Effects of Raw Cruciferous Vegetables on Thyroid and Cancer Prevention

Aug

Written by Ritamarie Loscalzo

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I just watched an excellent video about the effects of cruceriferous vegetables like broccoli and kale on thyroid health. It was posted on Kevin Gianni’s Renegade Health Show blog.

Here’s the link to the show, followed by my comments.

http://renegadehealth.com/blog/the-real-effect-of-raw-cruciferous-vegetables-on-the-thyroid

My comments:

I’ve been studying thyroid issues for a long time and an exhaustive study of hundreds of medline research papers lead me to the same conclusion as Kevin. Most of the studies on the goitrogenic effect of isothyocyanate used an isolated extract not cruciferous vegetables. And even with large doses of isolates, the effects on the thyroid were reversed by adding iodine to the animal’s diet. I recommend that people who include a lot of crucifers especially in smoothies add a teaspoon of powdered sea vegetables to their smoothies, salad dressings or sprinkled on their food. By doing this, many of my patients have dramatically improved their TSH levels (see below) in as little as 3 months. Certain species of kelp, especially laminaria digitata (available from Maine Coast Sea Vegetables seaveg.com) have been shown to contain preformed T3 and T4 (the thyroid hormones). Dr. Ryan Drum has a couple of really good, very detailed articles on this on his website)

Many good points were raised in the discussion, and many great questions asked. I’d like to address a few:
1- what’s the best test for thyroid. The medical standard is TSH, although the range used by most labs miss many cases. The TSH range should be between 1.5 and 3.2. Sometimes the TSH comes within the normal range even when thyroid symptoms are present. Taking the first morning temperature, often called basal body temperature, is a good way to determine if the thyroid is low.

2- Just adding iodine will not reverse hypothyroid unless the condition is specifically related to an iodine deficiency. Thyroid has many causes. I addressed these at Raw Spirit Fest in 2008. A copy of my presentation, along with several other e-books on greens is available for FREE at http://www.drritamarie.com/green

3- A lot of hypothyroidism is not primarily a thyroid problem, but is related to adrenal stress or adrenal insufficiency, cause by chronic stress. This type of thyroid problem responds well to stress management and diet and lifestyle change. I have a few articles on adrenal fatigue on my blog… http://www.drritamarie.com/blog

Thanks again Kevin for exploring these important issues.

Dr. Ritamarie Loscalzo
http://www.FreshnFunLiving.com