she came back a second time and yelled, “It’s an autoimmune disease that can’t be cured. It is science and you should not be going around and sharing this misinformation.” So I decided to ask my friend Dr. Ted Crawford for his expert opinion on the matter. Could my NP be wrong? I didn’t think so, but here’s what my friend, Dr. Ted, who is in the new documentary, Eating You Alive, responded back to me:
Well, I have personally had two patients I have with hypothyroidism on supplemental Levothyroxine adopt WFPD [Whole Foods Plant-Based Diet] and within a year HAD to go off their medication because their TSH and T4 levels normalized. If you ask Furhman, McDougall, or any other primary care physician who has been treating patients with WFPD diet, they will tell you the same thing. Most thyoid conditions are autoimmune diseases caused by dietary habits. And it can possibly be reversed in many cases. Now some cases may not be, but I believe the majority of them will normalize. You have a super Sunday as well, Nina!
So, to the Angry lady at Whole Foods,
Isn’t this great news? Now you can actually be proactive instead of reactive!
the WFPB is wonderful! people are crazy – its like they’re upset that there is a simple solution to sickness!! great post 🙂
Thank you! Or they simply are so invested in their illness!? Haven’t you ever met someone who had a health concern and this was their “life”…their entire focus? I certainly have. It wouldn’t matter if a doctor stood in front of them with the facts, they’d still hold on for dear life because their illness had become their new identity! Thanks again!
How exactly do you follow wfpb to heal your thyroid?
By eating a WFPB diet! See PCRM’s Power Plate (google it) – by eating vegetables, fruit, legumes and whole grains. I also eat potatoes… Basically, a vegan diet – but on the plant-strong side! Nothing from an animal!
Ok I can’t cure my thyroid since I had RAI and no longer have a thyroid. My question is, can someone with hypothyroid do well on wfpb diet
So many people say you need to follow the autoimmune diet AEP, and I don’t want to eat meat. Thank you
Hi Anne, I don’t see why not. Why would you have to eat meat? You already know the answer to this question! Go with your gut and leave those products alone. That’s what I would do. Nina
Waving “hi” to you, Nina. I am grateful to have found your blog post here online. I’ve been a whole food plant-based vegan for a couple of years now, but a thyroid patient (hypothyroid) for about 20 years. I keep on having hope that I will get things into balance with my thyroid. Thanks for giving me some hope. I would love more details about how/what you eat. I saw your note about the PCRM’s Power Plate and potatoes above, but us health seekers sometimes want to know more, haha! 🙂 Thanks and blessings!
Hi Lisa, Waving back to you! I hear you about the food. I’ve just lost 17 lbs….so I have been eating very clean! I’m writing a little book about my weight loss journey that I started with a non-vegan friend. I love simple meals. Vegan in 7 by Rita Serrano is a new favorite. You may be able to find it at Half-Price Books if you have one of those around. Her Green Quinoa Bowl is a favorite. I have also enjoyed cooking out of Del Sroufe’s Forks Over Knives ‘The Cookbook’ – there’s a ton of great recipes! This is, however, not how I’ve been eating in the past two months due to a much stricter diet. I hope this helps. I’ll try to get more diligent and post some more pictures – get back at it! Glad you’ve found the blog helpful. Don’t miss the interviews I did a while back found under “Two Years of Plant-based Interviews” (go into search). Blessings, Nina
Thanks so much for the kind reply and sharing resources. Much appreciated! I’ve noticed so far, so good with weight stabilization, knock on wood, since eating WFPB. I’m such an overachiever with health and am always looking for optimization, haha! 🙂
Yep, that’s an important one too. I lost 17 lbs this summer – over a month and a half – eating very clean! So far so good! Exercise is important too, but not as important as what you eat! Embrace the veggies! I’ll be getting the book printed later this year…or in January or February of 2019. Nina
Oh nice about your book! That will be so cool! I’ll look for it when it’s out! 🙂 🙂 🙂
Very excited! I have hypothroidism and I refuse to take pills for the rest of my life. I’ve been doing some research, and I’m glad I found your post!
I have just recently started a more vegan diet…not by my own request, but because dairy and eggs didn’t sit well with my breastmilk for baby. But since I have been on this way of eating, I have lost weight, my back acne has seemed to completely disappear and I just feel better all around. I have been taking thyroid meds since I became pregnant…it was never an issue before, and I was hoping that it wouldn’t be a life long situation. So I started researching how to heal your thyroid with diet and came across this article. I am glad to see it working for others and hope that it will work for me too.
That’s great, Jennifer! Fortunately, I never had to take medications. I don’t believe it has to be a life long situation, but hoping that you will pursue a whole foods plant-strong vegan diet for life! It makes a huge difference on overall health…besides thinking of the future for your baby!