Debunking the Myth: Should You Avoid Eating Eggs if You Have Hashimoto's Disease?
By: Lauren Keating
Those with Hashimoto’s disease may be advised to follow a specific diet to ease inflammation. But there is advice circling social media that says those with Hashimoto’s disease should be avoiding eggs.
“In a word – maybe,” Dr. Izabella Wentz, Pharm.D., FASCP said. “Eggs can be a reactive food for some people with Hashimoto’s.”
Diet and lifestyle play a big role in managing Hashimoto’s. Hashimoto’s disease is an autoimmune disorder that affects the thyroid. It causes abnormal thyroid hormones in the body, which can then slow down metabolism and cause a range of symptoms from fatigue to weight gain, memory problems, sensitivity to cold, and more.
Dr. Alicia Armitstead, nutrition response testing practitioner at Healing Arts NYC agrees.
“I think Hashimoto's is due to a virus hidden in the fibroids.”
She believes that consuming eggs will aggravate and feed the virus to get stronger.
According to functional medicine practitioner Dr. Wentz, a survey conducted in 2015 found that 48% of participants reported a sensitivity to eggs.
Managing symptoms has a lot to do with diet.
“Consuming foods we’re sensitive to can drive inflammation and potentially contribute to the autoimmune attack that is present in Hashimoto’s,” she said.
Eggs can be problematic for those with Hashimoto’s for several reasons.
“Eggs contain the enzyme lysozyme, which can bond with bacteria and proteins as it moves through the digestive process, collectively forming what’s referred to as a ‘lysozyme complex,’ which can irritate those with intestinal permeability, contributing to digestive issues,” Dr. Wentz said. “Nearly everyone with Hashimoto’s has some degree of intestinal permeability.”
According to Dr. Armitstead, it’s the protein in egg whites that may be the culprit in symptom flair ups.
“The body is likely to recognize these proteins as foreign invaders and make antibodies to the proteins,” Dr. Wentz said. “This reaction can contribute not only to digestive issues, but also inflammation that perpetuates the autoimmune attack, and other symptoms.”
Eating eggs would then trigger symptoms for those with thyroid diseases.
Those with Hashimoto’s disease may also be sensitive to the sulfur found in eggs. This can cause symptoms like rashes, breakouts, and skin dryness.
However, some find they can tolerate eggs. Dr. Wentz, who was diagnosed with Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis in 2009, recommends following a sulfur balancing protocol using molybdenum and butyrate could help clear out excess sulfur in the body. This can help tolerate eggs again.
For those with Hashimoto’s not sure if eggs should be eliminated from their diet, Dr. Wentz recommends doing a trial elimination of eggs for 30 days or a food sensitivity test to determine if they are sensitive.
Studies found that those with Hashimoto’s benefit from having a gluten-free diet.
This is because gluten is linked to causing inflammation and could make symptoms worse.
“I estimate that about 88% of people with Hashimoto’s react to gluten, while around 80% react to dairy and soy,” Dr. Wentz said.
Other common food sensitivities include grains, nuts, seeds, nightshades, and sugar.
It’s gluten that is more problematic than eggs for those with Hashimoto’s disease.
“While it is possible to heal the gut and successfully reintroduce the foods you’re sensitive to, I find that many people with Hashimoto’s will need to eliminate gluten-free indefinitely,” Dr. Wentz said.
Those with Hashimoto’s should focus on a diet with whole, nutrient-dense foods including fewer carbs and more protein.
The best way to figure out your personal food sensitivities— like if you should eliminate eggs— is through an elimination diet or a food sensitivity test.
Dr. Wentz said the most popular approach to the elimination diet for Hashimoto’s is known as the Autoimmune Paleo (AIP) Diet. Make sure to eliminate potentially reactive foods for at least 30 days. Then you can reintroduce the foods one by one to determine if you react to them.
Dr. Izabella Wentz, PharmD, FASCP is a solutions-focused clinical pharmacist who has dedicated herself to addressing the root causes of autoimmune thyroid disease since being diagnosed with Hashimoto's Thyroiditis in 2009.
After two years of researching Hashimoto’s and Hypothyroidism, she decided to combine emerging knowledge with her quality improvement expertise to run rapid tests of change on herself that led her to discover the root cause of her condition. She has summarized three years of research and two years of testing in her book: Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis: Lifestyle Interventions for Finding and Treating the Root Cause.
In February 2017, Izabella launched the wildly successful documentary series, The Thyroid Secret. This nine episode series is the first of its kind, proving once again that Dr. Izabella Wentz is a born innovator. By sharing patients’ stories and practitioners’ experiences, she offers viewers detailed information regarding the misinformation of conventional medicine, adrenal fatigue, mental illness, infections, toxins, hormones and more. Once again, Izabella stays true to her readers, offering them vital information that will ultimately lead to successful treatment of countless cases of Hashimoto’s
In 2017, she published another #1 NY Times bestselling book, Hashimoto’s Protocol: A 90-Day Plan for Reversing Thyroid Symptoms and Getting Your Life Back – a more step-by-step, in-depth plan that streamlines the most effective interventions to reverse the autoimmune damage at the root of Hashimoto’s.
Her cookbook, Hashimoto’s: Food Pharmacology: Nutrition Protocols and Healing Recipes to Take Charge of Your Thyroid Health, was published in 2019 and features 125 delicious recipes with thyroid-supporting nutrients, strategies for making dietary changes an easy part of one’s life, and protocols that can help transform the body into a safe place so that it can receive the foods needed to heal.
Her newest book, released in April 2023, Adrenal Transformation Protocol: A 4-Week Plan to Release Stress Symptoms and Go from Surviving to Thriving, is a simple and actionable program to identify adrenal triggers, balance the stress response, and build resilience to prevent excess stress from overwhelming the adrenals in the future.
She also developed her own supplement line, Rootcology, which is committed to creating innovative, bioavailable products, that are made with the highest quality ingredients available, to address the needs and sensitivities of people with autoimmune thyroid disease.
Dr. Armitstead B.S., D.C.
Dr. Armitstead knew from a young age her mission in life: to give the joy of health to others. This mission ultimately became one of the founding principles of Healing Arts Chiropractic and Nutrition Response Testing®. She is one of only a handful of practitioners in New York City to be certified as a Master in Nutrition Response Testing. To help patients achieve health in mind, body and Spirit she uses a technique called PSYCH-K to neurologically change patients' brain pathways when it comes to their belief systems to help them achieve a joyful and healthy life.
As a chiropractor and also a graduate of Nutrition Response Testing Advanced Clinical Training, I have many tools in my belt to help my patients heal. For example, if somebody comes in with low back pain caused by inflammation, I can adjust the patient to put the joints back in place, then normalize physiological functions with nutrition, so that the body’s natural healing ability can address the inflammation. In fact, poor nutrition may very well have created the conditions for the injury in the first place. What can be accomplished using Nutrition Response Testing to assess underlying causes that lead to disease is simply amazing. https://www.healingartsnyc.com/Dr-Alicia-Armitstead-DC