Low Iodine Diet

[notsmokinjo]

OK so in a country where iodine deficiency is so bad the government has made it law that all bread must be made with Iodised salt I have to go on a low Iodine diet for at least the next 3 weeks so that the doctors can work out what's wrong with me and why.

 

so, i'm on day 1 and so far i haven't had too many issues... but i just lost half my diet....

 

NO:

eggs, dairy, soy, red colour, green leafy vegetables, nori, cauliflower and broccoli, grains (although oatmeal is ok), bread, anything in a tin, no fish, no shellfish, no bananas, no legumes (chickpeas).... NO VEGEMITE... no bacon or ham or such, no processed meats.... but i can have 170g of beef, pork, chicken, turkey, or lamb a day.

 

So I have suffered through the day with rice milk for me coffee....not to my liking... tomorrow i will try almond milk.

 

The vegemite is killing me.... i have had vegemite nearly everyday of my life since I was 4 months old... now tis gone....

 

porridge for breaky... yay me.

 

any meal suggestions greatly appreciated.

 

@barry  here is the evil disgusting diet

 

Edited April 21, 2018 by notsmokinjo

[jillar]

If it's a low iodine diet and not a no iodine diet maybe you can still have some of those things? That's bogus but I guess if it helps figure you out it'll be worth it? 

[Sazerac]

 splash with olive oil and roast peeled garlic, onions and winter squash (is orange OK...what does red colour mean...red peppers or red drinks ?)

Sweet potatoes ?oranges, satsumas ?  the red thing has me flummoxed.

make your own nut or seed butter

you can have honey ! 

popcorn

can you have nutritional yeast ?  it tastes salty.  great on popcorn and is a cousin of VMite, I think.  Make a paste with Olive Oil

I think you can have Kosher salt or that really good black salt from India or Hawaii.

what ? no banana ?

here is a receipt of  16 vegan and no banana pancakes 

1-1/3 cups nondairy milk (e.g., cashew milk or almond milk)

1 tablespoon cider vinegar

1-1/2 tablespoons neutral vegetable oil (I used avocado oil)

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 cups rolled oats (certified GF, as needed)

2 teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

¼ teaspoon fine sea salt

 Blend on high speed until smooth.

Heat griddle over medium heat; lightly grease with oil .

Drop ¼ cup per pancake on griddle

 

There are tons of good vegan receipts online.

Remember, it is only for a few weeks and not as bad as hell week....maybe close though....no VMite ?  What new hell is this...

 

[notsmokinjo]

No red food colouring... red foods are ok.

Thanks for the pancake recipe. Will be giving that a burl. Also thanks for the coffee bean xucking/chewing tip... its keeping me going because I have not found a non-dairy substitute for my coffee I am happy with.

Kosher salt is good, so is pink salt just have to be careful because a lot of salt here has iodine added.

I can have 170g of meat a day so made some soup for the dinner last night with some veg, rice and the left over roast chook. The kid got all excited as she thought it was the start of soup season... during winter we have a lot of soup and stews/casseroles ... but as the temps are coming back to the high twenties she can forget that.

 

 

[Sazerac]

well, that is good that red foods are ok.  

don't expect much from the pancakes...but, you won't starve.

I make a savory oatmeal and pan fry the oak 'cakes'.

Where's the Scottish lass...she knows her way around oatmeal !

You hoo, Wee fluffy me, you hooooo

 

Cold soups.  Gazpacho.  Cold cucumber soup,  make it creamy with coconut milk, the unsweetened in a can (unless you have fresh ?)

Did I see forbidden chick peas so,  no hummus ? Blaspheme !

how about Baba Ganesh  ?

1 eggplant

minced garlic (a few toes or more to taste)

1 lemon, juiced

2 Tbsp Tahini (I've done w/out tahini)

sea salt

olive oil 

brush peeled, sliced eggplant with oil, roast 5-10 minutes under broiler, turning once or twice, until the eggplant is softened and golden brown. 

 add to a food processor with lemon juice, garlic, tahini, a pinch of salt and mix until creamy.

Will keep covered in the fridge for several days.

 

Lately, I haven't been roasting eggplant, I peel it and pack it in crockpot with a few hot peppers, an onion, a splash of olive oil.

This is much easier and if you roast a head or two of garlic you still get the 'roasted' flavour.

 

[notsmokinjo]

Breakfast today was some Apple and pineapple salad with fresh Basil leaves in it. I am having some wild rice for lunch with peas, corn, capsicum an some chicken pieces. 

 

No chickpeas is a nother thing I'm not happy about we have them all the time. The kid will even eat chickpeas. 

 

[notsmokinjo]

Breakfast... porridge with honey and cinnamon (the real stuff not the fake stuff i'm allergic to)

Lunch ... brown rice with peas and corn.

Tea ... sweet potato noodles with pan tossed vegies, chichken pieces and some herbs... it was sort of like pasta without a sauce

 

Vegemite... so far today I have opened the jar 3 times to take a sniff.....and I have promised it that as soon as these tests are done I'll eat some... just think Golem but instead of a ring its a jar of vegemite... junky much?!

 

Coffee issue... haven't found a soy or dairy free alternative to use that doesn't curdle in the coffee.... i was crunching coffee beans but that go old when my heart went into overdrive. So I am working my way through teas trying to find the one... I have had the most luck with Russian Orange... which is russian caravan with dried range peel in it... nice and strong but not coffee.

 

[WeegieWoman]

can you not stomach black coffee jo? im black coffee today as restricting calories and i find it OK

[notsmokinjo]

no sadly @WeegieWoman i just can't do black coffee... which is stupid cos I can do an espresso but I can't do any other type of black coffee.. I can do black tea but its just not the same.

[notsmokinjo]

Breaky... porridge, honey with almonds

Lunch... ooops, too busy at work but I did eat a granny

Dinner .... Same as yesterday but with some beef instead of chicken and Asian herbs instead of Mediterranean.

 

I'm pretty lethargic, which is new for me... and I am even more moody than i can get at the lead up to and during shark week.... the tiniest little thing is setting me off... i'm not hungry so its different than being hangry... but the tiniest little thing has me set to blowand not in the good way.

[Sazerac]

Hi Jo,

Are you 6 days into this ?  Congratulations.

You keep missing lunch, you might not 'feel' hungry but, may still be low on blood sugar.

Remember to reward yourself, w/out VMite...I understand suffering occurs.

[notsmokinjo]

Thanks Saz... yep day 6 heading into day 7... feeling like a junky with all the blood test bruises... I forgot to mention i did reward meself this arvo... we ave an icecream shop near us that has vegan ice cream that is soy free cos they use coconut milk, and they also have vegan gellato, i couldn't have a cone but they have little cups so i had a double scope, vanilla and coconut ice cream with pomegranate gellato ... forgot about that little joy.

[notsmokinjo]

ok... breakie, pineapple, basil and apple salad with a drizzile of maple balsamic

 

Lunch - 1/2 cup brown rice hot, some shredded parsnip (raw) and orange pieces with some Thai herbs and some pickle ginger.

 

Dinner - Dunno yet... but I'm thinking some red rice with some slivered almonds and some steamed potatos and pumpkin and char grilled zucchini (yes uk-ites this this courgettes) 

[notsmokinjo]

So doctor said Tuesday night i have to stay on this ridiculous diet for another week... so technically I am half way to freedom... I have been pretty good and Coles have come to the party by now having zucchini (courgette) noodles in ready made bags.

 

So today (which was hard because I normally have gunfire breakfast on ANZAC day and also an ANZAC toastie for lunch but could have neither)... was

 

Breakfast ... ANZAC biscuit porridge... porridge with golden syrup, coconut and some pan tossed oats on top.

Lunch ...  pineapple, pear and apple salad with some basil, lime and ginger dressing i made.

Tea ... stir fry beef and veg with some zucchini noodles.

 

Coffee - still can't drink it black... but i have been a bit naughty and snuck  a few (no more than 1 a day) coffees with a teaspoon of low fat milk.... its still gross but i'm holding the coffee fix demon at bay.

 

Tea - I've been drinking it black fine, have been going between Russian Caravan, Assam and Kangaroo Tea (Aussie Afternoon Tea).

 

Had a bit of a sook getting my blood test yesterday arvo because I'm just so over it all.

[notsmokinjo]

Day 16.... just so tired, like bone achingly tired... but can I sleep?? .... I just feel drained, and weak and floppy... like my muscles just don't want to work. On the plus side it was much easier walking to work from the station today now I have my blood test later in the day.

 

Have been using arnica on my poor arms but not sure if they are going to have to find another spot because last night was a bit of digging to get anything decent.

 

So today.... looked at the bag of oats and couldn't be bothered so had a handful of grapes.

Lunch .... I just can't be bothered... everything looks so unappealing 

Tea tonight.... dunno, might eat something.

 

So I am super dooper tired and drained, you know how your body feels after the flu, and I just can't be bothered eating. I'm not hungry and then when I make myself eat its just sort of oh I'm eating... yay... anyway... that's my whinge and my update. I know the stupid virtually no carbs and no protein in this diet is a bad thing and i need to be eating but its just such a chore and I really can't be bothered. 

[Sslip]

You're nearly there Jo. Stay strong for just a little bit longer and then it's time for a coffee binge and other joyous treats. 

[Sazerac]

Thinking of you, wish that included bringing you something delectable to tempt you into eating.

Whinge on and rave on. 

Things really suck for you right now except that you don't have to smoke anymore,

at least there's that and arnica and witch hazel.

Better days ahead just wish we could push the river a bit, a lot.

Try to sleep.

[notsmokinjo]

Low Iodine Diet OVER ... well at least for now, may need to be back on but we are trying to avoid the treatment to that needs me to be on this diet.

 

recap... something showed as skewy on a reoutine blood test.... which lead to more tests and being put on a low iodine diet... which was basically an eat nothing diet.... finally have test results.... and I have Graves disease. This is a type of hyperthyroidism... it is an auto immune disease and completely treatable and curable... this can be done with medication and diet over an 18mth to 2 years.. or you can take the quick fix which is surgury to remove your thyroid, radiation treatment and then thyroid meds for life. Guess which route I am taking... the hard one... so once I start the medication (tomorrow) I will begin another medical diet... it is still restrictive but not as much as the low iodine diet.... down side is I am supposed to go caffine free... so keep your eyes open for my new thread: The Graves Disease Diet....

 

So yesterday was a Good Day... and no craves, not one, not a niggle, not even a passing thought.... and at easter I was breaking down at the thought of no vegemite.

 

For those who are interested, my food consumption on returning from the doctors and release for low iodine was:

 

3 huge spoons of vegemite straight off the spoon

Toast with vegemite and smashed avocados with poached eggs and bacon... omg bacon... and tomato sauce (cos that was banned too... just think ketchup)

Oh and coffee with real milk..

Then it was another coffee with a timtam or 2 and a 1/2 packets..... I don't feel very good now.

 

 

[WeegieWoman]

Theres lots of positives there jo, but just unfortunately some crap to go along with the good stuff. Ive every faith in you, you will manage to do this and cure it. And we'll be here with you every step of the way #try not to fret, you got this 

[Sslip]

This is great news, we get our normal Jo back!

 

Whatever normal means in this case 

 

Don't make us come over there and confiscate all the timtams in Oz, just so you can't get your mitts on them.

[Wee fluffy me]

Awwwww Jo that's pure sh*te news to get but at least you know what you are dealing with and have options but no caffeine Jo sheesh if you can do that one you are a true warrior

 

Now I missed the memo on what the heck a timtam is ... I tried to Google it looks like KitKat only we don't have fabulous fillings...

 

But we now have these..

 

 

They look gooey and yummy.. 

 

They not, they're sh*te, no goo to be had and salted caramel my ar*e

 

Can I say how crap they are, I bought this box on Friday and it's now Wednesday....

 

 

 

 

Edited May 23, 2018 by Wee fluffy me

[notsmokinjo]

TimTams are the best chockie bickies in the whole entire world... They a frucking divine... There is even a special way to eat them called the TimTam slam.

 

Im all good, this will be ova before ya know it.

[Sslip]

@Wee fluffy me can I just say if you ever see timtams for the love of god don't buy them.

 

They are gorgeous. And moreish. And great for the slams. And moreish. And divine. And moreish.

 

They are dangerous little sods.

[notsmokinjo]

Australia the penal Paradise...home of the TimTam!