Milk products in Hashimoto’s disease – should you avoid it or not?

Milk and dairy products are valuable sources of protein, as well as vitamins and minerals. It is more and more often said that the diet eliminating these products should be used in the case of Hashimoto’s disease. Is that right? Find out below. 

Nutritional value of milk and milk products

Milk and milk products are sources of many nutrients. They provide wholesome protein.  Fermented milk products, such as natural yoghurt, kefir, buttermilk or cottage cheese are characterized by the high content of this macronutrient. Apart from that, these products contain vitamin D and calcium. Additionally, fermented milk products harbour live bacteria cultures that enrich our flora in the large intestine, which makes them a very nutritious product. Why would they be harmful for people with Hashimoto’s disease? 

Problematic ingredients in dairy products

Dairy products include yoghurt, buttermilk, kefir, cottage cheese, curd cheese and rennet cheese (which includes yellow cheese). These products, including milk, despite their high nutritional value, contain substances, which can potentially worsen the wellbeing of people with Hashimoto’s disease. 

One of these is lactose – milk sugar. It is found in large amounts in milk, giving it a sweet taste. What’s interesting, dairy products, due to the fermentation processes that take place, contain much less lactose compared to milk. 

The second ingredient is casein, a protein found in milk and dairy products. 

Currently, many people face the problem of digesting lactose. It is caused by a gradual disappearance of the enzyme that digests this disaccharide – lactase. As a result, lactase found in milk, gets into the further parts of the digestive tract, namely the large intestine. The bacteria present there break down the lactose, which results in formation of gas which are a common cause of discomfort. 

They include:

• abdominal pain,
• bloating,
• increased production of gas,
• a feeling of overflowing in the abdominal cavity,
• diarrhoea.

Dairy in the diet of people with Hashimoto’s disease 

In the diet of people suffering from Hashimoto’s disease, milk and dairy products are the source of nutrients. They are important for proper thyroid function. These include complete protein which enables the production of thyroid hormones. Furthermore, fermented dairy products support good intestinal microflora. 

However, there are situations in which a diet eliminating these products makes sense. Do you know what situations?  We will soon be able to help you with this in our ‘Step by Step to Remission programme’. We will teach you everything about the thyroid gland in an interesting, unconventional and interactive way. What’s more we will guide you through the most important healthy lifestyle issues and habits that, when implemented together, will lead you to a significant improvement in your well-being, a reduction in inflammation and antibody titre characteristic of Hashimoto’s disease. We guarantee that this will have a beneficial effect on your quality of life and health.

Don’t wait, just change your habits with us for your thyroid health! 🙂