Thyroid Tune-Up: Unlock Better Metabolism for Women Over 35
- Bridgette Barlow
- May 5
- 4 min read
Updated: May 7
The risk of developing thyroid disorders increases with age.
It's estimated that 12–20% of women over 60 years may have an underactive thyroid.
This is likely even higher due to the number of women who live with undiagnosed thyroid imbalances.
Your thyroid is one of your body’s key metabolic regulators—it helps control how efficiently you burn calories, use energy, and maintain a healthy weight. As women move past age 35 and begin to lose estrogen and progesterone, that hormonal shift can interfere with how well your thyroid functions.
Estrogen supports thyroid hormone sensitivity, and when levels drop, your cells may become less responsive to thyroid hormones—even if your lab results look “normal.”
The result? Slower metabolism, fatigue, stubborn weight gain, and feeling cold or mentally foggy (just to name FEW symptoms). Supporting your thyroid during this phase is essential to maintaining energy, mood, and a healthy metabolism.
One of the MOST common things I hear from women is "yes my doctor checked my thyroid and everything is normal, but I can't lose weight, and I feel like garbage!"
The truth is, most medical providers are trained to diagnose pathology, not to optimize thyroid health—yet so many women are living in a suboptimal state and really feeling it!
Normal ≠ optimal
Understanding Key Thyroid Hormones and Markers
Your thyroid plays a huge role in controlling your metabolism and energy levels. For women over 35, doctors should run a full panel that includes all of these.
Here's a quick guide to the main thyroid hormones and markers:
TSH (Thyroid Stimulating Hormone): This hormone is produced by the pituitary gland and tells the thyroid to produce T3 and T4. High TSH often means the thyroid is underactive (hypothyroidism), while low TSH can suggest an overactive thyroid (hyperthyroidism).
T3 (Triiodothyronine) & T4 (Thyroxine): These are the two main thyroid hormones. T4 is inactive and gets converted into T3, the active form that controls metabolism, energy, and mood. If T3 levels are low, you might feel tired or sluggish. Much of that conversion happens in the gut and liver.
Reverse T3 (rT3): This is an inactive form of T3. When your body is stressed or not functioning well, it may convert T4 into reverse T3 instead of active T3, which can slow down metabolism and cause fatigue.
Thyroid Antibodies: These are proteins that the immune system makes when it mistakenly attacks the thyroid. High levels of thyroid antibodies can indicate autoimmune thyroid conditions like Hashimoto’s disease, where the thyroid is gradually damaged.
By understanding these markers, you can get a clearer picture of how your thyroid is impacting your energy, metabolism, and overall health—especially during the hormonal changes of perimenopause and menopause.
Top ways to naturally boost thyroid function
At B4 and After Health and Fitness, we are all about taking matters into our own hands with our health by both advocating for ourselves and what we need from our physicians and finding supportive physicians but also focusing on feeling empowered in what we CAN control through our nutrition and lifestyle.
So, let's do that NOW!
Some of the top ways to boost thyroid function include:
Improving gut and liver health- The gut and liver are where most of our thyroid conversion takes place, and these systems become impaired as we lose hormones likes estrogen and progesterone in peri/menopause. Include fiber (chia, flax, veggies), cruciferous veggies, and probiotic-rich foods and/or probiotic supplements.
Controlling stress levels- High cortisol levels blunt thyroid hormone conversion. Practice breathwork, nature walks, or short nervous system resets daily. Come to my next Metabolic Reset Roulette 20-minute session to learn and practice a 5-minute stress tool!
Prioritizing protein at every meal- Tyrosine (an amino acid in protein) is a building block of thyroid hormones. Check out my protein blog and cheat sheets!
Avoiding extreme calorie restriction or excessive dieting- Eating too little signals your body to slow metabolism—including thyroid output.
Getting your thyroid labs checked annually- Ask for a full panel: TSH, Free T4, Free T3, Reverse T3, and thyroid antibodies (TPO, TG). PS- it's not uncommon for doctors to not want to order a full panel. There are now options to order your own labs online OR you can consider a functional medicine practitioner who is accustomed to optimizing thyroid health in women over 35. Need help? Shoot me a message!
Avoiding overexposure to endocrine disruptors- Reduce plastics, fragrance-heavy products, and nonstick cookware which can interfere with hormone health. Click here for my FAVORITE non-toxic cleaning products.
Staying active with strength training and walking- Movement boosts circulation and metabolism, supporting hormone delivery and function.
🥦 Can You Eat Cruciferous Veggies if You Have Thyroid Issues? Let’s Set the Record Straight.
I get a lot of questions about this so let's discuss.
Many women have heard that eating too many cruciferous veggies (broccoli, kale, brussels sprouts) can actually harm the thyroid.
Good news—they don’t, when eaten in normal amounts.
While these veggies contain compounds called goitrogens, you'd need to eat huge amounts raw and have low iodine for them to affect thyroid function.
Lightly cooking them reduces goitrogens and makes them thyroid safe.
Cruciferous veggies actually support liver detox and hormone balance, thanks to compounds like sulforaphane.
Unless your doctor advises otherwise, enjoy them cooked and in variety—they’re great for your metabolism, liver detoxification, fiber intake and overall health.
Learn more and get a customized approach:
In the BOOST pillar of the Metabolic Transformation Method, we focus on "boosting" metabolic nutrients and increasing thyroid function with nutrition, gut and liver health so you can re-energize and finally lose the weight!
Resources for further learning:
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