Successful dietary intervention plan for Hashimoto’s thyroiditis: A case study

Abstract

A 49 years old obese woman, medically free from any of chronic diseases, was newly diagnosed with Hashimoto’s thyroiditis (HT) of unknown cause by the specialized internist endocrinologist. To manage the case, a modified autoimmune Paleo low-calorie diet (1200 kcal) was recommended for 6 months. The anthropometric measurements, body composition, fasting blood glucose, fasting insulin, non-HDL cholesterol, HDL, triglycerides (TG), thyroxin (T4), triiodothyronine (T3), thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH), and thyroid peroxidase (TPO) were measured on basal level and every 30 days until day 180. Results showed a significant (p < 0.05) reduction in body weight, body mass index, waist and hip circumference, waist to hip ratio, fat mass, TG, non-HDL cholesterol, TSH, and TPO, while T3 and T4 remained within normal reference range. Also, there was a significant elevation in the HDL cholesterol level with statistically non-significant (p > 0.05) decrease in fasting insulin.

Conclusion. The diet improves the TSH, TPO, anthropometric, body composition, HDL and non-HDL cholesterol levels. These improvements will help the HT patients to improve their health and quality of life, as well as reduce inflammation, thyroxin treatment dose, and risk for chronic diseases associated with future hypothyroidism.