What can you do right now to get your hair, energy and body back ?

In my first two articles, I explained why Australian soils are naturally depleted in essential minerals, and how that deficit can disrupt your thyroid, leading to hair loss, cellulite, water retention and persistent fatigue.

Today, we move into action. Because these deficiencies can be identified. And they can be corrected.

Step 1: Get the right tests done

This is the non-negotiable starting point. You cannot correct what you haven't measured and standard blood panels are often insufficient to detect the subclinical deficiencies I'm talking about.

Here is what I recommend asking for:

- Full thyroid panel: TSH, free T3, free T4, anti-TPO antibodies (to rule out Hashimoto's thyroiditis)

- Serum selenium

- Plasma zinc

- Urinary iodine (24-hour urine, rarely requested but very revealing)

- Additionally: iron, ferritin, vitamin D, B12, often involved in the same clinical picture

The goal is not to be "within lab reference ranges." It is to be in the optimal zone, where the body truly functions well, not just barely above the pathological threshold.

Step 2: Adapt your diet to the Australian context

What worked in your home country may no longer be enough here. Foods grown in depleted soils contain fewer minerals, this is documented. Here is how to compensate intelligently.

• For selenium:

2 Brazil nuts a day are often enough to meet daily requirements. Be careful though: they are highly concentrated, and eating a whole handful would be counterproductive.

• For iodine:

Sea vegetables, seafood and fish remain the best bioavailable sources. Iodised salt can help, but is rarely enough on its own to correct an established deficiency.

• For zinc:

Oysters are the most concentrated source. Grass-fed red meat, pumpkin seeds and legumes are also good options, best paired with vitamin C to support absorption.

One important note: if you buy your fruit and vegetables in Australia, provenance matters. Locally grown produce from depleted soils does not carry the same mineral content as food grown in Europe or in volcanic soils. This is the reality we work with here.

Step 3: Support the Lymphatic System

Cellulite and water retention linked to a slowed metabolism cannot be corrected through supplementation alone. The lymphatic system needs to be activated in parallel.

What I routinely include in my clients' protocols:

• Daily dry brushing (before showering, with upward strokes towards the heart) simple, effective, and free. I wrote an article about it, if you'd like to know how to do it.

• Manual lymphatic drainage - ideally carried out by a trained therapist, especially in cases of marked retention

• Proper hydration - often underestimated in Australia, where the heat accelerates water loss

• Regular movement - walking, swimming and cycling all support lymphatic circulation without over-taxing an already fatigued system

Step 4: Targeted Supplementation - But Not Blindly

This is the step where I raise a flag.

Selenium, iodine and zinc are powerful minerals, but they interact with each other and with other nutrients. Excess selenium is toxic. Iodine supplementation without selenium can make things worse in certain contexts (particularly in the presence of Hashimoto's). Poorly dosed zinc can trigger a copper deficiency.

This is why I strongly advise against self-medicating in this area. What works for one person may be entirely unsuitable or even counterproductive for another. A personalised protocol, built on the basis of proper testing and monitored over time, is the safest and most effective way forward.

If you are an expat, or if you have been living in Australia for some time and are experiencing these symptoms without explanation, I really encourage you to explore this avenue.

If you'd like to go further with me or talk about it

→ Book your discovery call

### Sources

- Selenium and thyroid disease — *Frontiers in Endocrinology*, 2023

- Cellulite and metabolic syndrome — *PMC / NIH*, 2024

- Hypothyroidism and the lymphatic system — *Paloma Health*, 2024

- Selenium, iodine, zinc and thyroid — *HealingTreeNaturalMed.com.au*, 2026

- Depleted Australian soils — *The Conversation*, 2025