A Lifestyle (Dietary) Intervention Reduces Tiredness in Children with Subclinical Hypothyroidism, a Randomized Controlled Trial

Ellen van der Gaag, Job van der Palen, Pim Schaap, Mirthe van Voorthuizen and Thalia Hummel
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Ellen van der Gaag: Department of Pediatrics, Hospital Group Twente, 7609 PP Almelo, The Netherlands
Job van der Palen: Faculty of Behavioural, Management and Social Sciences (BMS), University of Twente, 7522 NB Enschede, The Netherlands
Pim Schaap: Department of Pediatrics, Hospital Group Twente, 7609 PP Almelo, The Netherlands
Mirthe van Voorthuizen: Department of Pediatrics, Hospital Group Twente, 7609 PP Almelo, The Netherlands
Thalia Hummel: Department of Pediatrics, Medical Centre Twente, 7512 KZ Enschede, The Netherlands

IJERPH, 2020, vol. 17, issue 10, 1-11

Abstract: Purpose : Subclinical hypothyroidism (SH) in children and adults is a subject for discussion in terms of whether to treat it or not with respect to the short-term clinical implications and consequences of SH and in the long term. If treatment with thyroxine supplementation is not indicated, no other treatment is available. We investigated whether a lifestyle (dietary) intervention improves or normalizes SH or decreases the presence of Thyroid Stimulating Hormone (TSH) and/or tiredness. Methods : We randomized children aged 1–12 years with SH to the control group (standard care = no treatment) or intervention group (dietary intervention). The dietary intervention consisted of green vegetables, beef, whole milk and butter for 6 months. The rest of the diet remained unchanged. We measured TSH, FreeT4, Lipid profile, Body Mass Index (BMI) and Pediatric Quality of Life (PedQL) multidimensional fatigue scale scores. Results : In total, 62 children were included. After 6 months, TSH decreased in both groups without a significant difference between the groups ( p = 0.98). PedQL fatigue scores for sleep ( p = 0.032) and total fatigue scores ( p = 0.039) improved significantly in the intervention group, compared to the control group. No unfavorable effects occurred in the lipid profile or BMI. Conclusion : The lifestyle (dietary) intervention did not normalize SH and TSH levels, but it significantly reduced tiredness. These results suggest that children’s well-being can be improved without medication.

Keywords: subclinical hypothyroidism; tiredness; fatigue; lifestyle; dietary intervention; beef; vegetables; whole dairy products (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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