GOINDIS NATUROPATHY TRUST(INDIA)
Charity Registration No.845/4 dated 03.09.2003
THYROID DISORDERS-
CURING WITHOUT MEDICINES
SANTOKH SINGH PARMAR
FOUNDER TRUSTEES:
Satyendra Singh Goindi, MSc, LLB, ND
Gurkirpal Kaur Goindi, BA, BEd, DPE, ND
Santokh Singh Parmar, B Arch, Dip TP, Dip LA, MRTPI, AITP, AIIA
Devinder Singh Saroya, PCS
Gurmukh Singh Girn, MSc, MCRP, AITP
WHO IS AT RISK OF THYROID DISORDER?
1. Are you feeling tired all the time? Do you sleep 10 hours straight and even then need a nap? Bingeing double fudge brownies and chocolate but still loosing kilos without any reason? Or sticking to salad and soup and still putting on pounds? Are you feeling listless and low? If that is you, your body’s most important organ thyroid gland could be playing up! It is hard to believe that thyroid disease affects millions when most people don’t even know where their thyroid gland is or what it does!
2. Women are more susceptical to a thyroid malfunction than men due to the interplay of the female sex hormones. About one in eight women are likely to develop thyroid disorder in their lifetime.Women are especially likely to develop a sluggish thyroid after middle age. The disease is more common in women who are overworked and who do not get sufficient rest and relaxation. The period in older women’s life, when she is more likely to be affected by the disease, is at menopause and thereafter, or when there is extra physical strain on the body.
3. Unfortunately most people remain unaware that they have a problem as the symptoms often are subtle, develop slowly and often overlap with other diseases. In case of women, if their periods are irregular and you have trouble conceiving, a thyroid disorders have also been linked to mood disorders and decreased sexual desire. Also thyroid disorders may cause abnormally early or late onset of puberty and menstruation.
WHAT IS THYROID GLAND??
4. The butterfly shaped thyroid gland is located at the base of the neck on both sides of the windpipe and below your Adam’s apple. It weights less than an ounce, but has a big and important role to play in maintaining the body’s health. It produces thyroid hormones called thyroxine (T4) and triadothyronine (T3) whose main function is to regulate the resting metabolism of your cells-that is the chemical changes in your cells that cause them to live, grow and die. There are four tiny parathyroid glands within the thyroid gland, which regulate calcium in your blood and bones. Thus the thyroid hormones ‘activate’ every process in the body literally waking us up and keeping us awake. Thyroid gland also regulates the energy production and oxygen uptake and sends out hormones to all your major organs – an important job for your complete health. That also means when things go wrong with your
thyroid, many parts of your body feel adverse effects. Our bodies are hypersensitive to any imbalance of the thyroid hormones.
5. Metabolism partly regulated by the thyroid hormone, plays a key role in weight management, some of metabolism is genetic which means you are predisposed to have a hyperthyroid gland resulting in quick-working metabolism or hypothyroid gland resulting in slow-churning metabolism. Too much or too little thyroid hormones accelerates ageing.
CAUSES OF HYPOTHYROIDISM
6. Hypothyroidism can be caused by the failure of the pituitary to secrete the hormone that stimulates the thyroid, or more commonly, by a disease in which the immune system attacks the gland to slow the production of the hormone. Put simply, hypothyroidism results from the withering or atrophy of the thyroid gland. Viral and bacterial infections can also temporarily damage the thyroid gland, resulting in a short-term form of hypothyroidism. Without proper intake of vitamins and minerals the thyroid gland cannot function properly. Continual stress can negatively affect the thyroid, depressing its normal function. Hypothyroidism, also known as ‘myxedema’ is a condition when your thyroid gland fails to produce enough hormones to keep your metabolism moving. So everything slows down.
SYMPTOMS OF HYPOTHYROIDISM
7. It is the most common of all thyroid problems affecting more than 1 in 10 people. There are numerous symptoms of hypothyroidism. Not all the symptoms are present in every patient. It makes you unresponsive and causes symptoms like unaccounted for weight gain (especially around your middle hips and tops of legs that is very hard to shift), constipation, slow pulse and heart beat, depression, inertia, fatigue, intolerance to cold with a preference for warmth, joints and back pain, muscle cramps/aches (the earliest symptom could be morning stiffness of the small joints) and small bumps on the throat.
8. Other symptoms include inability to concentrate, minor forgetfulness and memory loss, dullness, feeling slow and tired or sleepy during the day, lusterless thick dry scaly skin, scanty hair, puffiness (swelling) on the face, loss of appetite, anaemia, high cholesterol, constipation and decrease in sexual interest. The most severe form of hypothyroidism brings on a reduced level of consciousness, even paranoia and hallucinations.
9. In women low thyroid function could manifest as heavy menstrual bleeding, infertility, sometimes-milky discharge from the breasts and husky voice. Young children with low thyroid may appear lazy, overweight and of dull intellect. Naturo-food therapy can liberate the brilliant child trapped in slow and sick body.
CAUSES OF HYPERTHYROIDISM
10. The most common cause of hyperthyroidism is a disorder known as Graves disease. This most often affects women between 20 and 40. This disease produces a substance that causes the thyroid gland to make too much thyroid hormone. There are many other things that can cause hyperthyroidism, including inflammation, pregnancy, non-cancerous growth (nodules) on the thyroid, called goitre – visible as a swelling on the neck which is the most obvious warning sign of a thyroid problem. In most cases, however, faulty diet, excessive consumption of iodine and unhealthy lifestyle are the main culprits.
11. Hyperthyroidism also known as ‘thyrotoxicosis’ or ‘exophthalmic goitre’ is a serious condition of the body and is exactly opposite of Hypothyroidism. In this condition your thyroid gland goes wild and can wreak havoc with your health. Your thyroid gland releases too many hormones than required by the body and your body goes into a bit of tizzy. It tolerates the surge to some extent but not without problems. Hyperthyroidism won’t destroy your body immediately; it will send signals throughout that you are not operating optimally and in turn will revup your metabolism. Over-stimulation of the thyroid can also be caused by the consumption of sugar, coffee and alcohol – sending the thyroid into exhausted state. Another important cause of hyperthyroidism is physical or emotional stress.
SYMPTOMS OF HYPERTHYROIDISM
12. Again there are many symptoms and not all are manifest in every patient. In case of hyperthyroidism you may experience increased appetite associated with diarrhoea and loss of weight, muscle weakness and fatigue, over-sweating, intolerance to heat, moist and warm skin than normal, passing excessive quantity of urine, brittle hair and hair loss. Other symptoms may include anxiousness, loss of libido, restlessness, nervousness, jittery mind, irritability and inability to concentrate. These conditions are not life threatening but ones that make you feel all out of sorts.
13. A lot of people develop tremulous fingers and hands or have trouble sleeping – being exhausted throughout the day is a major warning sign of hyperthyroidism. Severe cases may be associated with highly bulging eyes where the whites are visible above the central circular area. But the abnormal and occasionally very, very fast pulse rate and heartbeats (sometimes irregular and experienced as palpitations with anxious feeling) in hyperthyroidism patients can be life threatening. May be the heart is overactive and enlarged and you are advised to seek expert advice at once. Hyperthyroidism can, sometime, drive a perfectly same individual to madness due to excessive hunger, lack of rest, tiredness and loss of weight without any reason even after heavy nutritious meals and regular bingeing. In
hyperthyroidism the mensutral cycle in women, though regular, manifests scanty bleeding
THE REAL CAUSE OF THYROID DISEASES
14. In addition to the causes for hypothyroidism and hyperthyroidism described above the real cause of thyroid disease, however, is a wrong feeding habit over a long period of faulty style of living, together with suppressive medical treatment of other diseases in the past. The thyroid gland plays an important role in destroying toxic matter generated in the intestines as a result of the putrefaction of animal protein material like meat, fish, eggs, cheese and milk. The thyroid glands will be overworked when excessive quantities of these foods are consumed, resulting in the clogging of the intestinal tract with toxic matter. The overworking of the thyroid gland is further complicated by wrong living habits and excessive emotionalism both of which weaken the system.
GOITRE- SIMPLE THYROID NECK CHECH
15. The American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists suggests a simple at home goitre test with a hand held mirror and a glass of water as below:
- 1. hold the mirror, focusing on the area of your neck just below your Adam’s apple and above the collarbone. Your thyroid gland is located here;
- 2. while focusing on this area in the mirror, tip your head back;
- 3. take a sip of water and swallow;
- 4. as you swallow, watch your neck. Check for any bulges on the neck between the Adams’s apple and the collarbone;
- 5. you may want to repeat this process several times; and
- 6. if you see any protrusions in this area, seek expert advice immediately. You may have an enlarged thyroid gland or nodule.
A blood test can tell for sure if you have thyroid disease. The American Thyroid Association recommends that at least all adults over 35 have a thyroid blood test every 5 years.
CURING THYROID DISEASES WITH NATURO-FOOD THERAPY
16. Although some thyroid diseases may be beyond your control, a proper high fibre, low calorie suitable diet can help combat many symptoms and causes and keep you and your thyroid safe and healthy. Medications can sometimes treat the symptoms but invariably have adverse side-effects and do not eliminate the causes. Thus the only real treatment for thyroid diseases, as established by our naturopaths Goindis and others, is cleansing of the system and adoption of a rational dietary thereafter, combined with adequate rest and relaxation.
To being with, the patient should eat and/or take juices of fresh fruits such as orange, apple, pineapple and grapes every two hours from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. for five days. The bowels should be cleansed daily with warm water enema. A tablespoon of triphla taken with warm water before going to
- 17. bed and warm water with lemon squeezed first thing in the morning will also be helpful for bowel movement.
18. After the fruit/juice fast, the patient may spend further three days on fruits and milk, taking three meals a day of juicy fruits with a glass of milk, at five-hourly intervals. Thereafter, he may adopt a well-balanced high fibre/low calorie diet consisting of seeds, nuts and whole grains, vegetables and fruits as advised by the naturopaths.The patient should take plenty of rest and spend a day in bed every week for the first two months of the treatment. He should take physical exercise after the symptoms subside.
19. In case of hyperthyroidism, the appetite of the thyroid patient is usually very large and the weight reduction cannot be prevented for some time in case of hyperthyroidism. This is because until the heartbeat slows down and the hand tremors stop, there will be incomplete assimilation of food. But as soon as the balance is restored, weight will slowly increase. As weight increases, the almost constant hunger will gradually disappear.
20. Great care must be taken never to allow the body to become exhausted and any irritation likely to cause emotional upset should be avoided. The cure of thyroid disease is not a speedy one and there is often a recurrence of symptoms but these should gradually become less pronounced. Strict adherence to diet is essential for one year for complete cure. Half the daily intake of food should consist of fresh fruits and vegetables and the starch element should be confined to whole-wheat products and potatoes. The protein foods should be confined to cheese, peas, beans, lentils and nuts.
21. Beneficial Foods – Depending upon the condition of the patient and the suitability of certain foods, the diet should generally consist of the following foods. Carrots, mushrooms, lima beans, sweet potatoes, baked potatoes, green leafy vegetables such as spinach, sea vegetables in moderation only, oranges, apples, grapes, pineapple, avocados, apricots, mangoes, lemons/limes, whole grains and legumes (preferably sprouted) wheat germ, whole wheat home made bread, seafood, liver, skimmed milk and low fat dairy products, seeds such as of pumpkin and flax, almonds, olive or sunflower oil, and iodized salt.
22. Benefical Spices – Spices like ginger (adrak), cumin seed (jeera), fennel (saunf), aesphotida (hing), black pepper (kali mirch) and rock salt are carminative and digestive. Garlic (lasan), onions and turmeric (haldi) are also very beneficial.
23. Water/Green Tea – Drink a glass or two of warm water with lemon squeezed in first thing in the morning to help regulate the bowls and cure proper evacuation. Drink at least 8-10 glasses of water daily to flush out the toxins and impurities from the digestive system. Cooled boiled water should be consumed at room temperature where water is likely to be contaminated and lack quality control. Green or chamomile tea should be consumed as required.
24. Foods to Avoid – Certain foods fruits/vegetables are extremely injurious for thyroid patients. These include processed and refined foods with harmful additives and preservatives etc. white flour products, peanuts, white sugar, flesh foods, fried and greasy junk foods, highly spicy foods and chilies, tea, coffee and alcohol.
25. All soy products contain goitrogens, natural chemical s that interfere with your thyroid hormones. Seniors and women- prime targets for hypothyroidism – should be especially careful about eating soy on a daily basis. Peaches, almonds peanuts, and cruciferous vegetables like turnips, rutabagas, and cabbage also contain small amounts of goitrogens, As long as these food are part of a well-rounded diet, you shouldn’t experience problems. Remember, moderation is the key. Cooking also helps by breaking down these potentially harmful compounds.
BENEFICIAL VITAMINS AND MINERALS FOR THYROID GLAND
The raw materials for the thyroid gland are essentially protein, iodine and a number of vitamins and minerals. When these are inadequate and substandard the thyroid gland cannot function and disease ensues, Essential vitamins and minerals are as below: –
Iodine. Without this trace mineral, your thyroid can’t make its hormones. Disturbing new data suggest iodine deficiency is on the rise-and not just in countries like Africa and Asia. It’s becoming more common in developed nations, too. The public’s love-hate relationship with salt is a major reason for this. Most Western countries add iodine to their salt to prevent just such a deficiency. But more and more people are cutting back on salt for health reasons. Reducing salt intake is still a great idea. Just make sure you use iodized salt when you do sprinkle it on. If you’re on a no-salt diet, try getting your iodine from whole foods. High-powered iodine sources include seafood like shrimps oysters and lobsters, sea vegetables, low-fat dairy foods, and spinach. Still, remember to practice moderation with these foods, especially if you’re also using salt. Too much iodine can be dangerous, especially to iodine-sensitive people. Excess iodine can cause hypothyroidism, hyperthyroidism, goiter, or even shut your thyroid down completely.
Selenium. Even with the right amount of iodine, if your body isn’t getting enough selenium, your thyroid can have trouble making hormones. Experts suggest the right amount of selenium might also guard your thyroid against free radicals.It’s fortunate many high-iodine foods, such as seafood and milk, are also good sources of selenium. Also, eat whole-wheat products and bean meat to help keep your thyroid safe.
Vitamin A. Vitamin A is essential for thyroid health since it helps you absorb iodine property. Without it, you can develop a goiter even if you have safe iodine levels. Crunch on some carrots or serve up sweet potatoes, liver
apricots, spinach, or some other super source of beta carotene which your body turns into vitamin A.
Iron. Low iron levels mean your thyroid can’t function, as it should. Lean meat is one of your best resources for iron, but if you’re a vegetarian or watching your fat intake, you can get your iron from other foods. Green leafy vegetables, legumes, and certain grains like quinoa are good choices. Top these foods with lemon juice or drink a glass of orange jjuice with your meal to absorb the iron. The vitamin c helps your body digest iron from plants. Plus, you need c anyway to make thyroxine, a thyroid hormone.
Zinc. Levels of this mineral affect your thyroid your thyroid function and oysters are a number one way to get it. If you’re squeamish when it comes to shellfish, stick with lean meats, lima beans, and whole grains.
Vitamin E. Drizzle on the sunflower or olive oil for better thyroid health. These vegetable oils-as well as seeds, wheat germ, some nuts, and avocados-are great sources of vitamin E.
Vitamin D. A chronic deficiency of “the sunshine vitamin” can bring on hyperthyroidism. For those rainy days, plan ahead by eating fortified dairy products and seafood.
Copper. Your thyroid needs this trace mineral, though experts aren’t sure why. Don’t worry though, you’ll probably get all the copper you need from a normal diet-especially if you’re a fan of oysters, baked potatoes, lima beans, and mushrooms. Many thyroid disorder sufferers have found that a carefully chosen nutritious diet advised by our naturo-food therapists Satyendra Singh Goindi and his wife Gurkirpal Kaur Goindi have helped sufferers in restoring their health. 100% success rate has been achieved when patients have strictly adhered to the discipline of the prescribed dietary regime by the Goindis.
POSITIVE THINKING AND NATURO-FOOD THERAPY
27. Patients of thyroid disorders or other problems will highly benefit by adopting a positive thinking attitude. They should get rid of negativity and should not always be mentally occupied by bowel related complaints, which are generally minor in nature but are often magnified. They must also have full faith in the faith in the naturo-food therapy and sincerely believe (auto-suggestion) that they are bound to get better following the above-mentioned natural edicts.
28. Naturo-Food Therapy should be a way of life in both health and disease; a way of simple natural living. Its philosophy is based on the fact that we are a product of Nature cure therapy stems from the unique gift on Nature:
That the body can cure itself provided we allow Nature to take its own course without hindering it by the unwise and indiscriminate use of drugs, which always have harmful side-effects.
29. Many thyroid disorder sufferers have found that a carefully chosen nutritious diet advised by our naturo-food therapists Satyendra Singh Goindi and his wife Gurkirpal Kaur Goindi have helped in restoring their health. 100% success rate has been achieved when patients have strictly adhered to the discipline of the prescribed dietary regime by the Goindis.
Santokh Singh Parmar
Naturo-Food Therapist & Lifestyle Consultant
Mobile: +91(0) 9815922330
Websites: www.naturofoodtherapy.org & www.foodtherapy.org
July, 2005
Note: The above information and advice and indicative remedies are not a substitute for the advice, your doctor or naturo-food therapist may give you based on his/her knowledge of yourself.