Thyroid diseaseaffects your body’s metabolism, and if you have a thyroid condition, you may have been advised to consume sugar in moderation. While this is good advice, using sugar substitutes instead of regular table sugar may not be the answer.
Bill Boch / Getty Images
Sugar, Thyroid Disease, and Diabetes
If you have thyroid disease, you are at an increased risk of developingtype 1 diabetesortype 2 diabetes. And if you have diabetes, you are at increased risk of thyroid disease. When these conditions occur together, they can also exacerbate each other’s symptoms and interfere with treatment.
Thyroid Disease and Diabetes
The complex links between these two disorders are not fully understood. The connection is believed to be related to multiple factors, including an increased tendency to develop an autoimmune disease, glucose level irregularities, and alterations in fat metabolism.
With the inherent risk of developing one condition if you have the other, there are some recommended prevention strategies, the most important of which is making sure that your blood glucose levels stay between 70 and 105 mg/dL. Avoiding excess added sugar and fructose is an important part of keeping your glucose in the recommended range.
It is often advised that you maintain a moderate sugar intake and have your blood sugar levels checked regularly if you have thyroid disease.
Natural Sugars
Fruit and vegetables are natural sources of sugar. Whether or not their effect is the same as added sugar in terms of one’s risk of thyroid disease was the subject of a European study.
Researchers followed 748 volunteers for a period of 14 years to evaluate the impact of fruit and vegetable intake on thyroid disorders. The research found that fruit and vegetable consumption did not protect or increase the risk of thyroid cancer or thyroid disease—it had no effect at all in this regard.
High rates of fruit juice consumption, however, was associated with a slight increase in thyroid disease. This could have been due to exposure to pesticides or added artificial sweeteners.
Artificial Sweeteners
In the study, two of every three who had subsequently stopped using artificial sweeteners had a complete reversal of their HT. Theirthyroid antibodiesgradually returned to normal, and they were even able to stop theirhormone replacement medication. This response to discontinuing the sweeteners supports the idea that artificial sweeteners may play a role in thyroid disease.
Substituting sweeteners for standard table sugar may be problematic for your thyroid function.
The experiment was not replicated in humans, but a newer research study on rats showed a profound effect of sugar on thyroid function.A group of rats was not fed any sugar, while other groups of rats were given different types of sugar substitutes. The rats who were fed artificial sweeteners developed altered thyroid activity, and their thyroid activity differed based on the type of sugar substitute they received.
While rat studies certainly do not translate to human responses, the results provide some insight.
Preliminary research into the effects of artificial sweeteners on thyroid disease suggests that more research is needed about how artificial sweeteners affect thyroid function.
A Word From Verywell
Moderation is key when it comes to the use of any sweetener, but particularly when it comes to artificial products, which are often difficult for the body to metabolize and eliminate efficiently.
If you have thyroid disease, a well-balanced diet is important, and there are some special considerations that you need to be aware of becausecertain foods can exacerbate thyroid disease.
3 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Krinsley JS, Preiser JC.Time in blood glucose range 70 to 140 mg/dl >80% is strongly associated with increased survival in non-diabetic critically ill adults.Crit Care. 2015;19(1):179. doi:10.1186/s13054-015-0908-7Zamora-Ros R, Béraud V, Franceschi S, et al.Consumption of fruits, vegetables and fruit juices and differentiated thyroid carcinoma risk in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) study.Int J Cancer.2018;142(3):449-459. doi:10.1002/ijc.30880Pałkowska-Goździk E, Bigos A, Rosołowska-Huszcz D.Type of sweet flavour carrier affects thyroid axis activity in male rats.Eur J Nutr.2018;57(2):773-782. doi:10.1007/s00394-016-1367-xAdditional ReadingPałkowska-Goździk E, Bigos A, Rosołowska-Huszcz D.Type of sweet flavour carrier affects thyroid axis activity in male rats. Eur J Nutr. 2018 Mar;57(2):773-782. doi: 10.1007/s00394-016-1367-x. Epub 2016 Dec 31.Samechi, P. and Kim, P.The Association Between Sugar Substitutes and Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis (HT). 15th International Thyroid Congress; Lake Buena Vista, Florida; October 19-23, 2015; abstract SCP 28.Shun CB, Donaghue KC, Phelan H, Twigg SM, Craig ME.Thyroid autoimmunity in Type 1 diabetes: systematic review and meta-analysis.Diabet Med. 2014 Feb;31(2):126-35. doi: 10.1111/dme.12318. Epub 2013 Nov 8.Zamora-Ros R, Béraud V, Franceschi S, et al.Consumption of fruits, vegetables and fruit juices and differentiated thyroid carcinoma risk in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) study.Int J Cancer. 2018 Feb 1;142(3):449-459. doi: 10.1002/ijc.30880. Epub 2017 Jul 24.
3 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Krinsley JS, Preiser JC.Time in blood glucose range 70 to 140 mg/dl >80% is strongly associated with increased survival in non-diabetic critically ill adults.Crit Care. 2015;19(1):179. doi:10.1186/s13054-015-0908-7Zamora-Ros R, Béraud V, Franceschi S, et al.Consumption of fruits, vegetables and fruit juices and differentiated thyroid carcinoma risk in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) study.Int J Cancer.2018;142(3):449-459. doi:10.1002/ijc.30880Pałkowska-Goździk E, Bigos A, Rosołowska-Huszcz D.Type of sweet flavour carrier affects thyroid axis activity in male rats.Eur J Nutr.2018;57(2):773-782. doi:10.1007/s00394-016-1367-xAdditional ReadingPałkowska-Goździk E, Bigos A, Rosołowska-Huszcz D.Type of sweet flavour carrier affects thyroid axis activity in male rats. Eur J Nutr. 2018 Mar;57(2):773-782. doi: 10.1007/s00394-016-1367-x. Epub 2016 Dec 31.Samechi, P. and Kim, P.The Association Between Sugar Substitutes and Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis (HT). 15th International Thyroid Congress; Lake Buena Vista, Florida; October 19-23, 2015; abstract SCP 28.Shun CB, Donaghue KC, Phelan H, Twigg SM, Craig ME.Thyroid autoimmunity in Type 1 diabetes: systematic review and meta-analysis.Diabet Med. 2014 Feb;31(2):126-35. doi: 10.1111/dme.12318. Epub 2013 Nov 8.Zamora-Ros R, Béraud V, Franceschi S, et al.Consumption of fruits, vegetables and fruit juices and differentiated thyroid carcinoma risk in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) study.Int J Cancer. 2018 Feb 1;142(3):449-459. doi: 10.1002/ijc.30880. Epub 2017 Jul 24.
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
Krinsley JS, Preiser JC.Time in blood glucose range 70 to 140 mg/dl >80% is strongly associated with increased survival in non-diabetic critically ill adults.Crit Care. 2015;19(1):179. doi:10.1186/s13054-015-0908-7Zamora-Ros R, Béraud V, Franceschi S, et al.Consumption of fruits, vegetables and fruit juices and differentiated thyroid carcinoma risk in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) study.Int J Cancer.2018;142(3):449-459. doi:10.1002/ijc.30880Pałkowska-Goździk E, Bigos A, Rosołowska-Huszcz D.Type of sweet flavour carrier affects thyroid axis activity in male rats.Eur J Nutr.2018;57(2):773-782. doi:10.1007/s00394-016-1367-x
Krinsley JS, Preiser JC.Time in blood glucose range 70 to 140 mg/dl >80% is strongly associated with increased survival in non-diabetic critically ill adults.Crit Care. 2015;19(1):179. doi:10.1186/s13054-015-0908-7
Zamora-Ros R, Béraud V, Franceschi S, et al.Consumption of fruits, vegetables and fruit juices and differentiated thyroid carcinoma risk in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) study.Int J Cancer.2018;142(3):449-459. doi:10.1002/ijc.30880
Pałkowska-Goździk E, Bigos A, Rosołowska-Huszcz D.Type of sweet flavour carrier affects thyroid axis activity in male rats.Eur J Nutr.2018;57(2):773-782. doi:10.1007/s00394-016-1367-x
Pałkowska-Goździk E, Bigos A, Rosołowska-Huszcz D.Type of sweet flavour carrier affects thyroid axis activity in male rats. Eur J Nutr. 2018 Mar;57(2):773-782. doi: 10.1007/s00394-016-1367-x. Epub 2016 Dec 31.Samechi, P. and Kim, P.The Association Between Sugar Substitutes and Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis (HT). 15th International Thyroid Congress; Lake Buena Vista, Florida; October 19-23, 2015; abstract SCP 28.Shun CB, Donaghue KC, Phelan H, Twigg SM, Craig ME.Thyroid autoimmunity in Type 1 diabetes: systematic review and meta-analysis.Diabet Med. 2014 Feb;31(2):126-35. doi: 10.1111/dme.12318. Epub 2013 Nov 8.Zamora-Ros R, Béraud V, Franceschi S, et al.Consumption of fruits, vegetables and fruit juices and differentiated thyroid carcinoma risk in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) study.Int J Cancer. 2018 Feb 1;142(3):449-459. doi: 10.1002/ijc.30880. Epub 2017 Jul 24.
Pałkowska-Goździk E, Bigos A, Rosołowska-Huszcz D.Type of sweet flavour carrier affects thyroid axis activity in male rats. Eur J Nutr. 2018 Mar;57(2):773-782. doi: 10.1007/s00394-016-1367-x. Epub 2016 Dec 31.
Samechi, P. and Kim, P.The Association Between Sugar Substitutes and Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis (HT). 15th International Thyroid Congress; Lake Buena Vista, Florida; October 19-23, 2015; abstract SCP 28.
Shun CB, Donaghue KC, Phelan H, Twigg SM, Craig ME.Thyroid autoimmunity in Type 1 diabetes: systematic review and meta-analysis.Diabet Med. 2014 Feb;31(2):126-35. doi: 10.1111/dme.12318. Epub 2013 Nov 8.
Zamora-Ros R, Béraud V, Franceschi S, et al.Consumption of fruits, vegetables and fruit juices and differentiated thyroid carcinoma risk in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) study.Int J Cancer. 2018 Feb 1;142(3):449-459. doi: 10.1002/ijc.30880. Epub 2017 Jul 24.
Meet Our Medical Expert Board
Share Feedback
Was this page helpful?Thanks for your feedback!What is your feedback?OtherHelpfulReport an ErrorSubmit
Was this page helpful?
Thanks for your feedback!
What is your feedback?OtherHelpfulReport an ErrorSubmit
What is your feedback?
