Ayurveda Therapy And Herbs For Thyroid: A Case Study

She was under / style=”font-family: HelveticaNeue-roman;” target=”_blank”>Ayurvedic treatment for Thyroid for 1 year and since then she has been completely off meds for thyroid. We check her thyroid every 3 months and  it has been normal.  Ayurveda for Thyroid condition has been well documented in research done on Ashwagandha in a clinical trial documented. Eight weeks of treatment with Ashwagandha proved that Ayurveda for Thyroid shows efficacy in treatment.

We have used the research done on Ayurveda and applied the same principles of treatment to this patient. After she fully recovered, the patient came back for 

11-day cleansing program for detoxification. Please see her attached testimonial as well and you can motivate yourself to do Panchakarma according to your prakriti. The patient has fully recovered from her thyroid issues. 

Discussion on  Ashwagandha for Thyroid Problems

With the success evidence in terms of research and clinical trials, Ashwandha has proven its efficacy as Ayurvedic herb for treatment of Hypothyroidism. This ayurvedic herb helps manage thyroid health with stress management .

During the initial treatment sessions, we prescribed her to get proper rest for the body. With this, we aimed at weaning off from medication  several weeks’ to months’ time. On a similar timeline, we addressed the malfunctioning thyroid. 

Only when the body has gotten proper rest, we proceeded with Ashwagandha (Withania somnifera) herb along with Panchakarma for full recovery.

Ayurvedic Treatment for Thyroid Disorders

Thyroid disorders are the conditions that affect the thyroid gland, which uses iodine to produce vital hormones. As far as positioning, the thyroid is a butterfly-shaped organ located at the base of the neck. On functioning, it plays a key role in metabolism, bone health, growth and development.

Categorically, there are prominently three types of hormonal factors involved:

• TSH – Thyroid Stimulating Hormones

• T3-Triiodothyronine

• T4-Thyroxine

The pituitary gland takes the responsibility of TSH secretion. Think of it  as a small peanut-sized gland at the base of your brain. When T3 and T4 levels are too low, TSH is released to produce more of these hormones. An imbalance between them may indicate thyroid issues. (/ style=”text-decoration:none;”>1).

In details, there are two types of thyroid disorders:

• Hypothyroidism 

The disorder occurs when there is iodine deficiency, and the gland doesn’t produce enough thyroid hormone. Besides, the trigger could also be due to a particular medical condition: Hashimoto’s disease, an autoimmune disorder. 

• Hyperthyroidism.

By contrast, this medical condition occurs due to a surplus of thyroid hormone.

Science and research behind the cure of Thyroid with ashwagandha

Practitioners refer ashwagandha for an alternative and safe treatment procedure instead of synthetic medication. Recent scientific research confirms that consumption of 600 mg of ashwagandha root extract daily lead to significant improvements in thyroid levels as compared to taking a placebo.  This experiment conducted for 8-weeks with over 50 people with hypothyroidism.

The results were clear. The consumers of ashwagandha showed an increase in triiodothyronine (T3) and thyroxine (T4) levels of 41.5% and 19.6%, respectively. Besides, serum TSH levels decreased by 17.5%. (/ style=”text-decoration:none;”>2)

Summary and Outcome

Withania somnifera, popularly known as Ashwagandha is the Indian ginseng. In Ayurveda, it is graded as a Rasayana (rejuvenation) and expected to promote physical and mental health, rejuvenate the body in debilitated conditions and increase longevity.  We prescribe it in supplement form. Most supplements come in 300-mg tablets ingested twice per day after eating. (/ style=”font-family: HelveticaNeue-roman;”>3) Besides, there is no human data on Ashwagandha’s toxicity, which makes it safe for use.

References

1. Chaker, Layal, Antonio C. Bianco, Jacqueline Jonklaas, and Robin P. Peeters. “Hypothyroidism.” Lancet (London, England). September 23, 2017. Accessed July 22, 2019. 

2. Sharma, Ashok Kumar, Indraneel Basu, and Siddarth Singh. “Efficacy and Safety of Ashwagandha Root Extract in Subclinical Hypothyroid Patients: A Double-Blind, Randomized Placebo-Controlled Trial.” Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine (New York, N.Y.). March 2018. Accessed July 22, 2019. 

3. Raut, Ashwinikumar A., Nirmala N. Rege, Firoz M. Tadvi, Punita V. Solanki, Kirti R. Kene, Sudatta G. Shirolkar, Shefali N. Pandey, Rama A. Vaidya, and Ashok B. Vaidya. Exploratory Study to Evaluate Tolerability, Safety, and Activity of Ashwagandha (Withania Somnifera) in Healthy Volunteers.” Journal of Ayurveda and Integrative Medicine. July 2012. Accessed July 22, 2019.