A small butterfly-shaped gland located in the front of your neck is the thyroid gland. When you have thyroid disease this gland either produces excessive or insufficient thyroid hormones. Further this gland regulates various body functions, including metabolism in your body. Your lifestyle habits can impact your thyroid functions. In this blog, you’ll be reading on how to avoid thyroid problems.
In this context let’s look into few of your lifestyle habits that can impact your thyroid functions.
1. Balanced Diet
A healthy diet is one of the most effective ways to support your thyroid health. Try including at least three to four servings of vegetables and fruits every day in your diet. Additionally, your diet can also include avocados, extra virgin olive oil, lean proteins from fish or beans and lentils.
2. Take Supplements
Supplements like vitamin D, probiotics, selenium and iodine can help protect your thyroid provided it’s consumed in appropriate dosage. Further, these supplements help in boosting your immune system promoting your thyroid function. Moreover, even though iodine is important for creating thyroid hormones, it can cause weight gain, stomach pain and fever when consumed more than necessary.
3. Reduce Stress
Engaging in mindful activities such as yoga, meditation, breathing exercises and spending time outdoors can also help in stress reduction. Because high stress levels can slow down your thyroid function and metabolism leading to weight gain. At times speaking to your therapist can also be a good step.
4. Avoid Environmental Toxins
Exposure to environmental toxins can impact your immune system, leading to thyroid problems. Therefore, reducing your exposure to toxins like Phthalates, Bisphenol-A, Per-fluorinated chemicals or PFCs and Triclosan can support your thyroid health. Moreover, you need to be extra careful in choosing household products if you’re pregnant or have young children.
5. Quit Smoking
Smoking is as always injurious to health. On the other hand, this can have an impact on the thyroid when toxins present in cigarette smoke interfere with iodine and your body’s production of thyroid hormones. Further, Graves’ disease, a common cause of hyperthyroidism can be the result of tobacco consumption.
6. Exercise
If your daily routine includes exercising three to four times a day, it can help increase your muscle mass. This boosts your metabolism and helps maintain proper body weight and not feel lethargic. On understanding how to avoid thyroid problems, exercise is one of the most important lifestyle habits you can adopt.
7. Get adequate sleep
Disturbed sleep or insufficient sleep can disrupt hormone imbalance, increases risks and contributes to overall health issues. For instance, habits such as avoiding the usage of phones, laptops etc., at night, and having a good sleeping routine is essential to maintain good health.
8. Regular thyroid checkups
If your family history has thyroid or symptoms indicating thyroid problems, you must get regular thyroid tests done. This ensures early detection of the issues.
To sum up
Hence, it is clear on how to avoid thyroid problems with our everyday lifestyle habits. It is always good to take measures in advance when it comes to your thyroid. Moreover, it’s important you are proactive in noticing any symptoms of thyroid disease at the earliest. Because this helps you analyze if there is any requirement for the treatment with the help of your doctor.
