High salt intake
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Salt is significantly improving my quality of life. Every hour I take about a gram and a half. No negative effect on BP. The chloride can have an acidifying effect on the body so to bring more balance I sometimes take baking soda instead.
I'm two weeks into this.
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@basebolt said in High salt intake:
Salt is significantly improving my quality of life. Every hour I take about a gram and a half. No negative effect on BP. The chloride can have an acidifying effect on the body so to bring more balance I sometimes take baking soda instead.
I'm two weeks into this.
Salt, whether it be sodium chloride or sodium bicarbonate, is the number one mineral for suppressing the sympathetic nervous system. Too much sympathetic activity can ruin just about every aspect about one's life. Emotionally, intellectually, physically, etc. Shooting for around 9-10 grams of salt a day, or roughly 3,500-4,000 milligrams of sodium a day is good. Of course there some people who eat more than this, even upwards of 17 grams of salt daily, like the Chinese. But generally speaking, if you find yourself needing extra salt all the time you're likely hypothyroid.
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@Mulloch94 I've been doing high salt now since I started this thread. I don't know how much salt, but I think it's about 10 to 13 grams a day. I feel great on it. I'm losing body weight (not just water) and I don't retain as much water as I used to. I just add how much I crave. If I overdo it I'll get a headache or just don't feel as good. I mix it with my fat free greek yogurt and put some honey on top. My sleep has improved a lot as well..
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@Ruben That's nice, if it works for you that easily then don't change it. You know what they say..."don't fix what isn't broken." Unfortunately I can't rely on my craving for salt because my "craving" for salt is very low. And since I also have hypothyroidism that's a dangerous combination. I usually end up forcing extra salt on foods and having to deal with the rough flavor. It's a little easier to manage once you get your thyroid dosage reeled in properly though, at least it is for me.
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Baking soda is a little easier for me to manage. I can dump 1/2 teaspoon of soda in a small glass of water and down it no problem. So I can use that as a supplement of sorts. But normal table salt? That's a rough challenge for me.
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@Mulloch94 My cravings for salt have always been high, since I can remember. I've always prefered salty foods so sweet foods. Since I upped my salt intake I feel warmer and need to drink less water. I've done baking soda in the past, but I find salt easier to consume. I've been on ndt since november, but cycling off right now to see where I'm at. My body weight is healthy and I'm getting leaner each month, the salt really helps with that. Eating salt flakes instead of table salt really makes things easy. The flakes are crunchy and I put it on top of everything. I suggest putting some in honey. I don't crave normal table salt, because I find the taste way too salty. Putting some sea salt in orange juice is also very nice, really calms you down.
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@Ruben Why cycle off ndt if you've finally got your dosage tuned right? Might be a bitch to get back on once you're depleted again. No joke took me roughly 3 years to master my response to thyroid. Which is why I think people's number one failure with thyroid is simply giving up too quickly.
Part of the reason why sodium is so thermogenic is that it's synergizing with T3, magnesium, and calcium. If you can't retain those minerals once you're off you might lose your heat too.
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@Ruben
Have you tried methylene blue to raise your BP? It seems very effective. -
@Mulloch94 Well, I just want to take a break from using supplements to be honest. I don't want to depend on them and am curious how I'll feel if I don't use anything at all. I might return to ndt, if I notice some negative effects. Mike Fave did a great job explaining that your body will be better at making thyroid once you're healthier. It might take a little time to get back, but I don't feel like I really need ndt anymore. I've always been healthy, prior to my college years where I gained some weight. I've almost lost all that gained weight and I'm just curious what will happen to be honest. I've been using a lower dose for a few weeks now and have not noticed any negative effects. What I really find strange is that I feel like I'm losing weight faster with the lower dosage, but that could be because I'm not forcing myself to eat when I'm not that hungry anymore. I have found a place where I'm eating whenever I'm hungry and on days with more stress I eat some extra fruit and salt. Point being that I don't know how effective my NDT was in the first place, because it's just a supplement from a company in the Netherlands (where I live), just freeze dried beef thyroid with some beef liver. They said it has thyroid hormones in it, but I don't know if it's the same amount every time. So that could be the reason why I feel like I can try without it.
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@Emilia No I've not. I could not find a good source that I could afford and haven't looked at it since.
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@Ruben I buy mine from mitolab.com, I think it's affordable.
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@Emilia Thanks, I'll take a look!
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@Ruben said in High salt intake:
@Mulloch94 Well, I just want to take a break from using supplements to be honest. I don't want to depend on them and am curious how I'll feel if I don't use anything at all. I might return to ndt, if I notice some negative effects. Mike Fave did a great job explaining that your body will be better at making thyroid once you're healthier. It might take a little time to get back, but I don't feel like I really need ndt anymore. I've always been healthy, prior to my college years where I gained some weight. I've almost lost all that gained weight and I'm just curious what will happen to be honest. I've been using a lower dose for a few weeks now and have not noticed any negative effects. What I really find strange is that I feel like I'm losing weight faster with the lower dosage, but that could be because I'm not forcing myself to eat when I'm not that hungry anymore. I have found a place where I'm eating whenever I'm hungry and on days with more stress I eat some extra fruit and salt. Point being that I don't know how effective my NDT was in the first place, because it's just a supplement from a company in the Netherlands (where I live), just freeze dried beef thyroid with some beef liver. They said it has thyroid hormones in it, but I don't know if it's the same amount every time. So that could be the reason why I feel like I can try without it.
@Ruben said in High salt intake:
@Mulloch94 Well, I just want to take a break from using supplements to be honest. I don't want to depend on them and am curious how I'll feel if I don't use anything at all. I might return to ndt, if I notice some negative effects. Mike Fave did a great job explaining that your body will be better at making thyroid once you're healthier. It might take a little time to get back, but I don't feel like I really need ndt anymore. I've always been healthy, prior to my college years where I gained some weight. I've almost lost all that gained weight and I'm just curious what will happen to be honest. I've been using a lower dose for a few weeks now and have not noticed any negative effects. What I really find strange is that I feel like I'm losing weight faster with the lower dosage, but that could be because I'm not forcing myself to eat when I'm not that hungry anymore. I have found a place where I'm eating whenever I'm hungry and on days with more stress I eat some extra fruit and salt. Point being that I don't know how effective my NDT was in the first place, because it's just a supplement from a company in the Netherlands (where I live), just freeze dried beef thyroid with some beef liver. They said it has thyroid hormones in it, but I don't know if it's the same amount every time. So that could be the reason why I feel like I can try without it.
Yeah freeze dried glandulars are rarely consistent in potency. I have heard some good things about Lowe's Thyro-Gold glandular product, but as long as Tyromix and Cynoplus exist I don't see the need of venturing out into the unknown much.
Did you hear the interview Ray gave about traditional cultures all over thew world eating parts of the animal that include thyroid? Like chicken necks and fish heads. If you consider this into the equation, I'm not even sure you should consider thyroid as a supplement. It's more like a nutritional element. At least in dosages of 1/4-1/2 grain. When you start getting into the 1 grain area and higher it's more like replacement therapy.
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@Mulloch94 Yes I did, even though it has been a long time since. It's not really a supplement, I agree. The weird thing is that I feel like I'm getting leaner now that I'm reducing my intake and upping salt. I don't force anything down my throat anymore, but I still consume 2800-3000 kcal a day I would think. I consumed 3400-3600 a few months ago. When I did, I felt like I overdid it a little bit. All the craze about eating more made me want to try eating more in combination with more thyroid. I'm about 6 ft (182 cm) and weigh 175 lbs (79.5 kg). I am active, I walk around 10.000-14.000 steps every day and do some moderate weight lifting. I still feel very warm all day and don't have cold fingers any more. The NDT might have supressed my own thyroid production, because I had cold fingers more often. It was winter time, but still. I had some muscle cramps when introducing high salt, but since I downed my ndt it went away... I really want to include some form of thyroid in my diet, like Ray suggested, but I'm just not sure on how to do it.
