What is thyroid health?
Thyroid disorders affect about 20 million people in the U.S. Many men and women aren’t even aware that they have a thyroid problem because the diagnosis is often overlooked. Thyroid disorders are thought to be on the increase, likely associated with widespread nutrient deficiencies, exposure to environmental toxins, lousy bowel health, and the increasing incidence of autoimmunity. Women are also more prone to develop thyroid disorders than men.
Not only are thyroid disorders often poorly diagnosed, but they are also usually poorly handled. Conventional therapies often don’t deal with the root cause of disease. Even after being put on thyroid medication for hypothyroidism (underactive thyroid), most commonly levothyroxine, many patients will continue to suffer from symptoms.
Their physicians may insist that if their blood glucose levels are “normal,” their symptoms can not possibly be due to their thyroid. In our practice, we take a holistic way of treating thyroid disorders by finding the origin of the disease and using natural remedies to recover equilibrium in the thyroid.
How does the thyroid gland work?
The Thyroid gland plays a significant role in optimum health, and when it is not functioning correctly, many negative symptoms could arise. Regrettably, thyroid problems are often misdiagnosed and may cause a lifetime of drugs and mismanagement. Improper thyroid function may result in many of these symptoms.
Fatigue
Brain Fog
Morning headaches that fade
Weight gain
Hypersensitivity to cold
Poor circulation
Edema
Muscle cramps
Slow healing
Excessive sleep
Digestive & Gut Issues
Itchy, dry skin
Follicular decay
Low body temperature
Eyebrow lossÂ
Experts think that appropriate bio-specific identification and management can restore thyroid health and alleviate many of its symptoms. Our thorough approach discovers the underlying variables and provides bold solutions that will return you to your ideal health and ideal weight.Â
THYROID RESTORATION VS. TREATMENT
Unfortunately, many health care professionals are confused about how to properly assess and treat the thyroid. This often results in people who suffer from symptoms and are left with no hope of restoring good health. Many thyroid health conditions can be dramatically improved if the appropriate evaluation and testing are done. A thorough approach often allows experts to restore your thyroid function vs. merely treating your symptoms.
THYROID HEALTH
BASICS
Your thyroid is a small gland that stretches over the field of Adam’s apple and is shaped like a shield. The thyroid’s principal purpose is to behave as a shield by placing the body’s speed limit.
If you are cold, the thyroid steps on the gas to make more heat. If you have got a virus, then the thyroid revs the engine of your immune system. If you are overly stressed from a lot of 18-hour days fueled by coffee and bagels, the thyroid hits the brakes so that you do not blow a gasket in the fast lane.Â
Your thyroid is quite sensitive to small changes in your body and works like a thermostat. For the thyroid to produce hormones (T4 & T3), it has to be given a signal from the pituitary gland located in the brain. The pituitary gland receives its signals from the hypothalamus that’s also in mind. Collectively the hypothalamus, pituitary, and thyroid compose the HPT axis.Â
When your body needs more thyroid hormone to be produced, the hypothalamus releases a thyroid hormone called Thyroid Releasing Hormone (TRH) and sends it into the adrenal gland. The Pituitary gland then releases the Thyroid Stimulating Hormone (TSH) and sends it to the thyroid gland. When the thyroid is stimulated, it will utilize Thyroid Peroxidase (TPO) and iodine to make your T4 & T3 hormones. (see picture)Â
As your cells use the new thyroid hormones and your body is no more needing anymore, it will activate the hypothalamus and pituitary to stop releasing TRH and TSH and so block the production of the thyroid gland.Â
The pituitary gland releases TSH that stimulates the thyroid gland to produce T4 and T3, but the amount of each hormone it produces is a fascinating fact. The thyroid gland primarily produces T4. In actuality, it generates approximately 97 percent T4 and just 3 percent T3. This is an interesting point to think about since the most “active” type of hormone, and the one your body prefers is T3. This signifies that somewhere on your body, you have to convert the massive amount of “less active” T4 your thyroid gets into the”more energetic” T3 form your body requires.Â
Unfortunately, when you have too many or too few binding hormones, it can significantly affect your body using thyroid hormone. Too many, and there’s not sufficient Free T3 (busy ), too small there will be enough shuttles to move the hormones around. In any case, your thyroid might be working entirely normally, but you would still suffer from thyroid symptoms.Â
WHAT CAUSES YOUR SYMPTOMS?
It is useful to determine now why thyroid symptoms develop. If you experience any of the symptoms, then you’ve got a thyroid that’s not working properly. And if you’re presently taking medicine with these symptoms, your medication isn’t addressing the root cause of your thyroid condition. The allopathic medicine approach to addressing your thyroid is to quantify your TSH level. This is a pituitary hormone rather than a thyroid hormone. Simply measuring this amount will offer you an incomplete picture of how your body is using thyroid hormone.Â
NEED TO DIG DEEPER
A smarter approach evaluates the moving parts of your thyroid gland to determine the problem’s root cause. A more comprehensive line of questioning would comprise:
Just how much T4 has been produced?Â
Just how much T4 has been converted into T3?Â
Just how much of the T4 and T3 is jumped, and just how much is free?Â
Just how much reverse T3 has been made and inhibiting the use of T3?Â
There are a few fundamental questions to address when assessing your thyroid health. Working with a health care professional that will take some time to answer these questions is vital if you desire to recover your health again.Â
There are simple laboratory tests that may be done to answer all these questions. This will give you the answers that will make it possible for you to take the necessary steps to heal your body. Regrettably, however, if these questions are not answered, you are stuck only guessing about your thyroid health and frequently contributes to unnecessary medication and continuing symptoms.Â
Foods Hurting Your Thyroid
Some foods can damage your thyroid, and it is better to avoid them. These foods are pro-inflammatory and trigger an inflammatory response in your body when they are consumed. The root causes of thyroid disorders are inflammation, so unless we eliminate food causing inflammation, your thyroid won’t heal. Those who consume these everyday pro-inflammatory foods will see a worsening of their thyroid problem. Â
– Sugar
Sugar is one of the common inflammatory foods we consume. It plays a significant role in destroying the thyroid gland and finally resulting in hypothyroidism. It’s been demonstrated that glucose increases the inflammatory markers in thyroid sufferers. The first step towards removing sugar from your diet is eliminating added sugar in your regular diet.
– Fried Foods
Fried fatty food is one of the worst foods which you could eat for your thyroid. Fried fatty foods cause fat to degenerate and convert it into transfat. This trans fat was associated with various research studies with various chronic ailments like thyroid disease, heart disease, and diabetes. The best way to cook is by steaming your vegetables or sautéing your meals and adding olive oil on top.
– GlutenÂ
Gluten is one of those foods that has been associated with plenty of chronic medical problems. Especially with thyroid disease, gluten can be quite harmful and may destroy the thyroid gland. Some studies associate gluten-free with Hashimoto’s disease, which is an autoimmune thyroid disease. Â
Many research studies have demonstrated an association between thyroid disorders and celiac disease (severe gluten allergy).
Several research studies have shown that once people give up gluten, there is a substantial improvement in the patients’ signs, and their thyroid gland tests improve appreciably. Â
– Dairy
Dairy is also among the most frequent food that people with Hashimoto’s suffer from. Traditionally dairy was thought of as healthy, but in today’s world, milk is processed so that it starts damaging your body. Dairy-free alternatives may be available and are becoming increasingly cheaper, like coconut milk, almond milk, oat milk, rice milk, flax milk.Â
– Processed MeatÂ
Processed meat was associated with increased inflammation in people’s bodies, and at one stage, WHO classified processed meat as a carcinogen.Â
A research study showed that individuals who consumed an average amount of processed meat had a greater quantity of thyroid antibodies. After people eliminated processed meat from their diet, thyroid hormones were elevated.
– SoyÂ
Most individuals are allergic to soy nowadays. It’s been found that people who have regular soy have a greater prevalence of thyroid disorders. The significant reason is that the soy nowadays is highly processed, which causes people to respond. There are several concerns about phytoestrogens in soy that could be harmful, especially for females with thyroid disease.Â
The root cause of the disease is inflammation. It destroys your thyroid gland, and that is why people finally develop low thyroid difficulties. After removing those foods, people will see enhanced energy, improved mental clarity, and most often, they will also begin losing weight.