You've researched your symptoms and came to the conclusion you have low thyroid symptoms.
You even consulted your medical practitioner and he or she concurred and prescribed thyroid hormone replacement therapy. You were hopeful to finally regain your energy and your drive. The medication was supposed to help you with the brain fog, body aches, neck pain or migraines. Unfortunatley, these and other symptoms were with you more often that you cared to admit over the last few years.
What else could there be? Your doctor said you lab tests were now in the normal range on your medication, but you still feel lackluster. You are slowly gaining weight despite exercising and dieting. The pain in your neck and headaches are becoming commonplace. You are frustrated.
In fact you are so frustrated that you are now looking outside of tradition medical care. You decided to try taking supplements you've read about on the internet, hoping nutritional deficiency was the missing link to getting back to feeling like how you did, what seems like a long, long time ago. Despite your best efforts, you feel like you have to resign yourself to a sentence of being overweight, feeling exhausted, neck hurting all the time, frequent headaches and brain fog. More often than you care to admit, finding the words you know are on the tip of your tongue, isn't easy any more.
Thankfully, there is a large body of knowledge outside the standard medical model of hormone replacement for low thyroid symptoms. In fact a variety of factors can affect thyroid function. One example is the flame retardant used in pajamas, mattresses and other furniture called polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs). This chemical can lower your blood levels of thyroid hormone thyroxin. [1] PBDEs, not only lower levels of thyroxin, but also cause changes in the structure and function of the thyroid gland over time. Your thyroid's inability to function properly often manifests similarly in most cases. Symptoms may include lethargy and depression, fatigue, overall body aches, joint and neck pain, headaches and migraines, weight gain, and a host of other musculoskeletal complaints, including carpal tunnel syndrome pain. [2]
In case you did not fully realize all the symptoms that can be caused by low thyroid function, here is a list of the many signs and symptoms of hypothyroidism:
- Fatigue
- Weakness
- Weight gain or increased difficulty losing weight
- Difficulty swallowing
- Coarse, dry hair
- Dry, rough pale skin
- Thinning hair on scalp/hair loss
- Loss of body hair
- Cold intolerance (you can't tolerate cold temperatures like those around you)
- Muscle cramps and frequent muscle aches
- High Cholesterol
- Constipation
- Depression
- Irritability
- Memory loss
- Inability to concentrate
- Abnormal menstrual cycles/Heavy period
- Infertility
- Decreased libido
Another aspect to consider when it comes to low thyroid symptoms, despite receiving proper medical management, and even taking supplements are thyroid poisons.
The missing link in good thyroid care is often the elimination of thyroid poisons. You can take supplements constantly, but if you are continually damaging your thyroid, you may never get the results you need. The places where you will find thyroid poisons are often surprising. The main poisons are:
Chlorine and Fluorine. These two halogen compounds are taken up by the thyroid because their structure is so similar to iodine, which is a thyroid food. They inhibit thyroid function, poison enzymes, cause premature aging and bone disease, and can cause seizures and cancer.
Obesogens. chemicals that inappropriately alter lipid homeostasis and fat storage, change metabolic setpoints, disrupt energy balance or modify the regulation of appetite and satiety to promote fat accumulation and obesity.[3] Many have been found to impair thyroid hormone synthesis, destroy the thyroid gland or reduce the ability for the thyroid hormones to have their effects at the cellular level.
Pesticides and Estrogen. Pesticides have an estrogenic function which inhibits the thyroid. And estrogen in all forms is highly thyroid-inhibiting. These chemicals slow thyroid hormone secretion and conversion. Estrogen is not only limited to synthetic prescription drugs or drugs like Premarin. All estrogenic compounds inhibit thyroid function. This includes herbal estrogens like black cohosh, licorice, soy, pennyroyal, and sage.
Antioxidants like Beta Carotene. High doses of these substances inhibit thyroid function.
Radiation and Mercury. Radiation, as well as high serum mercury (usually from dental amalgam fillings), inhibit thyroid hormone conversion. High amounts of either one or both can actually cause thyroid disease.
PABA. High doses of para amino benzoic acid (a B vitamin that lots of people consume in super doses as a healthful endeavor) are highly antithyroid.
Synthroid. The inactive form of thyroid hormone that can shrink the gland, suppress the pituitary, induce osteoporosis, and increase cancer rates.
Unsaturated Oils. All store-bought oils and almost all oils that are liquid at room temperature except olive and flax oils are thyroid inhibitors.
Soy Products. All soy products like soybeans, tofu, soy protein, isoflavone supplements, tempeh, soy milk, and more are thyroid inhibitors.
Raw Cruciferous Vegetables. Cabbage, broccoli, and cauliflower are thyroid inhibitors in their raw form. The danger here lies in drinking juices (concentrated amounts) of these vegetables. This is the reason why a glass of raw cabbage juice daily can slow down an overactive thyroid. When these vegetables are cooked, they are no longer anti-thyroid.
Vegetarian Diets. Diets with low or no animal protein, especially for those with blood type 0 and B, inhibit thyroid function. Protein, especially animal protein, is needed to convert thyroid hormone to its active form in the liver.
Liver Damaging Substances. Anything that damages the liver is thyroid inhibiting because the liver converts the inactive thyroid hormone into the active form your body uses. The more toxic or diseased your liver is, the less biochemical conversions are properly performed. Alcohol, prescription and all other drugs, cigarettes, highly processed foods, and poor quality drinking water are the main offenders.
Given this list, it becomes easier to understand the legions of hypothyroid people. If you are one, take some joy in the knowledge in this article. You can safely eliminate thyroid poisons and safely employ thyroid fuels—foods and supplements to help yourself.
How to Tell if You Are Deficient
If you are not sure if you have a sluggish thyroid (functional hypothyroid) and your blood tests don’t really tell you much, you can test yourself. Most people with sluggish thyroid will experience problems like dry skin, thinning hair, being too cold, etc. Women will frequently exhibit the “pear-shaped” body type with weight and fat gained in the buttocks and hips.
A good test is to take your basal temperature five mornings in a row and get the average temperature. Shake down a thermometer before going to bed, and immediately upon waking place the thermometer under your armpit. Wait 10 minutes and take the reading. Do this for five days and get the average. If it is below 97.4 or so and you have symptoms, you should suspect functional hypothyroid. Simply employ the data in this article for six months and reevaluate your symptoms. Many people enjoy better thyroid function with elimination of symptoms in six months without much raise in basal temperature. Your success in natural thyroid therapy should be judged chiefly by your symptoms and abnormal blood tests if present.
If you decide you need my help with your recurrent neuro-musculoskeletal health challenges, we'll begin with a consultation, complete a case review questionnaire, and conduct a dietary and nutritional evaluation. Meanwhile, I'll review your submitted medical records and determine if you've had all the appropriate tests. Last, we'll proceed to your written recommended action plan.
Bear in mind, I do not diagnose or treat medical conditions other than neuro-musculoskeletal disorders. If you come to me with thyroid issues, this presupposes your doctor has already diagnosed you. I address stubborn and persistent neuro-musculoskeletal symptoms that have not responded to your main course of medical treatment, and I attempt to promote overall long term health and equilibrium. In other words I treat the patient, not the diagnosis, or label you have been given.
Give us a call today or stop by Johnson Chiropractic Neurology & Nutrition for more information. I'd be happy to meet with you and discuss any of the therapeutic techniques I use. Also check out my YouTube page to view patient testimonials. Be encouraged and know you have many natural, noninvasive options for addressing your chronic pain and help you rid your body of toxins.
For more details about the natural approach I take with my patients, take a look a the book I wrote entitled:Reclaim Your Life; Your Guide To Revealing Your Body's Life-Changing Secrets For Renewed Health. It is available in my office or at Amazon and many other book outlets.
If you found value in this article, please use the social sharing icons at the top of this post and please share with those you know who are still suffering with low thyroid symptoms or other chronic health challenges, despite receiving medical managment. Help me reach more people so they may regain their zest for living! Thank you!
ALL THE BEST – DR. KARL R.O.S. JOHNSON, DC – DIGGING DEEPER TO FIND SOLUTIONS
References:
1. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2713042/
2. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10913216
3. http://www.collinsdictionary.com/submission/358/Obesogen