
Want to improve your success in taming Hashimoto’s hypothyroidism with the autoimmune paleo (AIP) diet? Research shows a food diary can help you stick to the diet. Weight loss studies shows those who kept a food diary lost 30 to 50 percent more weight than those who didn’t. If you’re managing Hashimoto’s low thyroid, the main objective is to quench your autoimmune low thyroid — luckily you don’t have to go hungry on on the AIP diet!
Keeping a food journal keeps you aware
We can trick ourselves into thinking we are eating one way when we are actually cheating ourselves of better health. It’s amazing what we can hide from ourselves. Journaling what you eat not only keeps you honest and aware, it also provides insights what foods may cause a flare of your Hashimoto’s low thyroid. Maybe your food was contaminated at a restaurant, or that bite of an red-flag food was worse than you thought.
Keeping a food diary for motivation
Having to record what you eat is proven to motivate people to stick to their AIP diet. That forbidden food loses appeal when you have to add it your log, knowing it may very well trigger a Hashimoto’s autoimmune flare. On the other hand, writing down your successes boosts motivation and a way to congratulate yourself.
Writing down timing, location, and mood around meals and snacks can help you see if waiting too long between meals triggered you to go off your AIP diet. Or maybe it was a particular person or situation. Also, you can see if certain foods give you brain fog or depression.
Keeping a food journal for Hashimoto’s low thyroid
Hashimoto’s low thyroid means giving up some favorite foods, like gluten and dairy. Multiple sclerosis, psoriasis, rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, and other autoimmune diseases also respond well to dietary changes. Keeping a food journal helps with compliance and tracking which foods cause flares. This is especially important in the reintroduction phase. For instance, you may be gluten-free and dairy-free, but you notice your Hashimoto’s low thyroid symptoms worsen when you eat eggs.
Keeping a food journal to find food intolerances
A food diary can help you during the reintroduction phase of the AIP diet. After following the diet 6-12 weeks, you reintroduce each food one at a time every 72 hours and see whether you react. However, given the links between gluten and Hashimoto’s, it is not recommended to reintroduce gluten given. It is also generally not recommended to reintroduce dairy because it cross reacts with gluten.
Ask my office about tips for keeping a food diary, managing Hashimoto’s hypothyroidism, and implementing the AIP diet.
How to learn if you have Hashimoto’s low thyroid
Many patients are not diagnosed with hypothyroidism or Hashimoto’s until after several years and going through several doctors. It is a demoralizing journey richly illustrated in my book The Truth About Low Thyroid: Stories of Hope and Healing for Those Suffering With Hashimoto’s Low Thyroid Disease, through real-life stories from patients in my practice. Managing Hashimoto’s goes far beyond using thyroid medication as you must work to stop the immune system from attacking the thyroid. For more information on identifying and managing Hashimoto’s low thyroid, contact my office.
About Dr. Josh Redd, Chiropractic Physician — Utah, Arizona, New Mexico functional medicine
Dr. Joshua J. Redd, DC, MS, DABFM, DAAIM, author of The Truth About Low Thyroid: Stories of Hope and Healing for Those Suffering With Hashimoto’s Low Thyroid Disease, is a chiropractic physician and the founder of RedRiver Health and Wellness Center with practices in Utah, Arizona, and New Mexico. He sees patients from around the world who suffer from challenging thyroid disorders, Hashimoto’s disease, and other autoimmune conditions. In addition to his chiropractic degree, Dr. Redd has a BS in Health and Wellness, a BS in Anatomy, and a MS in Human Nutrition and Functional Medicine. He speaks across the nation, teaching physicians about functional blood chemistry, low thyroid, Hashimoto’s, and autoimmunity. You can join his Facebook page here.