Essential Tips for a Healthy Thyroid

Your thyroid gland is a small gland, shaped like a butterfly in the middle of the lower neck. Its main job is to control the body's metabolism (the way your body uses energy). It is responsible for body temperature, energy levels, heart rate, body weight, digestion, muscle strength, and many more functions! It is crucial that your thyroid function optimally if you want to experience great overall health. The following are ways in which you can improve the health of your thyroid.

1. Consuming the nutrients in your diet that help the thyroid to be healthy

A) Iodine - found in foods from the sea, like seaweed, fish such as cod, dairy (yogurt, cottage cheese), tuna, shrimp, egg yolks.

B) Selenium - Brazil nuts, fish, beef, chicken, turkey, eggs, beans, mushrooms

C) Zinc - Meats, oysters, lentils, beans, chickpeas, nuts, seeds, eggs

2. Improving your gut health. If your digestive system isn't healthy, you won't absorb the above nutrients that help the thyroid. Probiotics and digestive enzymes are helpful.

3. Reduce emotional stress in life. Any prolonged emotional stress can wear down your thyroid gland and other important glands. Meditate, exercise, avoid stressful people and events.

4. Toxicity in the environment

A) Pesticides and herbicides that get into our food can go to the thyroid and cause damage. Eating more organic food when you can is a great idea.

B) Chlorine in tap water can travel to the thyroid, attach to it and cause weakness. Using a high-quality water filter is a smart solution to this issue.

C) Heavy metals like lead, mercury and aluminum are often pulled into the thyroid and damage it. Choosing non-mercury dental fillings, minimizing the consumption of large fish, such as shark, swordfish and tuna, and avoiding aluminum cookware can decrease your body's heavy metal burden.

D) Non-stick cookware with Teflon has a chemical that gets into your food when you cook with it that causes harm to your thyroid gland. Use non-toxic stainless steel cookware instead.

E) Chemical cleaning products, chemical beauty products can damage the thyroid, so opt for the non-toxic variety.