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The 6 Most Important Supplements for Thyroid Health

3 min read

In our last blog post, Thyroid 101, we explained what your thyroid is, what it does, and how to tell if you have a thyroid imbalance. If you want to know how to naturally balance your thyroid, read on for the top vitamins, minerals, and amino acids to help thyroid health!

1. Iodine

If you’ve ever researched thyroid conditions, you probably know that iodine is essential for thyroid function. Iodine is mostly stored in the thyroid and is required for T3 and T4 production. Iodine is found in sea vegetables, so a great way to add some iodine to your diet is to cook and season your food with seaweed. Be careful with foods like kelp if you are on thyroid medications, but for those of us who just want to maintain thyroid health before any issues start, you can explore the delicious world of culinary sea vegetables. When buying seaweed, buy brands that source from the Atlantic Ocean, as there are concerns about the safety of sea vegetables and fish from the Pacific. Here are a few example of iodine-containing seaweeds:

  • Dulse
  • Wakame
  • Arame
  • Kombu – This is a great addition to soup stock and while cooking beans. It adds minerals to your cooking liquid and makes beans more digestible so they cause less gas and bloating!)
  • Nori – This is the seaweed that is wrapped around sushi rolls. It makes a delicious and low calorie snack when toasted!

The current recommended daily allowance for iodine for adults is 150 mcg, and the tolerable upper intake level is 1,100 mcg. Remember that the recommended daily allowance is only the minimum needed to prevent disease, not to be truly healthy. While the upper tolerable intake level is 1,100 mcg (1.1 mg), women in Japan eating traditional diets can consume up to 50-80 mg per day, so some people might do better with higher doses. Since upper intake level is debated in the holistic healthcare community, but high doses of iodine could potentially be damaging, it is best to consult with a knowledgeable holistic practitioner to determine what dosage is right for you.

2. Selenium

While iodine is element that is best-known for thyroid health, selenium is also extremely important. Selenium and iodine help balance each other, because selenium is an essential component of the enzymes that remove iodine molecules from T4, then converting it to T3. Not only could selenium help conversion of T4 into T3, it could also help protect the thyroid gland. The amount of selenium in foods varies based on the selenium content in the soil, soil pH, and the form of selenium. Thus it can be hard to know exactly how much selenium you intake each day. That being said, these are some of the best dietary sources of selenium:

If you don’t eat nuts or seafood, or want to ensure that you’re getting the right dose every day, you can take a selenium supplement of up to 200 mcg per day.

3. L-Tyrosine

L-Tyrosine is an amino acid that is one of the building blocks of thyroid hormone. It is found in many high-protein foods, and can also be taken in supplement form, usually in 500 mg doses a couple times a day. Consult your doctor if you are already on thyroid medications before taking L-tyrosine, and do not take it if you have high blood pressure or symptoms of mania.

4. L-Carnitine

L-Carnitine is an amino acid that is primarily used to help cases of hyperthyroidism. An overactive thyroid can deplete L-carnitine, and studies have shown that carnitine supplementation helps prevent symptoms of hyperactive thyroid, helps prevent thyroid storms, and can protect muscle in conditions like hyperthyroidism, in which people may lose some lean body mass.

5. Riboflavin (B2)

Riboflavin deficiency suppresses thyroid and adrenal function, so someone who has both a hypoactive thyroid and a riboflavin deficiency could feel even worse than usual. Increasing riboflavin intake will help naturally increase thyroid hormone levels.

6. Vitamin B12

Vitamin B12 deficiency and hypothyroidism are often concurrent, and both hypo- and hyperthyroidism can reduce absorption and proper use of B12 in the body. This is important because B12 is a co-factor in many reactions throughout the body. It plays a major role in metabolism, which is already messed up in thyroid patients. Vitamin B12 also plays a role in central nervous system and brain functioning. Really all the B vitamins are important for thyroid patients, so you can take a B-vitamin complex supplement, or eat a variety of foods containing different B vitamins. Here are some examples:

  • Eggs
  • Organ meats
  • Meat
  • Fish
  • Leafy green vegetables
  • Legumes
  • Nutritional yeast
  • Brown rice
  • Wheat germ

Do you have a thyroid condition? Have you tried any natural supplements for it? What has hurt or helped? Please share in the comments below!