Is your thyroid disorder out of control, despite taking medication? Well, blame your food for it! Some of the foods we eat daily can interfere with thyroid medicines and even negatively impact the functioning of the gland. To help you deal with this situation, we have listed out the foods to avoid for thyroid patients.

By reading about them, you can understand how a staple vegetable or grain that you eat daily, can adversely affect your health condition.

15 Foods To Avoid During Thyroid Disorders:

“One man’s food is another man’s poison” – this statement cannot be any truer than in the case of a thyroid patient. Find out how some of the foods deemed as “healthy” in other diets can be dangerous in your case.

1. Cruciferous Vegetables:

Cruciferous vegetables are those which contain high amounts of chemical compounds like sulfur and glucosinolates, which work as goitrogens. When eaten in large quantities, these chemicals interfere with the normal functioning of the thyroid gland by reducing T4 absorption. (1) It can be particularly harmful to patients with an underactive thyroid or Hypothyroidism.

Here are the list of goitrogenic foods to be avoided by hypothyroidism patients:

• Kale
• Broccoli
• Bok Choy
• Collard Greens
• Cabbage
• Cauliflower
• Mustard Greens
• Turnips
• Brussel Sprouts

See Also: Hypothyroidism Friendly Diet

2. Soy and Soybean Foods:

There is a general theory that soy and soybean foods must be avoided by patients suffering from Hypothyroidism. Studies show that soy foods inhibit the absorption of thyroid hormones from medications and increase the need for higher dosages(2). The risk is especially high in patients with iodine deficiency, who are advised to cut down on soy foods or wait for 4 hours after medication before consuming them.

Here is a list of Soy-based foods to avoid with thyroid: