Soy destroys your thyroid

[Meat Eater]

I was drinking soy milk daily for over a year before I got a very bad case of hyperthyroidism that nearly killed me.

Has anybody else had thyroid troubles after eating a lot of soy based products?(Soy milk, tofu, miso, sauces, etc.)

http://www.vegetariansareevil.com/soy.html

[Alex]

You are correct. I was drinking soy milk for over 6 months and started to suffer from horrible thyroids problems. I just stopped soy milk 1 month ago, and still feel the terrible effects. For what I have read, it can take up to 3 months to recover from poisoning with soy.

[e-mail]

Meat Eater wrote:

I was drinking soy milk daily for over a year before I got a very bad case of hyperthyroidism that nearly killed me.
Has anybody else had thyroid troubles after eating a lot of soy based products?(Soy milk, tofu, miso, sauces, etc.)
http://www.vegetariansareevil.com/soy.html

[Sean]

I seem to be having issues with my thyroid and just before all my issues started back in 2006(hair falling out, sweating issues, heart palpitations, fatigue, among a couple others)is when I began drinking soy milk and soy products.

I thought the hair loss was due to not eating enough protein (I went vegetarian) but since then I am back on meat. But now I'm thinking it's the soy. I've read some positive stuff on soy and not so positive. I'm definitely going to take a chance and stop taking it for a while. I'm going to be getting my blood screened soon to see if I have hypo or hyperthyroidism and for the fact that my hair (even thought it's stopped falling out) hasn't grown back to normal. It's definitely frustrating.

[Sean]

Well I went to the doctors October 2nd, and guess what!? I was diagnosed with "subclinal Hypothyroidism". Yay me... My t3 and t4 are normal but my TSH level is high. It's a 7.02. I stopped drinking the soy milk in early September and the sweating issue is nearly non existant, unless of course I consume something with soy in it. Which is hard to do these days given that soy is in almost anything. So the sweating comes and goes but it's not nearly as bad as it use to be.

The doctor told me that since high testosterone is related to hair loss, mine was normal so it must be the thyroid affecting my hair but the strict diet I put myself on three years ago probably led to the hair loss and now the thyroid was just keeping it from going back to normal. They want to put me on some synthetic crap that I absolutely do not want to take. I told them I would like to go the natural route and try Armor Thyroid.

I'm going in for another test to see if my thyroid has gotten any better, worse, or stayed the same. It's such a shame because I have a feeling the sweating is related to the thyroid and if thats not completely gone than it probably hasn't gotten any better. I'm hoping since "subclinical hypothyroidism" has a chance of going away, I'm hoping that when I go completely organic and avoid foods with soy as much as possible and take vitamins that it will eventually clear up. I hope! I'm going to go on this armor stuff for a year or so and then take myself off of it to see if anything changes.

After the next test, there going to start treatment but I absolutely do not want to take the synthetic stuff. I'm glad I stopped the soy milk when I did, although, it may be too late. I sure hope not though. No chocolate or cookies for me this Christmas!

[Katy]

I too was a victim of soy. I moved to soy for many food products thinking I was going to improve my health.
The soy industry has a huge lobby in the US and they are doing everything they can to convince Americans we need this in our diet. It's working because if you start to read labels you realize it's everywhere and in things you would never even think of.
I was recently diagnosed hypothyroid. I am certain the soy at least played a role in that. Also I believe (as does my doctor) due to the soy, I developed uterine polyps and had to have surgery to remove them. As a result of the polyps, I had severe bleeding which resulted in anemia, extreme cramping, and severe forms of PMS symptoms. It was like dominoes, problem after problem. It took me 3 1/2 years to recover from all of this and start to feel better! I wouldn't touch soy again with a 10 foot pole!
Soy is a phytoestrogen. A phytoestrogen means it's a plant version of estrogen. It is a bioidentical estrogen which our bodies recognize it as it does our own estrogen. What that means is that when you eat soy you are eating and adding estrogen to your body. Estrogen is a HORMONE. Hormones are very potent even in the smallest amounts. Hormones control functions in your body. Hormones must function in balance with one another (such as progesterone, testosterone, thyroid, etc...) or serious problems may develop.
This is bad for premenipausal women, horrible for men. It can cause women to have problems related to too much estrogen in the body, such as polyps, fibroids, suspected to cause certain cancers, etc... while the men can get problems related to too much estrogen (throws other hormones off balance) such as breast development, weight gain, and it's now suspected to be at least partially responsible in prostate cancer, etc...
My doctor told me the ONLY people who may benefit are post menapausal women - maybe, it depends.
While the industry tells us that soy is good for us, and to look at people in asia as an example of health, they DON'T tell us that in asia they mostly consume FERMENTED soy which tends to remove most of the phytoestrenogenic qualities of soy.
Probably the worst offender is baby soy formula. Studies have been done and found that the amount of phytoestrogens consumed by infants in one day of soy formula is equivalent to the estrogen in 28 birth control pills!!!!!!!!!! Would you give your baby girl or boy 28 birth control pills? NO! What is this doing to our children, well nobody really knows but if you understand the implications of adding such extreme amounts of hormones to a little body, you can get an idea.
It's found in places you may never even think to look, face cream, hand lotion, soap, spices, drinks, vitamins, medicines, etc... please do your own research and read all labels so you know what is going into your body and your the bodies of your family members. Also, know that soy or processed soy (still phytoestrogens) goes by different names.
Last thing to keep in mind. We already get lots of excess estrogen in our bodies from unexpected sources such as plastics, food in plastics, drinks in plastics, think of anything in plastic. Generally speaking, the softer the plastic the more estrogen it transferrs to the contents. Also we get estrogen from pesticides, fertilizers, herbicides. These are environmental estrogens. Anyone concerned about the environment should be concerned about this topic.
Please, do your own research on the web and see for yourself.

[Ivy]

Just surfing and ran across the soy topic. What sort of things have soy that one might not expect?

[priscilla Chilcote]

My tsh level in april 29.42. Yikes! Diet very high in soy used in stir fry and
also the use of brassica vegetables. I went from tsh level of .02 in July 08
to this high level tsh of 29.42. Hope now that I realize that I have been doing so many things wrong that my levels will go down.

[priscilla Chilcote]

I also have been to 3 doctors and my diet doesn't seem to be a concern to
any of them. This is June 11th and I am still going a little nuts trying to get
some answers.
Thanks for any comments that might help.

[James]

Yes, I'm in the same boat right now.

Over the last few years I have developed a very serious case of hyperthyroidism, which has caused a number of problems for me, including hair loss, severe insomnia, and unusual weight gain, especially in my torso/midsection and on my face (specifically, my face has gotten very puffy).

For the past three or four years, I've also been consuming soy products regularly. Especially over the last three years, I've been consuming at least one cup of soy milk a day (usually with cereal or oatmeal), and I've been using a soy-based mayonnaise, among many other soy products. I've been eating so much soy because I had read so much about its health benefits. Of course I wouldn't have ever touched it had I known what I know now about its connection with thyroid function.(Admittedly, I didn't even know what the thyroid *was* at that time, so I may not have been receptive to this information anyway.)

Now, to be fair, I don't know for certain if my soy consumption caused this problem, nor am I going to go out of my way to try to discourage anyone from eating soy if they insist on doing so.
What I do know, however, is that I can get all the nutrients I was getting from soy elsewhere. In other words, I don't necessarily *need* to eat soy, so there's no reason for me to continue doing so and risk damaging my thyroid further. I now play it safe by only using non-soy products, such as almond milk.

I otherwise eat very healthy. I hope my avoidance of soy proves successful and helps me get my overall health back on track. I hope the same for any of you who are dealing with similar problems. Trust me; I know it's not easy.

[eSYAH]

Hight TSH level means that your thyroid is underactive.

[priscilla Chilcote]

Thank you for your comments. My tsh level went from 29.42 in April to
11.47 in June. Now in July my tsh level back up to 17. What gives? Weight is still my biggest issue. I have cut out all soy, and it is really hard to do as
everything has soy including See's candy. Just about anything prepared has
soy in it. Eating Celiac is a healthy choice but I try not to eat prepared gluten free foods because they don't agree with me.

[jen]

....toxins....While soy is beneficial...like everything else in our lives.... too much of a good thing is always bad. Some soy every now and again can be good for you.... but daily soy milk and other daily soy intakes can take a toll on your body....

[Nora]

I too developed uterine polyps at 30. I had been a vegetarian for 18 years, regularly have soy as the base in my chinese and thai dishes. Also consuming soy cappuccinos. I had surgery to remove the polyps. I will never touch soy again. I can't believe how duped I was.

[sak]

I was just diagnosed with a high TSH level - just above the normal level. I have many of the symptoms of hypothyroidism, loss of sleep, hair loss, heart palpatations,etc. Because I am lactose intolerant, I use soy milk a lot especially in lattes. I also consume a lot of meatless products with soy. I have stopped all soy products and hope that my TSH level drops. Has anyone had this experience? My doctors does not seem to think soy has anything to do with the high TSH but then he has never heard that soy affects the thyroid, so there you go. I do NOT want to take the drugs that he recommends.

[mike]

Sak,
I am in the same situation that you are. I have had high TSH levels for the last couple of years, though my t3 and t4 are normal. Coincidentally, 3 years ago I started to have a big soy milk shake for breakfast every morning. I was so sure that it was going to be good for my cholesterol that I decided to make a complete change from milk to soy in everything I was drinking (coffee, shakes, cereal, etc.). I have been diagnosed with hypothyrodism 4 weeks ago and I was prescribed syntrhoid. I took it for almost two weeks and I just suspended given its horrible side effects (headache, nausea) but the most important one, took my blood pressure over the sky. I am going to suggest my doctor to stop the medication for 3 months with zero soy products for me and then repeat the blood test. If my tsh is still high I think that I am going to try the armour thyroid. I hope this story helps and good luck!

sak wrote:

I was just diagnosed with a high TSH level - just above the normal level. I have many of the symptoms of hypothyroidism, loss of sleep, hair loss, heart palpatations,etc. Because I am lactose intolerant, I use soy milk a lot especially in lattes. I also consume a lot of meatless products with soy. I have stopped all soy products and hope that my TSH level drops. Has anyone had this experience? My doctors does not seem to think soy has anything to do with the high TSH but then he has never heard that soy affects the thyroid, so there you go. I do NOT want to take the drugs that he recommends.

[Rue]

I am also a vegan with hashimotos and thyroid auto immune. I ate a lot of soy til learned it slows down your thyroid.(Cows milk on the other hand is the molecular weight of glue and is used to make paint so can't say it is healthy at all..)
Now I eat soy only very rarely. Coconut oil, coconut water coconut milk all rev up your thyroid. I have replaced soy milk with almond milk. The drug company just took the medicine I was taking off the market (thyrolar) and I won't take compounded pig thyroid in any form and so am in a bind and hoping major doses of iodine and iodide will help. Right now am really suffering.

[eba]

I have just recently experienced abnormally excessive dripping wet sweats. If I engage in something simple like sweeping the floor, I begin to sweat. Soon my hair is dripping and my clothes are damp. I remember this happening one other time in my life when I accidentally doubled up on my premarin. When I stopped it for a few days, it cleared up. In September I stopped taking premarin and began drinking a soy smoothie every morning. It is part of a Juice Plus regime for a healthier body. Blood work just taken says my thyroid is normal. But after reading these statements I am wondering if the soy is causing the sweats. At any rate, I plan to stop drinking soy milk!

[Eileen Stein]

My husband was recently diagnosed as hypothyroid. Severe. Classic symptoms. This was immediately prededed by a three month diet of a half gallon of soy milk for lunch daily, a soy milk that was greatly enriched with additional Vitamin D and soy protein. We strongly suspect a link to the soy consumption, as this is heavily supported in literature. Currently, he is taking synthetic hormone and levels are beginning to normalize. we had hoped that removing the soy from his diet would've been the answer. Does anyone have any info on whether soy related thyroid damage is reversible?

[sak]

Meat Eater wrote:

I was drinking soy milk daily for over a year before I got a very bad case of hyperthyroidism that nearly killed me.
Has anybody else had thyroid troubles after eating a lot of soy based products?(Soy milk, tofu, miso, sauces, etc.)
http://www.vegetariansareevil.com/soy.html

I consumed soy products for several years because of lactose intolerance. When I began having symptoms - hair loss, fatigue, heart palpitations, especially at night - I went in for a blood test and found that my TSH level was higher than normal. I went off soy, and I do mean all soy, for six months. You will find it in everything, salad dressing, mayonnaise, breads, etc. When I went back for another test, my TSH levels were almost normal but I still had other indicators that something was wrong. My doctor wants me to go on Synthroid. I do not want to do that. My symptoms are almost non-existant now, so I will continue with my non-soy diet. What pushed me over the edge was my addiction to soy lattes. That is a lot of soy milk. This is just my opinion, but you couldn't pay me to have one now. I have to go in for another test in a month and am hoping that I am back to a normal reading.

[Eileen Stein]

Good luck sak. Do you hesitate to use Synthroid because you suspect this will deter your thyroid from improving on its own? Was your improvement over that six month span slow and steady or quick? How are your symptoms now?