Did you know that thyroid hormone medications are the second top-selling category of pharmaceutical drugs in the U.S. today? Or that there are at least seven causes of low thyroid, of which only two are responsive to those medications? It’s no wonder so many people continue suffering with thyroid-related symptoms even while taking their prescribed pills.

The conventional approach is to simply replace these hormones with either synthetic or bio-identical forms. On the surface, it seems logical. Don’t have enough hormones? Take more hormones. Problem solved, right? Not so much.

Taking replacement thyroid hormones without addressing the underlying cause of the disorder is doomed to fail. It’s like taking ibuprofen because you have a stone stuck in your shoe. Sure, it may ease the discomfort for a while, but wouldn’t you be better off shaking the stone loose first?

Let’s Put the Shoe on the Other Foot

It’s time to stop treating the symptom and start addressing the cause. In an earlier blog post, we introduced you to patient Jane, a young woman who struggled most of her life with weight-loss resistance, exhaustion, and low libido. Her conventional doctors ran just one thyroid test over the years, and focused instead on her high blood pressure and obesity. What they missed was that she had low T3 syndrome, among other diagnosable problems.

So, did Jane require thyroid replacement hormones to “cure” her thyroid dysfunction? Not a chance. Instead, her metabolism doctor started her on an elimination/rotation diet to identify food sensitivities, a carbohydrate-cycled diet to increase metabolism over time, and a supplement regimen that assisted with normal hormonal health. She was able to boost her low thyroid function naturally – and chances are, you can, too.

Take Five

Before you make any rash changes with diet, exercise, or medication, take some time to consider your options. You too can boost your low thyroid naturally in just five simple steps.

1. Test/Diagnose. In addition to seeking advice from your conventional medical doctor, consider consulting a metabolism doctor who will test thoroughly for thyroid diseases and prominent causes for your sluggish thyroid.
2. Plan. Once you have a concrete diagnosis, your metabolism doctor will help you develop a systematic plan to eliminate anything suppressing your thyroid function.
3. Optimize. Focus on boosting the function of surrounding organ systems that may be suppressing your thyroid function through their own dysfunction. (i.e. Optimizing the GI tract, adrenals, thyroid, and sex hormones to work together for optimal function.)
4. Support. Eating less and/or cutting carbs can create low thyroid function and halt fat loss. You can support your efforts from a nutritional standpoint by avoiding food allergens and eating the right amount of dietary fats, as advised by your metabolism doctor.
5. Re-test. If you’re like patient Jane, your thyroid function should pick up within 90 days, as confirmed by re-testing. If not, your thyroid dysfunction may be more severe and respond to a prescribed medication to assist your new healthy lifestyle.

A thyroid disorder is not a disability if diagnosed and treated correctly. The fastest and easiest way to get all your thyroid tests completed, analyzed, and treated by a professional is to start today. Don’t hesitate – get the tools you need to overcome your thyroid disorder naturally, and get your life back once and for all.  

Were you recently diagnosed with a thyroid disorder? Believe it or not, you’re lucky. Up to 60 percent of those with thyroid disease are unaware of their condition, yet keenly aware of their unexplained symptoms. As discussed in our last blog post, insurance companies don’t cover every test, meaning many people just learn to live with the fatigue, weight gain, and brain fog that plagues them. No diagnosis. No cause. No treatment.

So, congratulations! You have a diagnosis and are on your way to repairing your thyroid. But do you know the cause? The verdict may still be out on that. We covered some conditions and diseases that can slow down your thyroid function, but there are plenty of indirect instigators that can make a bad thing worse.

It Might Not Be Your Thyroid’s Fault

If your thyroid is sluggish, you can’t assume it has itself entirely to blame. There may be other underlying forces at work, making it harder for your thyroid to do its job.

Sex Hormones and Cortisol Levels

Are you an over-exerciser or under-eater? That puts a lot of stress on the body. And when stress is out of control, your body will steal valuable resources to make stress hormones (including cortisol) instead of healthy thyroid and sex hormones (estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone).

Gastrointestinal Issues and Leaky Gut

Got poor gut health? That can trigger inflammation, which can cause the cells lining the intestines to leak (known as Leaky Gut Syndrome). The abnormally large spaces between the cells of the gut wall allow bacteria, fungi, parasites, undigested protein, fat, and toxic waste to enter the bloodstream. This impairs normal nutrient absorption, can lead to autoimmune reactions, and, you guessed it, lead to thyroid problems.

Bacterial Infections

Many people suffering from low thyroid don’t produce enough stomach acid, which is necessary for proper digestion and the elimination of bacteria from food. The limited stomach acid can result in bacterial overgrowth in the small intestine. In fact, one study found that 54 percent of hypothyroidism patients had bacterial overgrowth in the small intestine.

The Threat of An Untreated Thyroid Condition

While it’s great to have a diagnosis, if you don’t treat your thyroid disorder, it will wreak havoc on all other bodily systems and your metabolism as a whole. Consider the thyroid your body’s thermostat, regulating your hunger levels, sex drive, mood, weight, and energy. When the thermostat breaks, you can’t control the system. You’ll be hungry, depressed, tired, and puffy with a decreased libido.

But treatment doesn’t always include medication. After all, there are at least seven causes of low thyroid, and only two are responsive to medication. Look for our next blog on how you can boost your low thyroid naturally and optimize your thyroid function for good. 

Let’s say you’re one of the six patients we met in our last blog post. Fatigue, weight gain, and brain fog are driving you mad, and now you’re frustrated, too, because the doctor said your test results are “normal.”

The problem? Even though the doctor suspected your thyroid was to blame, your insurance company only covered two basic thyroid tests (TSH and Total T4 & T3). And while the results of those tests made it seem like you were sitting pretty, you’ve still got the symptoms you came in for. As a result, there are thyroid disorders or conditions still lurking, undetected.

Thyroid Diseases and Conditions Your Doctor May Have Missed

Source: Pixabay, via Pexels

You’ve probably already heard of hyperthyroidism (when your thyroid produces too much thyroid hormone) and hypothyroidism (when your thyroid doesn’t produce normal amounts of thyroid hormones) but let’s get technical for a moment.

Your hypothalamus is tasked with sensing the levels of thyroid hormones in your body and releasing thyrotropin releasing hormone (TRH). TRH stimulates the pituitary gland to produce thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), which stimulates the thyroid gland to produce T4 (thyroxine) and T3 (triodothyronine). A lot more T4 is produced than T3, and your body must convert that T4 to T3. When this process doesn’t happen, you can end up with Low T3 Syndrome or Low Thyroid, the most underdiagnosed thyroid disorder.

Low T3 Syndrome

T3 is one of the most powerful mediators of energy production, helping to determine your basal metabolic rate. Your “Total” T4 and T3 levels can be normal while your “Free” T4 & T3 – the active thyroid hormones responsible for proper thyroid function – may be running amuck. The result? Low T3 Syndrome, a condition which can directly (or indirectly) result in a slow metabolism, fatigue, and/or low energy levels (sound familiar?).

Hashimoto’s Disease

Sometimes the body’s immune system can turn against itself and attack its own tissues. Enter Hashimoto’s thyroiditis or Hashimoto’s disease, an autoimmune disorder that can lead to hypothyroidism. Since the symptoms of Hashimoto’s may be similar to those for other medical conditions, and because the required test to diagnose is often skipped, the disease often goes undetected and untreated.

So, What Thyroid Tests Do You Need?

While your conventional doctor certainly has your health and wellness in mind, they don’t always have the means to test and address what’s going on beneath the surface. Visit a metabolism doctor and you’ll have a new world of clarity. Using conventional and advanced metabolic testing, metabolism doctors can uncover thyroid problems with indisputable results. A complete testing panel will include:

• TSH: Most likely already used by your doctor, this is the most basic test evaluating thyroid problems and the need for thyroid medications.
• Total T4 and total T3: Also probably performed by your previous doctor, both measure the total amount of thyroid hormones that come from the thyroid itself, with T3 more active than T4.
• Free T4 and Free T3: In their free form, these thyroid hormones become active and are responsible for proper thyroid function.
• Reverse T3: When elevated (as in times of high cortisol), this “anti-thyroid” deactivates the active thyroid hormones.
• T3 Uptake:A measure of how the sex hormones are affecting thyroid function.
• Thyroid Peroxidase Antibodies (TPO) and Thyroglobulin Antibodies: Two tests that detect autoimmune disorders like Hashimoto’s disease.
• Outside Factors that can indirectly affect thyroid function:
  • Sex hormone levels (estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone)
  • Adrenal testing (4 cortisol tests, 1 DHEA test)
  • Stool/GI testing (lysozyme for inflammation, and chymotrypsin for digestive enzyme levels, yeast, fungus, and mold)
  • Bacterial infections, good bacteria levels, and parasites
  • Leaky gut syndrome (lactulose/mannitol test)

So, where might you find a metabolism doctor who runs such thorough thyroid testing? At Twin Cities Metabolism! We’re here to get to the bottom of even the most mysterious and frustrating health concerns. Schedule a free consultation, and stay tuned for our next blog to learn more about how those “Outside Factors” may be indirectly affecting your thyroid function.

Six strangers sit in a doctor’s waiting room. Unbeknownst to each, they’ve been drawn there by the exact same symptoms. All six suffer from weight gain, brain fog, fatigue, weak nails, and depression. Worst of all, each one is about to be told that there’s no diagnosis for their ills. Or they’ll receive the wrong diagnosis, causing them to waste time taking the wrong medication or seeking the wrong treatment…and seeing absolutely no improvement.

Who is this doctor, you wonder? Should he or she be thrown out of the AMA? 

It’s not that the doctor is bad, per se. It’s just that these are all classic symptoms of low thyroid or hypothyroidism, but in all likelihood, the two thyroid tests their doctor is about to run are going to show that their thyroids are functioning “normally.” What’s worse, these six strangers could have six very different thyroid disorders that could be treated if only the right tests – the right SEVEN tests – were performed.

The Thyroid is Kind of a Big Deal

Source: Lum3n.com, via Pexels

Virtually every tissue in your body is affected or regulated by the thyroid. That’s a lot of responsibility for one little body part. This small butterfly-shaped gland sits in the front of the neck just below a man’s Adam’s apple, and is under the control of the hypothalamus and pituitary gland. Together, they trigger the release of thyroid hormones (triiodothyronine (T3) and thyroxine (T4)), which travel throughout the body via the blood helping to regulate growth and metabolism. But that’s not all.

Thyroid function directly affects heart rate, memory, energy, cholesterol levels, muscle contraction and relaxation, hair and skin texture, bowel function, fertility, menstrual regularity, mood, and body weight. Without enough thyroid hormones, every system in your body slows down. And like the six strangers in the waiting room, you’re going to feel the effects. So, what causes this?

While the thyroid gland is critically important, it’s also acutely sensitive. External influences like chlorine, fluoride, and some heavy metals can negatively impact its function, and internal stressors can turn it against you. Spending extended time periods around pesticides? Dealing with gastrointestinal issues or leaky gut syndrome? Either and both could be making your thyroid function worse. But how can you know if your thyroid is happy with you?

Put Your Thyroid to the Test

Our six strangers are about to undergo two standard thyroid tests (TSH and T4), – but they really need seven (more on that in an upcoming blog post). Their conventional doctor only runs tests that insurance companies consider “medically necessary,” and that means a thorough thyroid panel won’t be paid for. That also means knowing the underlying causes of their symptoms isn’t seen as “medically necessary.” Because of this, millions of people have a thyroid disorder and don’t know it.

At Twin Cities Metabolism, we put you in the know. We believe it’s very necessary to understand your thyroid function and how it contributes to your overall health. Our Thyroid Optimization Program identifies the causes of the most distressing symptoms with extensive metabolic and thyroid testing, and aims to correct them with a natural, customized approach. Isn’t it time you gave your thyroid a little love?