About a year ago, I was told I was borderline hypothyroid. Although I didn’t like hearing that, it did help to explain some of the things going on inside my body. I also knew it meant I needed to do a lot of research and find out what foods would nourish my thyroid and what foods might contribute to the uncomfortable symptoms. Today I’m going to focus on soy.
Soy has goitrogens which can negatively impact thyroid function when consumed in high amounts. Maybe some tofu once a week is OK. The problem is that with soy in virtually all processed food, it is very easy to consume “high amounts” and not even realize it.
Another major concern is that approximately 99% of soybeans are genetically modified and contain the highest percentages of pesticide contamination. Soybeans also contain phytic acid which can block the absorption of minerals such as calcium, magnesium, copper, iron and zinc. Adding insult to injury, soy also has enzyme inhibitors that can reduce the effects of enzymes necessary for proper protein digestion.
I knew I wanted to eliminate soy from my diet and told myself I would “try.” Yep – I was setting myself up for failure. As Yoda said in Star Wars, “Do. Or do not. There is no try.” I promised myself I would stop eating the “healthy” protein bars with soy protein “tomorrow” and that the cup in my hand was the last Starbucks soy latte I was going to drink. This continued for way too long, I’m embarrassed to admit.
Finally, I asked myself, “Jodi, what would you tell a client to do if they were “trying” to eliminate soy from their diet but weren’t succeeding?” Light bulb moment: I would coach my clients about making the DECISION to eliminate soy and that’s what I needed to do! And so I did. On August 30 I made a decision that as of September 1 I was eliminating soy from my diet. It’s now October 5 and I have not had a soy latte since the end of August and I haven’t eaten the protein bars that I know have soy in them.
Last week when I wasn’t feeling well, I couldn’t sleep and went to the kitchen to make a cup of tea. I boiled the water and pulled out a random bag of tea from the cabinet. It wasn’t a brand we usually have around and I’m really not sure where it came from. It was green tea and I wanted to be sure there wasn’t any sweetener added. The good news, no sweetener. The bad news- it contained soy! Oh the irony – I’m avoiding soy lattes but there’s soy in the tea in my apartment! Fortunately, I had plenty of tea to choose from and skipped that bag of green tea.
But, it got me thinking. Is there soy in the other teas in my cabinet? Oh that would really make me mad! I looked at my box of Tazo Zen tea (which I also always drink at Starbucks since I’m no longer ordering a soy latte). It listed natural flavors and I started to freak out thinking that could mean soy. While steeping my tea in the middle of the night, I went online and sent a message to Tazo asking about soy. I received an email response less than 24 hours later assuring me there was no soy or lecithin in Tazo teas. Whew! Relief.
Valuable lesson re-emphasized: read food labels. It is imperative you know what is in the food you are going to eat. The ingredients have a huge effect on your body and your life.
What decision can you make, today, to positively impact your health and well-being?
Next Steps:
Make one decision today that you’ve been thinking about or trying to do for a while.- Notice the effect the decision has on your life and well-being.
- Read food labels so you know what you might be eating.
- Take good care of yourself and begin boosting your immune system so you are prepared for cold/flu season.
This assignment will empower you to make changes you know you want to make for your health and well-being. If you are concerned about the foods you eat and want to discuss how you can live a healthy, more vibrant life, contact me at or call 413-282-7286. At Bravo! Wellness, I work with my clients to create manageable lifestyle changes so they are able to reach their goals and maintain a healthy and fulfilling standard of living.
