I've been gaining weight for the past 15 months.Currently I weigh 160lbs,up from 138.I'm female,5ft5,23 years old.At first I thought it was because I was using birth control and because of simply eating too much.But I stopped taking birth control &watching what I ate,and I simply couldn't lose weight (this never happened to me before).Each week I would gain weight (or stay stable at best, which was rare).I will add that I know a lot about healthy eating,but even at 1600kcal a day I would gain weight.
Somehow I got the idea that kelp might be a solution.I'm wondering if I have iodine deficiency.I know this is supposedly uncommon in industrialised countries,but I have found several governmental sources that say that iodine deficiency is prevalent in my country,Belgium.Also,I rarely eat fish,bread,milk products or eggs.I eat a lot of veggies though,but it's probably not rich in iodine.
Also,I have been diagnosed with a slightly swollen thyroid,no nodules,normal blood test though for TSH.(not sure how strict the values are here for thyroid though) The doc didn't seem concerned,but now I am linking this to my weight gain (the exam was for another reason)
Also,I went on holiday last summer:I ate a lot but came back NOT having gained weight.I just realised:I ate a lot of sea food there,at least every other day. No weight gain because of the iodine?
Is iodine deficiency a likely suspect?Would it be safe to try kelp for a while?I would be taking 225 micrograms a day.
Side question: how long can the thyroid store iodine?Should the 225micrograms be divided over the whole day?