Thyroid carcinoma is a form of cancer that often begins as a growth or nodule on the thyroid gland. Abnormal cells within the thyroid begin to divide at a heightened rate. This not only damages and destroys healthy tissue, but it also causes a mass to form on the gland itself. Sometimes, the mass can increase the production thyroxine, a hormone that stimulates oxygen consumption, which has a direct impact on metabolism.
Hyperthyroidism
Too much thyroxine in the body can lead to a condition known as hyperthyroidism. As thyroxine levels increase, every cell in your body actually begins to use more and more energy. This accelerates your metabolism and can quickly result in unintentional weight loss. Even when your appetite remains the same and you continue to eat as normal, you still lose weight.
Diet
Since your body is now burning more calories than before, you may need to increase your caloric intake to combat the unintentional weight loss. Nutrient-rich foods, including most fruits, vegetables, legumes, whole grains, lean meats and low-fat dairy, are by far your best options, so try to keep your diet balanced while increasing your caloric intake. However, you may also want to consider drinking a meal supplement to add extra calories to your diet each day. Talk to a doctor or dietitian to help establish the right diet for you.
Nutrients
Besides increasing your caloric intake, you may also need to incorporate more protein, calcium and vitamin D into your eating regimen, advises MayoClinic.com. For some people, an overactive thyroid can lead to muscle wasting. Eating more protein can help prevent this. Adding more calcium to the diet can help avoid osteoporosis, another potential outcome of excess thyroxine; while vitamin D helps the body better absorb calcium. Try to get 1,000 to 1,200 mg of calcium a day. Your doctor or dietitian can tell you how much protein and vitamin D you need to maintain your health.
Treatment
The most common form of treatment for thyroid carcinoma is surgery, according to the National Cancer Institute. All or part of the thyroid gland is removed during the procedure, which actually stops the production of thyroid hormones, including thyroxine, and decelerates the metabolism. Supplemental hormones are needed to replace those hormones no longer produced by the thyroid.
Weight Gain
As you begin taking the medication, you may begin to experience unintentional weight gain as a result of your decelerated metabolism. It may take some time for the synthetic hormone to bring your hormones into balance, so adjusting your caloric intake the other direction to accommodate for the change in metabolism is often necessary. Like weight loss, your doctor or dietitian can help with proper meal planning.
