Getting To Know Your Body: Your Thyroid

You’ve more than likely heard about your thyroid and know that issues with it can affect your health.

But do you actually know what your thyroid is, how it works, and what illnesses can affect it?

Located at the front of your neck beside your esophagus, your thyroid plays an important role in your metabolism, which controls the chemical processes within your body.

Metabolism converts food to energy to run cellular processes or converts food to building blocks for proteins, lipids, nucleic acids, and some carbohydrates.

In addition, metabolism controls the elimination of nitrogenous wastes.

At The Mindful Healing Clinic, we provide naturopathic solutions for thyroid conditions and we find that naturopathic treatments may be effective in maintaining your thyroid health.

Read this article to get to know a little more about this small, but important gland.

What is Your Thyroid?

Your thyroid is part of your endocrine system, a larger system which consists of all the glands in your body which regulate your hormones.

It’s butterfly-shaped and consists of a left and right lobe joined by a small length of thyroid tissue called the isthmus.

Your thyroid releases hormones which regulate almost all of the metabolic processes through your body.

There are two tyrosine-based hormones that your thyroid releases.

One of these hormones is triiodothyronine (T3), which affects heart rate, metabolism, body temperature, and growth.

The other is thyroxine (T4), which affects digestion, heart and muscle function, brain development, and bone maintenance.

The thyroid both regulates and creates the T3 and T4 hormones.

The thyroid itself is regulated by the pituitary gland, which senses the levels of T3 and T4 hormones in the bloodstream.

If the levels are too low, the pituitary gland secretes the thyroid stimulating hormone, or TSH, which tells the thyroid to release T3 and T4.

RELATED: Frequently Asked Questions About Hormones

Why Is Thyroid Health Important?

Irregular metabolism can have many negative effects on the body.

Hyperthyroidism, caused by an overactive thyroid, makes your thyroid produce too much thyroxine.

It can accelerate your body’s metabolism significantly, which causes sudden weight loss, nervousness, irritability, sweating, or a rapid or irregular heartbeat.

Hypothyroidism, caused by an underactive thyroid, makes your thyroid produce insufficient hormones.

It upsets the normal hormonal balance in the body.

Symptoms often don’t occur in the early stages, so it can be difficult to diagnose.

Resulting health problems include obesity, joint pain, and infertility.

Keeping your thyroid healthy is vital in preventing hyperthyroidism and hypothyroidism, and other disorders of the thyroid.

Can You Live Without A Thyroid?

It’s possible to live without a thyroid, and there are several ways you can end up without a one.

You can be born without a thyroid, or with a malformed or non-functioning thyroid.

This is known as congenital hypothyroidism.

The gland can also be surgically removed, a procedure called a thyroidectomy.

It’s most commonly performed on those diagnosed with thyroid cancer.

Surgery can also be performed as a treatment for those with extreme and treatment resistant cases of hyperthyroidism.

Whenever the thyroid is removed, the result is permanent hypothyroidism.

After all, a non-existent thyroid is the ultimate form of an underactive thyroid.

In these cases, you’ll have to supplement with thyroid hormones for the rest of your life.

Common Illnesses Of The Thyroid

Thyroid problems can occur due to overactive or underactive hormone production, and the results can be debilitating.

There are various illnesses that can affect thyroid production and regulation.

Let’s take a closer look at some of them.

1. Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis

Hashimoto’s thyroiditis is a chronic autoimmune disorder that impacts your thyroid gland.

It causes your immune system to see the thyroid as a threat and begin to attack it.

This can lead you to have an underactive thyroid.

It is estimated to affect one in a thousand people, and occurs more often in women.

It can be caused by:

• Genetics
• Pregnancy, due to increased immune system activity
• Epstein-Barr virus
• Lyme disease

If left untreated, the tissues can die and stop producing hormones, causing damage to the thyroid gland or hypothyroidism.

RELATED: What Is An Autoimmune Disorder?

2. Graves’ Disease

Graves’ disease is one of the most common diseases of the thyroid, and it is the leading cause of hyperthyroidism.

It’s generally treatable if detected early, but can cause severe complications if left undiagnosed.

With Graves’ disease, instead of the pituitary gland releasing thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), the immune system releases abnormal antibodies which mimic TSH.

This makes the thyroid release too many hormones, otherwise known as hyperthyroidism.

Graves’ disease is believed to be caused by genetic and environmental factors, such as pregnancy, viral infection, or chronic stress, although there is no definitive cause.

It occurs more frequently in women.

Complications can include:

• Hyperthyroidism and its associated symptoms
• Swollen eye muscles and tissues, potentially leading to partial blindness
• Blurred or double vision
• Sensitivity to light
• Pressure or pain in your eyes
• Pretibial myxedema, a skin condition which causes the thickening of skin on the shins

RELATED: Naturopathic Treatments For Graves’ Disease

3. Goiters

A goiter refers to an irregular growth on the thyroid gland, or any form of enlargement of the thyroid gland.

A toxic nodular goiter results when one or more nodules develop on the thyroid, triggering excess production of thyroid hormones.

Goiters can be caused by both hyperthyroidism and hypothyroidism.

They can cause:

• Swelling of the throat
• Difficulty swallowing or breathing
• Coughing
• Hoarseness
• Snoring
• Hypertension
• Sleep issues
• Muscle weakness
• Rapid heartbeat
• Gastrointestinal issues

How To Support Your Thyroid Naturally

It’s important to keep your thyroid as healthy as possible to ensure that it functions optimally and to help prevent developing thyroid disorders.

Natural strategies can help you maintain your thyroid’s hormone production, decrease stress, reduce the risk of inflammation, and boost your metabolism.

Some natural strategies that can help support your thyroid health include:

• Avoiding sugar and processed foods
• Finding ways to reduce stress
• Maintaining a healthy body weight
• Exercising regularly
• Maintaining healthy iodine levels
• Including selenium rich foods into your diet
• Including probiotics into your diet
• Ensuring your body is getting enough vitamin D

If you want to know more about what naturopathic solutions are available and how they can help support your thyroid, then you should…

Book Your Appointment With The Mindful Healing Clinic Today

There are a number of naturopathic treatments available for thyroid disorders, depending on the specifications of your individual disorder.

If you have been diagnosed with a thyroid disorder or suspect that you have one, contact me, Dr. Maria Cavallazzi, ND, at The Mindful Healing Clinic.

During your initial appointment, you will sit down with me and we can talk about your thyroid disorder and any other health concerns you may have.

From there, we’ll create a treatment plan based on your unique health needs.

Book your appointment with The Mindful Healing Clinic today.