Background: Hypothyroidism is among the most common endocrine diseases, and its prevalence is twice as high in women as in men. Therefore, the present study aimed to investigate the effect of eight weeks of aerobic training combined with lemon supplementation on thyroid indices of women with hypothyroidism.
Materials and Methods: The current study is a quasi-experimental research, and its population included women with hypothyroidism aged 20 to 40 years. Individuals were assigned to four groups: control (n=10), lemon supplement (n=10), aerobic training (n=10), and aerobic training + lemon supplement (n=10), using a randomized block design. The training protocol consists of eight weeks (three sessions each week) of aerobic training for 30 to 60 min with an intensity of 55-85% of the maximum heart rate. Thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH), T4, and T3 levels were evaluated in all four groups. For statistical analysis, paired t-test, one-way analysis of variance and Benferroni's post hoc test were used.
Results: The research results revealed that eight weeks of aerobic training combined with lemon consumption led to an increase in thyroid hormones T3 and T4 and a decrease in TSH serum levels (P≤0.05).
Conclusion: Based on the current findings, it can be concluded that aerobic exercises combined with lemon supplementation could improve thyroid hormone levels, which may help control weight while reducing basal metabolism and heat generation in patients with hypothyroidism.