Are you constantly lethargic with unexplained weight gain?
With a staggering 200 million people experiencing thyroid problems, half of which are undiagnosed, this may very well be the cause of your symptoms.
I am Dr Vijaya Chetty, from Imagene Vitality Centre, Varsity Lakes. I am best known to help women reach their optimal Health. Whether it be helping them to get pregnant, helping them to gp through menopause and antiaging.
Thyroid disorders are conditions that affect the thyroid gland, which is butterfly-shaped and located in the front of the neck.
Its primary role is to regulate numerous metabolic processes throughout the body; it determines how much digestion should occur, how much energy should be produced, how much muscle should be built. It is trying to calibrate your physical and psychological structure.
What happens when the gland is not healthy?
- You may experience weight gain despite dieting and exercising
- Loss of memory
- Dry brittle hair
- Dry skin
- Recurrent miscarriages
- Foggy and sluggish thought patterns
- Migraines
- Lack of energy
Doctors often miss it, despite doing tests and finding nothing wrong, and yet you continue to find it an effort to get out of bed.
2 Conditions of Thyroid disorder
Two of the most common thyroid diseases are hypothyroidism and hyperthyroidism and, as their names suggest, they are at opposite in their effects on the body’s functioning.
Hypothyroidism is a slowing down of the metabolic process, while hyperthyroidism is a speeding of up this process; both are outside of the normal metabolic functioning range.
The organs involved in the fine tuning of thyroid secretion requires several steps, and problems in any of these steps can cause imbalance of thyroid function.
- Stimulus from the brain – TSH (thyroid stimulating hormone)
- Production of T4 (97%) and T3 (3%) by the thyroid gland. T4 means 4 iodide molecules attached to thyroid hormone.
- T4 is inactive and requires conversion to the active form, T3. This is done by bile in the liver in the presence of enzymes and co-factors. As the name suggests, T3 is one iodide molecule removed from thyroid hormone.
- Furthermore, when T3 is produced, it can be active or inactive. Normally inactive T3 is lower than active t3.
- If there are problems in conversion, then there is a reversal of inactive and active T3, where inactive T3 is higher than active t3. This is called rT3, or reverse T3. Measuring rT3 is not a normal practice which often leads to misdiagnosis.
What is the problem behind the thyroid problem?
Addressing the problem is not as simple as taking a pill, the underlying cause of the problem needs to be established and rectified.
- Are you following a low-calorie diet? As you lower your calories to between 500 and 800, you also lower your nutrition which starves the metabolism and disrupts the thyroid further.
- Are you buying pre-packaged food? These can be a problem as they have soy protein isolates, a very low-quality protein which interferes with the thyroid and the liver. Pre-packaged foods generally increase estrogen levels which shuts down the thyroid. Avoid soy at all costs.
- Are you taking stimulants such as diet pills? Stimulants that suppress or stimulate the metabolism overwork the thyroid, causing damage in the long run.
- Have you looked for liver, gut and gallbladder problems? A healthy liver and sufficient bile are required to convert inactive T4 to active T3. This is the most common problem.
- Does your diet contain sufficient iodine? Try iodine supplements. All thyroid hormones bond with iodine molecules to activate, thyroid function, and thereby your metabolism, can be halved if the iodine isn’t there.
- Do you suffer from Menstrual issues? Are You pregnant or have you just had a baby? Estrogen dominance will give rise to painful, heavy and irregular periods which can also shut the thyroid down. Estrogen is high during and after pregnancy.
A special Mention about Hashimotos
Hashimotos Thyroiditis is an auto-immune disorder.
Your antibodies start attacking your thyroid gland
Resulting in an underactive, which is known as hypothyroidism.
A thyroid profile test shows elevation of thyroid antibodies along with high thyroid stimulation hormones and low T4 and T3.
Treatment with thyroid replacement medication and supplements such as anti-inflammatory, vitamin D3 and K2 in night and cod liver oil in the morning can help most patients suffering from Hashimotos thyroiditis. Correction of t4 and t3 may be necessary.
The best hypothyroid supplements:
- Gallbladder formula – we need bile to convert T4 to T3
- Ovarian support formula – we need to support the ovaries and balance estrogen levels
- Adrenal support formula – we need to support the adrenal gland to cope with stress
- Sea kelp – contains trace minerals and iodide.