Low-Iodine Diet

UPDATE: Taren just found this great website that lists all the companies that use non-iodized salt in their foods!  Go to page 12 if you care.  If not, go straight to the hot place ... you'll know it when you get there.

Today marks the first day in my two-week preparation for the radioactive iodine therapy that will, hopefully, ensure I am truly cancer-free.  At least, for now.  I need to reduce the iodine I consume so my body will better absorb the radioactive stuff, and result in a more effective treatment for me in my post-surgery, pre-mutated state.

Like most diets you are forced to go on for health reasons, you never really know how much of whatever-it-is-you-can't-eat is in food.  To clarify, low-iodine is NOT no salt.  As I learned, some salts have iodine added to them, so when shopping for foods, you have to look at the ingredient list for the specific type of salt used - can't be sea salt, and if the list does not say specifically kosher salt ... you can't eat it.  Think about that - salt is in everything, from breads to peanut butter.  Just looking for tortillas at the store was a 5 minute chore (in case you were wondering, corn tortillas have no salt in them, but who likes those?).

Meats are a bit easier to deal with, except for chicken.  Much of the chicken you buy in the store has been dunked in some sort of brine.  A key ingredient of brine?  Salt.  So needless to say shopping has been taken to a whole new level in my house.

What's on the "No List"?  Fish and anything with sea salt, which is kind of a no brainer really.  Some types of beans, spinach, egg yolks, dairy, chocolate, soy ... I think that's everything.  Not that I eat this stuff all the time, but fish?  Cheese?  Chocolate?  It's gonna be a rough two weeks.  Oh, I also had to stop my vitamin supplements - one was fish oil and the other has soy in it.

So for lunch last night we had tacos.  Actually I'm not sure you can even call them tacos in the traditional sense.  No cheese and no sour cream.  They were ... they were fine.

Anyway, that's my food plan for the next two weeks.  I think much of this diet is geared for folks who eat out all the time, or get their dinners from the microwave.  My diet was pretty good to begin with, the only offenders being cheese and fish, so I think it's ok if I have some iodine-ladden foods from time to time.  The important thing for me to remember is this is a Low-Iodine diet, not a Non-Iodine diet.

Then on May 12th and 13th I get my shots, the 14th I get mutated!

A better update than the last garbage

First off, sorry for leaving this blog to gather so much eDust - especially with a soul-crushingly depressing post as that last one.  It's not my style to let that much out at once and have it just fester there, oozing emo vibes.  I'll do my best to at least wash that stuff down with a faster, happier set of words in the future.

Ok, here's the update:  My Endochron tested my Thyroid levels and they came back fairly normal, but due to my dark moments, she decided to bump my dose from 175 micrograms to 200.  The change is literally like night and day.  It took a couple of weeks, but I feel more together, more energetic, and much more creative.  I'm sharper mentally and I'm fairly happier than I have been in awhile.  That slight tweak to my hormone level did things to my brain that I never knew could be done.  I feel like a 16 year old in a whore house, discovering new and amazing things!  My metabolism has bumped up a bit, too, and I've lost about 4 pounds over the last three weeks.  Not amazing, but noticeable.  Thinking back on how I felt in February and how I feel now, I wonder how many people who suffer from depression would benefit from a pop in their Thyroid levels?  I'm not sure if it would work for everyone else, but it pulled me out of a real dead end, I tell you what.

The next step for me is to get a nice dose of Radioactive Iodine.  To do that, I will be injected with two high-doses of synthetic thyroid hormone first, in order to get my levels really jacked up.  The RAI targets any remaining Thyroid flesh, and the hormone will stimulate any Thyroid tissue still possibly left in my neck, which will in turn better absorb the RAI.  After that, any Thyroid left will be nuked, and will no longer be at risk of growing new cancer cells.   During this time I will be secluded in my home office, having no contact with anyone - cats included!  Survival will be hard, and I'm not sure I can make it without cats.

In order to have this treatment be as effective as possible, I'll need to be on a low-Iodine diet for the two weeks leading up to the RAI treatment.  Which is apparently real shitty, but will make my body crave the iodine and lead to a more beneficial result. So long fish, hello unsalted nuts.  Awesome.  The good news is I'm not allowed to plant seeds in anyone for a year after the treatment, for fear of them turning out with webbed feet, or a tendency to vote Democrat.

Other than that, things are progressing nicely.  The neck is healing just fine, and I'm able to drive again.  There is some stiffness still, but that is fading.  Good news!

Smile!