Newbie veg head and cheese

[Paleoanth]

Hey all!

I have been scrolling through these forums and love all the suggestions and input you guys have. I am branc new to LCing and have a couple of questions.

I recently got put on a low carb diet by my doctor. I have slight hypothyroidism, but have gained 30 pounds SINCE starting medication. All the calorie counting and working out netted in a result of 4 pounds of weight loss in 3 months. Because of this, I went to the doc, had some blood work done to check the thyroid (which my medication got upped!) and he suggested the low carb thing for a couple of weeks to see what happens.

I am a lacto-ovo vegetarian and am not at all interested in eating meat again. I don't think I could emotionally, anway. I have been eating MorningStar Farms products which are low in carbs, cheese, salad greens and some low carb veggies. My question is: I have read some vague references about too much cheese being bad. What would be a good level of cheese consumption? I have been having a hard time getting enough calories and use the cheese and things like mayonaise to get my calorie count up. Am I sabotaging myself?

I only started this on Tuesday and have already lost a 1/4 inch in the waist and about two pounds.

Thanks!

Paleoanth

[Kristine]

Hello!

Dr Atkins recommends limiting cheese to 4 oz per day, and it has to be lower carb hard cheese - not cottage cheese, processed cheese slices, etc. I think other plans are similar. Dairy can stall some people, but your milage may vary. The mayo, and other low-carb salad dressings, are generally considered fine. :thup: Olive oil is another good way to get the calories up, plus it's got a good fatty acid profile.

If I were you, though, I'd be concerned about the soy. :( :thdown: While many people enjoy a moderate amount of soy foods with no problems, people with hypothyroidism should use it sparingly because it contains goitrogens (I think that's the right term). That's hard to do if you're a vegetarian and rely on it as a protein source. :(

I see many, many eggs in your future. ;) I think I also see some whey protein powder. ;)

There's a thyroid disease forum on this site - I'm sure you'll find some helpful info there. There's also a vegetarian forum, but it's a little on the quiet side.

Anyway, welcome, and enjoy! :sunny:

[Paleoanth]

Thanks Kristine!

Actually, the problem with soy might be (and there seems to be an argument about this!) the isoflavones. The typical soy burger contains soy protein but small amounts of isoflavones. I think the real problem is soy milk and I have ditched that out of my diet. Too high in carbs anyway.

I appreciate the info about cheese. I need to take care about my amounts. I just love that stuff.

Thanks again!

Paleo

[Kristine]

No problem! :D

...except I forgot cream cheese. That's a good one to use; it's quite low in carbs, as long as it's not the fat-free, starched up crap. :)