Thyroid support
Hypothyroid food ideas
A practical, grain-free and gluten-free eating plan to support an underactive thyroid. Built around protein and plenty of vegetables at every meal, with quinoa for variety, and a few specific things to leave out, this is a starting framework of meals you can rotate through the week.
Breakfast
- Eggs with cooked mushrooms and tomatoes, as a frittata, omelette, or poached.
- Smoothie: 1 to 2 scoops rice or pea protein, 1/2 cup frozen berries, 500 to 750ml water or almond or coconut milk. Add almonds, banana, or superfood powders.
- Mince (turkey, chicken, lamb, or beef), palm-size, with diced veg (capsicum, mushroom, zucchini, tomato, onion).
- Gluten-free cereal with a dairy-milk substitute, or a grain-free pancake topped with fruit or veg.
- Quinoa cereal: 1/2 cup rinsed quinoa cooked in 1 cup water for 15 minutes, with sliced apple and almond cooked in.
Snacks (mid-morning and mid-afternoon)
- Nuts and seeds with fresh fruit.
- Additive-free dip with veggie sticks.
- Antipasto style: olives, sardines, artichokes, caper berries.
- Boiled egg.
- Keep long-life emergency foods in your bag, such as a small tin of tuna or beans, or a fruit and nut mix.
Lunch
- Meat, fish, tuna, or poultry in a salad (no cruciferous veg) with extra virgin olive oil, lemon or sugar-free balsamic, and Himalayan or sea salt.
- Tuna, sardines, or mackerel with veggie sticks.
- Wraps from nori sheets or lettuce leaves with salad and protein (salmon, chicken).
- Grain-free bread with avocado, cucumber, capsicum, and tomato.
- Quinoa salad: cooked quinoa with sweet potato, raisins, herbs, shredded chicken, lemon juice, and olive oil. Make extra dinner for leftovers.
- Soups and stews.
Evening meal
Always a protein source with plenty of lightly steamed veg or salad. Make veg interesting with herbs, lemon juice, or home-made sauces and gravies (shop-bought ones often contain grains or gluten).
- Fish, veal, chicken, turkey, lamb, kangaroo, or beef (steamed or grilled) with salad and vegetables.
- Soup with veg and chicken, lamb, or beef pieces.
- Patties (lamb, chicken, turkey, salmon, lentil), stir-fry, or a roast with veg.
- Curry or casserole thickened with potato flour, served with quinoa instead of rice.
- Asian buckwheat noodles and vegetables, or bolognaise on veg and buckwheat spaghetti.
Use and add
Use as condiments
Good fats such as extra virgin olive oil, avocado, nut spreads, nuts, coconut butter, cream, or oil, ghee, quark, and organic coconut yoghurt.
Add
Quinoa for variety across any of the meals above.
Avoid Avoid
Gluten and grains. Raw cruciferous vegetables (broccoli, cauliflower, spinach, brussels sprouts, kale, rocket, cabbage). Soy products (read labels). Flaxseeds. Added sugars. Additives. Nitrates (deli meats, bacon). White refined carbohydrates (biscuits, cakes, buns, pastries, pancakes). Soft drinks, sports drinks, cordials, fruit juices, alcohol, and coffee.
Recommendations
- Meals can be moved around, for example breakfast for dinner.
- Chew your food slowly and completely.
- Drink 2 to 3L of water a day away from food (15 minutes before or 1.5 hours after).
- Do not eat any food you know bothers you, even if it is listed.
- Aim for two salads and at least two small protein-focused snacks a day, and do not go long hours without food.
- At each of three main meals, have a palm-size portion of protein and around three palm-size portions of salad or vegetables (less at breakfast).
Recommended food plans are not necessarily intended for long-term use and are intended only for those to whom they have been prescribed. Discuss with Rohan before making major changes.
Frequently asked questions
What foods support an underactive thyroid?
A simple supportive framework is a palm-sized serve of protein plus around three palm-sized servings of vegetables or salad at each of three main meals, with two snacks, and 2 to 3 litres of water taken away from food. Helpful additions include eggs, fish and poultry, plenty of cooked vegetables, quinoa for variety, and good fats like olive oil, avocado, nuts and coconut. The pattern is grain-free, gluten-free and protein-forward.
Should I avoid raw cruciferous vegetables with hypothyroidism?
The resource suggests avoiding raw cruciferous and certain other vegetables such as broccoli, cauliflower, spinach, Brussels sprouts, kale, rocket and cabbage, because these goitrogenic vegetables can affect thyroid function more in their raw state. Cooking them reduces that effect, so they can still feature when lightly steamed or cooked rather than raw. Other things to limit include gluten and grains, soy, flaxseeds, added sugar, refined carbohydrates, soft drinks, juices, alcohol and coffee.
What does a hypothyroid-friendly day of eating look like?
A typical day might start with eggs with mushroom and tomato or a protein smoothie, with snacks like nuts and fruit, veggies and dip, or a boiled egg. Lunch could be a protein salad without raw crucifers, fish and vegetables, or a quinoa salad, and dinner a palm-sized protein with lightly steamed vegetables or salad, soup, a stir-fry or a curry using potato flour as a thickener and quinoa instead of rice. Chewing well and drinking water away from food are part of the approach.
Reviewed by Rohan Smith, BHSc Nutritional Medicine · Elemental Health & Nutrition, Adelaide. Last reviewed 13 June 2026.
Important: This summary is general information, not personalised medical advice, diagnosis, or a treatment protocol. Speak with a qualified practitioner about your individual situation. Book a consultation →