A case report: Soy milk - a possible cause of Hashimoto's thyroiditis

Hashimoto’s thyroiditis is an autoimmune disease with symptoms of hypothyroidism including psychosis, weight gain, heat and cold sensitivity etc. Some risk factors such as certain human leukocyte antigen (HLA), cytotoxic T-lymphocyte antigen (CTLA) polymorphisms or certain infections are related to this disease. There are some reports claiming soy food could interfere with thyroid function. In this study, we found a case that soy milk might be a possible cause of Hashimoto’s thyroiditis by collecting relevant history and laboratory data from patient. The literature reviews provide supportive proof for this claim. It is concluded that the soy milk might be an etiology of Hashimoto’s thyroiditis which can be especially alarming for Asian people who favor drinking soy milk instead of milk.