Do you have these symptoms? If so, you could be hypothyroid.
Weight gain, constipation, fluid retention, fatigue, puffy face
Brittle, weak nails. Dry, coarse, sparse hair.
Anxiety, panic attacks, irritability, brain fog
Husky voice, dry elbows, cold hands and feet
Down turned mouth, acne, allergies
Carpel tunnel syndrome, loss of outer third of eyebrow
High cholesterol, PMS, Infertility, easy bruising
Hypothyroidism
The thyroid gland regulates your metabolism, growth and maturation by constantly releasing a steady amount of hormones into the bloodstream. For certain biochemical reactions to take place, it needs the perfect temperature. If you have an underactive thyroid, this temperature won’t be maintained and so you will not have the normal metabolic functions resulting in the symptoms above and eventually other dieases as well.
Blood tests
If you suspect hypothyroidism, it is advisable to get a comprehensive thyroid panel which includes TSH, T4, T3, Thyroid antibodies, Thyroglobulin. When interpreting these results, you have to look for optimal levels and not the standard reference ranges. A normal TSH is from 0.2- 3.5 but I often have patients complaining of weight gain, depression and anxiety when their TSH is only 2.5 as the optimal TSH levels are in the range 0.5-2.
There will be other tests to assess the general state of your health. Eg. ANA, GGT, Homocysteine, etc
Thyroid antibodies
If a person does have optimal thyroid values but still has some of the symptoms above, then it is imperative to check their thyroid antibody levels if this has not been done before. This is used to predict Hashimoto’s thyroiditis and a functional medicine approach can reverse these antibodies and prevent the onset of disease.
Majority of women on eltroxin and euthyrox don’t even know if they’ve been tested for thyroid antibodies before. Here are some of the reasons why it is important to test for this:
1. The presence of antibodies confirms that you have an autoimmune condition. We know from scientific reseasrch that if you have one autoimmune condition, you are more likely to get another autoimmune condition, some years down the line. Eg. A person with Hashimotos Thyroiditis may be diagnosed with vitiligo, lupus or fibromyalgia years later.
2. The presence of antibodies will determine your treatment of choice. (Gut healing, food sensitivities, low level laser therapy, etc)
3. Antibody levels are also used to determine if your condition is worsening or improving.
Thyroid sonar
A thyroid sonar will be valuable in checking the size and nodularity of the gland. If you do have thyroid nodules you may need to have a thyroid scan which will determine if this is a hot nodule or cold nodule. Cold nodules are malignant and will need specialist intervention.
Treatment
1. Addressing the root cause of your disease:
Are your adrenals causing the thyroid imbalance?
How is your gut function? Do you have leaky gut?
Are you eating inflammatory foods that you are sensitive to?
Are you not expressing yourself enough in life situations?
Perhaps you may have a gut infection or parasite?
Are you on chronic medication that is disrupting your gut flora?
Is your thyroid problems causing other hormonal imbalances like obesity, PCOS, hot flsuhes?
Fill out the HAQ, Identity stress Q and the hormone Q to see where you are with regards to your health.
2. Thyroid medication:
A combination of the following may be used to achieve optimal TSH, T4, T3 levels.
T4 – Eltroxin or euthyrox
T3 – compounded medication
Thyroid S (aromour thyroid)
Low dose naltrexone (antibodies)
Autosangius therapy (food sensitivities, antibodies)
3. LLLT – Low level Laser therapy
These short treatment sessions are 15 minutes and the comra cold laser is used to rejuvenate the thyroid. This has been effective for treating thyroid nodules. A person may need between 6-12 sessions, depending on their antibody levels, nodules, etc.
4. Lifestyle modification and other supplements:
This is patient specific. Eg. If you have high inflammatory markers (GGT, hsCRP, ferritin, fibrinogen, etc) then supplements to decrease inflammation will be recommended. Obviously, these are always secondary to your lifestyle adjustments!