9 Natural Remedies for Hyperthyroidism and Graves' Disease

How To Care for an Overactive Thyroid and Graves’ Disease
Conventional treatments for hyperthyroidism — which is much more common for women than for men— can come with significant side effects or permanent damage to your thyroid gland. The good news is that there are a lot of other options. Natural remedies for hyperthyroidism and general thyroid function improvement include:
Dietary changes, such as a gluten-free diet
Specific supplements, such as selenium, probiotics, and vitamin D
Herbs, such as bugleweed and lemon balm
Let’s explore what hyperthyroidism is, the risks of conventional treatment, and the many natural remedies for hyperthyroidism.
What Is Hyperthyroidism?
Your thyroid gland is located at the front of your neck, and it produces thyroid hormones. These hormones regulate many essential endocrine functions in your body, including energy production, digestive function, and more.
Hyperthyroidism — also called an overactive thyroid — is when your thyroid gland produces too much thyroid hormone. The most common reason for hyperthyroidism is an autoimmune attack on the thyroid gland called Graves’ disease. Though it’s far less common than other thyroid disorders, an estimated one in 200 Americans has Graves’ disease [1]. The majority of thyroid patients, including hyperthyroid patients, are women [2, 3].
Thick, red skin usually on the shins or tops of the feet (Graves’ dermopathy)
Your doctor usually diagnoses hyperthyroidism with:
A blood test for levels of thyroid hormones
Or, a radioactive iodine uptake test
If your blood test shows low TSH (thyroid-stimulating hormone) and high free T4 thyroid hormone, this means you are hyperthyroid [5]. If you also have elevated thyroid antibodies, including thyroid-stimulating immunoglobulins (TSI), thyroid peroxidase (TPO), or thyroglobulin (TG) antibodies, you may be diagnosed with Graves’ disease [6, 7].
The radioactive iodine test can help rule out other possibilities, such as thyroid nodules, toxic multinodular goiter, or thyroid cancer [8]. This test does have some potential side effects, so be sure to discuss it with your doctor before taking it.
Causes of Hyperthyroid Disease
There are three main causes of hyperthyroidism:
Graves’ disease, an autoimmune disease of the thyroid gland that leads to hyperthyroidism. Graves’ disease is the most common cause of hyperthyroidism.
Thyroid nodules may affect the production of thyroid hormone and induce hyperthyroidism [13].
No matter the cause, it’s very important to get hyperthyroidism under control. As excessive thyroid activity can lead to heart damage and a life-threatening “thyroid storm,” we want to utilize effective treatment approaches that not only decrease the effects of excessive thyroid hormone, but, if possible, address the root causes for hyperthyroidism in the first place [14].
Natural Treatment Options for Hyperthyroidism and Thyroid Wellness
Treatment of hyperthyroidism must accomplish two goals:
Stop the damaging effects of excess thyroid hormone
Resolve the root causes so that the symptoms stop and don’t recur
Conventional treatment for hyperthyroidism tries to address both of these but doesn’t address the frequently underlying autoimmunity. Anti-thyroid medications — such as methimazole or drugs like beta-blockers that reduce the potential heart damage of excess thyroid hormone — are the first level of treatment for hyperthyroidism. While these medications can help reduce symptoms of hyperthyroidism, they do not significantly address the underlying cause(s) for excess thyroid hormone.
Secondary conventional treatments, such as radioactive iodine therapy or thyroid surgery, permanently damage or remove the thyroid gland to permanently stop the production of thyroid hormones. This stops hyperthyroid symptoms and the excess circulating thyroid hormones. However, destruction of the thyroid gland leaves patients hypothyroid and needing T4 (thyroxine) replacement therapy for life and still doesn’t address the underlying autoimmunity.
The good news is there are natural remedies for hyperthyroidism that rival conventional treatments in their effectiveness and also have fewer risks, consequences, and side effects. They are also likely to address the underlying autoimmunity and other root causes of hyperthyroidism. Let’s discuss.
Intestinal permeability [16] — also called leaky gut — is suspected to contribute to the development of autoimmune disease [17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23]. We know that imbalanced gut bacteria can increase intestinal permeability [24, 25, 26], as can eating certain foods, such as gluten [27].
Most research on thyroid health and diet has studied how different foods impact an underactive thyroid (also known as hypothyroidism). However, some of these studies may be relevant for autoimmune hyperthyroidism, because they show an anti-inflammatory diet can reduce thyroid antibodies.
For example, a gluten-free diet was shown in one study to reduce thyroid antibodies in a group of women with Hashimoto’s thyroiditis [28]. A gene associated with Graves’ disease (CTLA-4) [29] is also associated with celiac disease [30, 31], indicating that gluten sensitivity may be a factor for some Graves’ patients.
A simple, anti-inflammatory, whole-food diet that is gluten-free, nutrient-dense, and high in healthy antioxidants, like the paleo diet, is a great place to start improving your gut and thyroid health and to improve autoimmunity. The paleo diet has been shown to reduce inflammation by reducing exposure to foods that may trigger an immune response [32, 33].
Natural Remedies for Hyperthyroidism: Supplements
Supplements have a lot of promise as natural remedies for hyperthyroidism and play one of a few different roles. These include:
Reducing thyroid antibodies
Blocking the action of excess thyroid hormones
Reducing levels of thyroid hormones
Reducing hyperthyroid symptoms
Preventing relapse
Let’s review what we know about supplements for hyperthyroidism.
Selenium
Selenium, a mineral that is used as a dietary supplement, has a number of specific, documented benefits for Graves’ disease.
Patients with Graves’ disease are more likely to have lower selenium levels [34], and a meta-analysis showed that patients with high antibody levels are more likely to have a relapse [35]. Selenium has been shown to reduce antibodies and the symptoms associated with Graves’ disease [36], and higher selenium blood levels have been shown to reduce the relapse rate of Graves’ [37].
Overall, this is very good evidence that selenium supplementation is worth a trial in your hyperthyroidism treatment plan.
L-Carnitine
L-Carnitine is an amino acid supplement that has been shown to reduce or prevent hyperthyroid symptoms. It’s fast-acting, has a very low risk of side effects, and is even safe for pregnant women with Graves’ disease [46]. A clinical trial found that L-carnitine had a positive effect on [47]:
Weakness and fatigue
Shortness of breath
Palpitations
Nervousness
Insomnia
Tremors
Heart rate
Bone mineral density
However, in this study, L-carnitine did not affect the levels of TSH, free T4, or free T3 thyroid hormone.
L-carnitine can also be used to treat a “thyroid storm”, the most severe, life-threatening form of hyperthyroidism [48, 49].
Lemon Balm & Bugleweed
Two herbs, lemon balm (Melissa officinalis) and bugleweed (Lycopus europaeus), have been shown in limited studies to reduce hyperthyroid symptoms and to block or reduce thyroid hormones.
In one study, bugleweed was shown to be as effective as beta-blockers for protecting the heart from damage from hyperthyroidism [50]. In another study, it was shown to reduce an elevated heart rate from Graves’ disease in humans and rats [51, 52].
Additional studies have indicated that bugleweed and lemon balm may block or decrease thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) and reduce T3 and T4 hormone levels, which would reduce the symptoms of hyperthyroidism [53].
The evidence here is more preliminary and lower quality than with selenium or L-carnitine, but bugleweed and lemon balm are certainly worth considering as a short-term trial if you are hyperthyroid. Hopefully, future research will confirm these effects in larger samples.
Short-Term Iodine
The iodine molecule is the backbone of thyroid hormones, but curiously, research suggests that excess iodine may trigger hypothyroidism [54, 55], which makes iodine potentially useful for treating hyperthyroidism. A small study showed that 150 mg per day of potassium iodide reversed hyperthyroidism in some patients [56]. However, the study noted that the effect wasn’t permanent. Therefore, iodine may help you get your symptom under control while you use other natural remedies for hyperthyroidism.
Probiotics
It might not seem like probiotics would have much to do with thyroid disease, but a growing body of research shows that thyroid patients very often have gut imbalances. People with thyroid disease more often have SIBO [57, 58], leaky gut [59], low stomach acid [60, 61, 62], and celiac disease [63], as well as gut infections like H. pylori [64] or parasites [65]. One particular study noted a strong association between H. pylori infection and Graves’ disease [66].
Probiotics help rebalance the gut microbiome and the immune system, reduce gut inflammation, repair the gut lining, and may improve hyperthyroid symptoms, including anxiety [67]. Even better, probiotics have a very low incidence of negative side effects compared to conventional treatment.
Vitamin D
Most thyroid-related vitamin D research has studied hypothyroid patients. This research suggests that vitamin D deficiency may be associated with higher levels of thyroid antibodies [68] and that supplementation with vitamin D may decrease them [69]. But one study showed that hyperthyroid patients who had lower vitamin D levels were more likely to relapse [70].
Considered together, these data suggest vitamin D supplementation may help reduce thyroid antibodies and relapse after treatment for hyperthyroidism.
Stress Reduction
Stress reduction is good supportive care, no matter what your health condition is. This is especially true for hyperthyroidism, where common symptoms include an increased heart rate, palpitations, and anxiety. There is no direct evidence that stress reduction practices can improve Graves’ disease or hyperthyroidism, but practices such as meditation, yoga, or cognitive behavioral therapy may support your healing process while you work on other treatments.
The Bottom Line
You don’t need to destroy your thyroid gland to get control of your hyperthyroidism. Simple diet changes, supplements, and stress reduction, sometimes alongside medication, can bring your body back into balance. If you need support managing your thyroid problems, consider becoming a patient at the Ruscio Institute for Functional Health.
Discussion
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