Autoimmune Paleo Diet and Hashimoto’s Disease

We finally have a study specifically looking at the efficacy of the Autoimmune Protocol Diet, also known as the Autoimmune Paleo Diet or AIP, and Hashimoto’s disease. The exact title of the paper is, “Efficacy of the Autoimmune Protocol Diet as Part of a Multi-disciplinary, Supported Lifestyle Intervention for Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis” by Abbott et al. Published in April of 2019 in the journal Cureus.  I break down the study details below so you can better understand if this diet actually works for Hashimoto's disease. I have written before about the Autoimmune Paleo Diet but this was on a paper looking at inflammatory bowel disease which did show some promising results. The authors begin the study by stating some of the potential causes of Hashimoto’s thyroiditis including genetic and environmental factors, pregnancy, drugs, nutritional intake, vitamin D receptor defects and infections. They also state something very important which is the fact that individuals with Hashimoto’s disease who are treated with thyroid medication tend to continue to have a reduced quality of life and chronic symptoms like fatigue, nervousness, dry skin, hair loss, and irritability even though their thyroid numbers look fine. I also liked the fact that they stated there isn’t enough evidence that goitrogens consumed in moderation negatively impact thyroid function. How was this study done? 17 subjects between the ages of 20-45 with Hashimoto’s disease began the study but only 16 finished due to one of them getting pregnant. They couldn’t have been following the AIP diet within 30 days of starting the trial and it was ok for them to be taking thyroid medication. Subjects did a 2-week washout period and filled out symptom and food questionnaires. The following blood tests were done: * TSH * Total and Free T4 * Total and Free T3 * Reverse T3 * Thyroid peroxidase antibodies (TPO) * Anti-thyroglobulin antibodies (TGA) * Complete blood count (CBC) * Complete metabolic profile (CMP) * Vitamin D * Highly-sensitive C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) And surprisingly they did an organic acids test and a stool analysis. A stool analysis is vital for those with Hashimoto’s disease to identify infections like H. pylori, Blastocystis hominis, and Yersinia enterocolitica. Organic acids gives a detailed view of overall metabolism so we know how well someone is making energy from fat, protein, and carbohydrates as well as detoxification, gut health markers, neurotransmitters, and certain amino acids, vitamins and minerals. After the two week washout period, the subjects started a 10-week process including: -Six weeks of food elimination which included gluten, all grains including gluten-free grains, dairy, nuts, legumes, nightshades, eggs, coffee, alcohol, seeds, refined sugars, oils, and food additives. -More nutrient-dense foods including bone broth, fermented foods, seafood, organ meats,