Food Reaction? Thyroid?

[jnrmommy]

I ate a buffalo chicken ceasar salad today at lunch.  It started while I was eating it.  I began to sweat on my head, neck, and upper lip.  My face flushed and I got the chills.  I have also noticed that my hair has been falling out more recently.  I can't seem to get warm. Has this happened to anyone? Is it a food reaction or possibly thyroid related? Thanks for any input.

[Barb135]

Yes, there are the goitrogens, but, typically, changing diet to eliminate them is not necessary.  When the thyroid stops producing hormones on its own, what can they hurt?  Aside from that, the goitrogenic properties are destroyed with cooking.  Am I going to cook that fresh juicy peach just to destroy the goitrogens?  Not on your life!!  The only thing I try to avoid, completely, is soy, because it can interfere with absorption of thyroid medication. For everything else, the health benefits outweigh everything else, as long as the foods are eaten in moderation.

[goolarra]

Goitrogens (you can google for a list) are foods that when eaten RAW (cooking destroys them) can interfere with the production of thyroid hormones.  That is a fact.

However, whether or not this will impact the individual depends on a lot of things.  If you don't have a thyroid or your thyroid is effectively "dead" from disease or RAI, then goitrogens are not a factor.  Many of us eat them all the time without any impact.

Soy, on the other hand, can block the action of meds, so is best avoided.

The effect of goitrogens is not immediate.  Healthy people's thyroids compensate for eating them all the time.  Even people with thyroid disease can eat them in reasonable quantities.  

I don't think the immediacy of this reaction suggests goitrogens.  

[mzizgayle]

There are some foods they call goitrogen foods that are supposed to mess with the thyroid and to avoid such as soy, aspartame, peaches etc but I am not sure how much stock to put into this

[Barb135]

Sweating is not, typically, a symptom hypothyroidism.  It can, however, be a sign of peri-menopause, though you're pretty young for that. Typically, when one is hypo, they're cold all the time.  

You should probably get all your hormone levels tested, including reproductive hormones.  

Get TSH, FT3, FT4, and thyroid antibodies to determine whether or not you have Hashimoto's Thyroiditis.

[jnrmommy]

Also my hair is dry and tangles easy and falling out bad

[jnrmommy]

Thanks for the responses. I had another episode without eating. Face and ears are hot. Then chills.. I was hypothyroid at one time but currently not on synthroid. I will have all of my levels checked again. Could this be a hormonal imbalance caused by thyroid? Thanks again

[Barb135]

Buffalo chicken is, typically, quite spicy and eating spicy foods, often causes one to break into a sweat.  If you're in air conditioning, the sweats can often be followed by chills.

[flyingfool]

My opinion is both.

I think the near immediate reaction after eating was a food sensitivity or allergy.

The coldness and hairloss are two classic symptoms of being low thyroid.

What other symptoms are you having?


If you go to get thyroid tested you want to DEMAND the following:

TSH - which is what they normally run

Free T4 - this test is fairly commonly run as well but a lot of Dr's won't have this run unless the TSH is out of range.  You shouldn't have too much resistence by Drs to have this testes.

Free T3 - This test you may have to DEMAND and beg and plead.  But stay determined as your body's cells ONLY us the Free T3 hormone.  So don't take no for an answer.

If you are tired/fatigued then you should also test for the following vitamins

Vitamin D3
Vitamin B-12
Iron
Ferritin
Magnesium

ASK for the lab report,  In the USA they are required by law to give you a copy of the lab report if you ask for it. ALWAYS ask for the lab report.

Once you have the results please post the results along with the refrence range and then we may be able to help you more with that information.

Suffice it to say that MANY people find it necessary to be at least in the middle of the range or higher to feel well.  So do NOT let the Dr talk you into the idea that you are "fine" or "normal" when you are bouncing on the bottom of the range.