Your Thyroid and Weight Gain
By Dr. Jeff Bartlett
 If weight loss is a motivational factor for you at Curves, we suggest you pay special attention to this article. We are well aware that the medical and nutritional communities have recently directed a great deal of attention to the thyroid gland and its relationship to successful weight management. It is evident that many people with hypothyroidism also struggle with extra weight that is difficult to lose even on a strict diet. First and foremost, before we discuss this relationship between weight gain and thyroid dysfunction, we must state that proper nutrition and exercise is the number one determining factor of one's weight management success. This article will address the fact that an insufficiently nourished thyroid might be a contributing factor to weight management problems, especially among women, in the US today. Therefore, this is a very important message for our Curves ladies.
How do I know if I'm affected by hypothyroidism?
Common symptoms of hypothyroidism include:
- cold hands and feet, low body temperature, sensitivity to cold, a feeling of always being chilled, headaches, insomnia, dry skin, puffy eyes, hair loss, brittle nails, joint aches, constipation, mental dullness, fatigue, frequent infections, hoarse voice, ringing in the ears, dizziness, loss of libido, and weight gain.
Please realize that these symptoms are very subjective and do not diagnose nor determine your level of thyroid function. However, if you are experiencing some of these symptoms and you are struggling to lose weight, we suggest that you go and talk to your medical doctor and discuss your options to get tested. The customary test for the thyroid function is the TSH test, but according to Dr. Joseph Mercola,"90% of patients diagnosed with underactive thyroids have a completely normal TSH level." He suggests that there appears to be a strong correlation between a threshold value of TSH above 1.5 and the diagnosis of hypothyroidism. Most of his patients who had TSH levels above 1.5 seem to respond quite well to natural therapies that either improve or replace thyroid function, and we will discuss these options later.
What is causing this epidemic?
 While more research needs to be done, it is generally accepted that diet plays a major role in thyroid health. We've also discussed in our past articles that the rise of industrialization, corporate farming, and mass production of food has drastically altered our food supply. Hopefully our readers are becoming well aware of the detrimental effects of refined sugars and grains on our health. These foods are very taxing on the thyroid gland, and we tend to consume them in large quantities. Another factor that has been well publicized in the past few decades, is that low iodine intake leads to low thyroid function and eventually to goiter. The most likely solution was to introduce iodized salt to our diet; however this has not eliminated the problem. Maybe one reason for this is that we are consuming too many foods known as goitrogens that block iodine. Two goitrogens that are quite prevalent in the Western diet are peanuts (peanut butter) and soybeans (soybean oil), which are used most often in prepared foods as textured vegetable protein. We are not stating that you should not eat these foods, but we do recommend lowering your consumption level.
Other influential factors are environmental stressors such as chemical pollutants, pesticides, mercury, and fluoride. A growing body of evidence suggests that fluoride, which is prevalent in toothpaste and water treatment, may impede the performance of the thyroid gland. Additionally, mercury may diminish thyroid function because it displaces the trace mineral selenium, and selenium is involved in the conversion of thyroid hormone T4 to T3.
What can we do about it?
- If you have been diagnosed with hypothyroidism and are taking medication, please talk to your doctor about what options there are, and we recommend doing your due diligence to investigate the use of natural hormones versus synthetic ones. As always we advocate natural products first!
- If you want to be proactive about your thyroid health, we suggest taking some form of organic iodine, which can be found at a local health food store or Whole Foods. Look for organically bound iodine that comes from non-commercially harvested seaweeds. A suggested dose is approximately 5 grams a day or roughly one ounce per week.
- Reduce grain intake and increase resistance strength training exercise to effectively lose weight.
- Focus on lowering your soy and fluoride consumption to lower the potential harm to your thyroid.
- Consider buying coconut oil. Coconut oil is known to raise basal body temperatures, boost metabolism and promote weight loss.
References:
- Dr. Joseph Mercola D.O., Internationally respected Wellness advocate.
- Beneficial effects of virgin coconut oil on lipid parameters and in vitro LDL oxidation. Clin Biochem. 2004 Sep; 37(9):830-5
- J Nutr 2003 Nov; 133(11):3422-7
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Random Kindess & Acts of Beauty
By Dr's. Jeff, Craig and Marissa
 We would like to take this moment to share our personal thoughts with you, instead of writing the customary "Ask the Docs" portion of this newsletter. In fact, we'd like to ask you a question instead. If you turn the TV on nowadays, what are you most likely going to see? Are you going to see positive and uplifting stories or are you bombarded by negative and destructive events? We are asking you this question because we strongly believe that your thoughts directly have an effect on your health. Negative thinking can, and does, manifest in our bodies as pain and illness. Therefore, if we are continually generating negative thoughts and are immersed in a negative environment, this accumulation of negative energy can NOT have a positive effect on our health. On top of the negativity from the media, we also get so caught up in our busy lives with work and the quest to"get ahead", that we do not make living a balanced and healthy life a priority.
What if we could get every one of our readers to do just one small random act of kindness tomorrow? Could this possibly create a ripple effect of amazing proportion?
Have you heard of the Chaos Theory? It has been stated that the flapping of a single butterfly's wings today produces a tiny change in the state of the atmosphere. Over a period of time, what the atmosphere actually does diverges from what it would have done. For example, a tornado that would have devastated the Indonesian coast doesn't actually develop. (Ian Stewart, Does God Play Dice? The Mathematics of Chaos, p.141) So, if this theory is true, what affect could you have on the world with just one random act of kindness? It is a powerful thought. Why is this so hard for us to do on a consistent basis? I think Princess Diana stated it perfectly,"Perhaps we're too embarrassed to change or too frightened of the consequences of showing that we actually care. But why not risk it anyway? BEGIN TODAY! Carry out an act of kindness, with no expectation of reward or punishment. Safe in the knowledge that one day, someone somewhere might do the same for you." It is amazing how good you feel when you do this. Do you remember the article we wrote on balance? Have you been neglecting your ‘spiritual' spoke? We have a small homework assignment. Please go out and rent the movie,"Pay it Forward"...you'll see the power of kind and selfless acts.
Ideas:
- Pay for someone's bridge toll
- Put a quarter into someone's expired parking meter
- Buy your co-worker a coffee or tea
- Hold the door open for someone
- Say good morning to the first person you see in the morning
- Volunteer for a non-profit service
- Give a sandwich to a homeless person or simply acknowledge their presence
There are so many ideas, but we'll leave it up to you to decide. Don't let this idea end here...let's make tomorrow an international Curves"Random Act of Kindness Day"! Together, just maybe, we can make a difference in this world. As Mother Theresa said,"Kind words can be short and easy to speak, but their echoes are truly endless."
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The Curves Challenge
Six Weeks to Change Your Body & Life
Sign up today! You’ll receive the following:
 Weekly classes starting September 12- A specially-designed “Curves Challenge” carrying bag
- A two-week supply of the Curves Protein Shake
- One month supply of Curves Complete Biomultiple Vitamin
- The specially-designed “Curves Challenge” T-shirt after attending five classes
- The support of the entire Curves community.
ALL FOR ONLY $69
For more details see your Curves instructor.
 Recipe
of the Month
Mt. Fuji Stir Fry with spicy red miso-sesame sauce
Red Miso – Sesame Sauce
- 1/4 cup (red) miso
- 3 tbsp water
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 2 tbsp mirin
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
- 1 tbsp minced ginger
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 1/4 tsp red chile flakes
Stir-fry
- 2 small Japanese eggplant
- 8 oz shiitake mushrooms
- 4 oz snow peas
- 1 x recipe sesame-baked tofu
- 4 heads baby bok choy
- 1 bunch scallions
- 2 tbsp extra-virgin olive or coconut oil
- Cooked short grain brown rice or other favorite grain/noodle
- 2 tsp sesame seeds, toasted
Directions:
1) Whisk together all of the sauce ingredients in a bowl and set aside. Cut the eggplant in half lengthwise and make diagonal half-moon slices about 1/4 inch wide. Stem shiitake and cut thick slices. String the snow peas and separate the leaves of the baby bok choy. Slice the larger leaves in half lengthwise. Slice scallions into 1-inch lengths.
2) Heat a wok over medium-high heat. Add the eggplant and shiitakes and stir-fry until tender. Add some water (or splash of sake) to prevent them from sticking to the wok. Add the snow peas and tofu and cook 2 minutes. Add bok choy, scallions, and enough sauce to coat the vegetables liberally; cover and simmer just long enough to wilt the bok choy. Serve hot over steamed brown rice and sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds for garnish.
Thank you to Victoria's famous "hot-spot" REBAR for this recipe contribution.
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