What is the Thyroid Gland?

A health article about Thyroid Gland from Your Health Online the A to Z directory of dealing with Health Problems & nutritional Self Care Strategies

The Thyroid is a small butterfly shaped gland located directly below the Adam’s apple. This gland swells up accompanied by an inflammatory sensation, when not working properly. This can be seen as a small bulge in the area. Doctors might feel the size of the gland by keeping hand around your neck and making you swallow.

Even though this organ is relatively small, it is responsible for some of your body’s most important daily needs.

The thyroid produces a hormone in order to control your metabolism, digestive and muscle functions, and skin health. Without your thyroid, you would need extensive medication to stay healthy.

For some people, this is what they must rely on. A variety of thyroid disease can cause your thyroid to produce too much or too little of its hormone. Unfortunately, if you are at risk for developing heart disease or have had heart disease in the past, thyroid problems could worsen your conditions.

Thyroid is known as the hormone factory of the body, as it manufactures a number of hormones for the body. T3 and T4 are the major hormones amongst them. Among various other things these hormones control the body’s metabolism and energy levels.

Body fails to function properly in case of excess or lack of these hormones. While lack of these hormones make the body sluggish and slow an excess of these make the person hyper active sending the body in an overdrive.

Thyroid has to be taken care of properly as it affects the entire body. Damage to thyroid ends up effecting entire body over a period of time. Brain might be affected in terms of memory loss and moodiness, reproductive health, heart, body weight etc are some matters that can occur with thyroid disorders.

Thyroid malfunctioning more often then not leads to heart problems and a number of other problems as well. Often a part of auto immune problems, thyroid can go simultaneously with cholesterol and other problems. Body may experience arthritis type pain which shall diminish as soon as the hormone levels are back to normal.

Signs & Symptoms of Thyroid

Thyroid symptoms afflict at least 10 million persons in the USA alone. Symptoms of thyroid problems often go undiagnosed, making it difficult to really know just how many people are suffering from thyroid symptoms. Thyroid gland functions include regulating the metabolism rate of the body.

Women are much more likely than men to have thyroid dysfunction - as many as 10-20% of women and 1-2% of men may have symptoms of thyroid problems. One type of thyroid dysfunction is the condition called hypothyroidism, also referred to as low thyroid or underactive thyroid. When thyroid function is too sluggish, one effect is that metabolism in the body slows down more than it should. Much less common are thyroid symptoms caused by hyperthyroidism or an overactive thyroid.

When the metabolism slows down due to underactive thyroid function, the result can be symptoms such as fatigue, weight gain and depression. And other symptoms may be experienced, often seemingly unrelated.

Many thyroid patients experience symptoms such as cold hands and feet, low body temperature, headaches and migraines, dry skin, hair loss, slow heart rate, joint aches, constipation, fatigue, and weight gain. Thyroid disease can affect almost every aspect of health, so understanding more about your thyroid, and the symptoms that occur when something goes wrong with this small gland, can help you regain your health.

Hypothyroidism or low thyroid symptoms of thyroid problems include:

• Fatigue and weakness
• Depression
• Weight gain
• Low basal temperature, cold intolerance, cold hands and feet
• Dry and coarse skin
• Heavy menstrual periods
• Insomnia
• High cholesterol
• Sluggish bowels, constipation
• Poor memory, forgetfulness, dementia
• Nervousness and tremors
• Immune system problems
• Hair loss

Having thyroid symptoms is related to hormone levels and hormone imbalance. Three related hormones for a woman are estrogen, thyroid hormone and progesterone. Understanding the interplay between these three hormones helps one better understand how to approach treating thyroid symptoms.

There have been several recognized factors that are associated with hair loss. One of which is an under active thyroid gland. There are many cases wherein the thyroid gland is the main root of all. As everybody knows, the thyroid gland is a major component of the endocrine system.

It is responsible for producing various hormones that motivate the diverse functions of the body. Now if what you have is an under active thyroid gland, the necessary hormones that will keep the hair healthy and strong will not be produced.

Hair loss is typically related to fluctuations in the hormone production. Both men and the women are subjected to hair loss especially if their thyroid glands fail to work double time. Often referred to as hormonal hair loss, this dilemma is set permanently for the males than for the women. The hair loss problem can be solved by the application of the rightful treatments.

Therefore, if the cause of the hair loss is a thyroid disease, make sure that you undergo a series of therapy to correct whatever it is that needs to be straightened out. You should not also drastically use hair loss shampoos if you are not sure if it will work for you. It will not do you any harm if you get the help of the expert. It may cost you some dollars but there is no better way that it.

Types of Thyroid

Hyper Function

In this condition, due to the overactivity of the thyroid gland, there is an increased production of thyroid hormones which are constantly pushed into the blood, so that the whole metabolism of the body gets elevated.

As explained above, solitary nodule/s in a thyroid gland, or nodule/s of a multinodular goiter may become responsible for the overactivity of the thyroid gland.

The whole thyroid gland may become enlarged in many middle-aged or younger persons. The blood supply in such an enlarged gland may be increased markedly, so that on placing a hand on such a thyroid gland, a thrill may be felt. This autoimmune thyroid disease is called Graves' disease - named after Robert Graves.

As a result of the increased metabolism/ activity of the body, the patient feels restless, tense or excited, and even emotionally upset. Fine tremors of the fingers/hands are usually noticed when the patient is asked to stretch forward both his arms with fingers opened wide.

Due to the same reason, the heart rate is markedly increased, and palpitation is a normal complaint. The pulse, while sleeping should be counted to differentiate the condition from nervousness/anxiety, in which case the pulse rate should be normal.

On measuring the blood pressure, the upper or systolic blood pressure should be elevated, and the lower or diastolic should show a lower level. The difference between these two readings of blood pressure is called pulse pressure, which increases in such cases.

In some cases, and more so in young patients, other manifestations of the heart, like supraventricular tachycardia, atrial fibrillation, congestive heart failure may occur, and one may think of a basic heart problem rather than a thyroid disease.

Another symptom of an overactive thyroid gland is a loss of weight in spite of an increased appetite. The skin is moist and warm even in cold weather, and one can easily feel this by touching the hands of the patient. Especially in Graves' disease, the eyes may look prominent, or may even bulge out (exophthalmos).

Early symptoms/warning signals of a hyperactive thyroid gland:

In spite of the above symptomatology, the patient is often late in reporting his problem, may be more than a year, in some of the cases. Hence, whenever, one observes symptoms like palpitation, especially when there is an increased pulse rate in sleep, nervousness, loss of weight, one must look for a swelling/ nodule/ s in the thyroid and/or immediately consult the physician. It is not unusual to see the patient with a reasonably enlarged thyroid gland and he/she is totally unaware of it.

The disease may actually remain hidden for quite a long time, and may be precipitated when the patient feels mentally upset due to unforeseen circumstances. One should be more cautious when there is a positive family history of Graves' disease.

Hashimoto's thyroiditis or chronic lymphocytic thyroiditis is an autoimmune disease where the body's own antibodies attack the cells of the thyroid.

This disorder is believed to be the most common cause of primary hypothyroidism in North America. It occurs far more often in women than in men (10:1 to 20:1), and is most prevalent between 45 and 65 years of age.

In European countries an atrophic form of autoimmune thyroiditis (Ord's thyroiditis) is more common than Hashimoto's thyroiditis.

A family history of thyroid disorders is common, with the HLA-DR5 gene most strongly implicated conferring a relative risk of 3 in the UK.

The genes implicated vary in different ethnic groups and the incidence is increased in patients with chromosomal disorders, including Turner, Down's, and Klinefelter's syndromes.

The underlying specifics of the immune system destruction of thyroid cells is not clearly understood. Various autoantibodies may be present against thyroid peroxidase, thyroglobulin and TSH receptors, although a small percentage of patients may have none of these antibodies present. A percentage of the population may also have these antibodies without developing Hashimoto's thyroiditis.

In many cases, Hashimoto's thyroiditis usually results in hypothyroidism, although in its acute phase, it can cause a transient hyperthyroidism thyrotoxic state known as hashitoxicosis.

Physiologically, antibodies against thyroid peroxidase and/or thyroglobulin cause gradual destruction of follicles in the thyroid gland. Accordingly, the disease can be detected clinically by looking for these antibodies in the blood. It is also characterised by invasion of the thyroid tissue by leukocytes, mainly T-lymphocytes. It is associated with non-Hodgkin lymphoma.

Symptoms of Hashimoto's thyroiditis include symptoms of hypothyroidism, hyperthyroidism and a goiter. Weight gain, weight loss, depression, mania, fatigue, panic attacks, low pulse, fast pulse, high cholesterol, reactive hypoglycemia, constipation, migraines, memory loss, infertility and hair loss are a few possible symptoms.

Hypothyroidism caused by Hashimoto's Thyroiditis is treated with thyroid hormone replacement. A small pill taken once a day should be able to keep the thyroid hormone levels normal. This medicine will, in most cases, need to be taken for the rest of the patient's life.

What Causes Thyroid Disease?

The thyroid gland is one of the vital organs of the body and is situated at the front and lower part of the neck. It consists of two lateral lobes (each lobe is about 5.0 cm in length, 2.5 cm in width and 2.5 cm in thickness) which are fixed on their back surfaces to the sides of the trachea, and are joined by a band (called isthmus), which crosses the front of the trachea, to which it is also firmly attached. An adult weight of the thyroid gland is 20-25 grams.

The thyroid gland secretes essential hormones called thyroxine or tetraiodothyronine (called T4), and also a small amount of triiodothyronine (called T3). These hormones are responsible for various functions / activities of the body. They regulate/maintain the metabolism of the body. Overactivity or underactivity of the thyroid gland occurs whenever the thyroid secretion increases or decreases as a result of various disorders of the thyroid gland.

More about T4 and T3

Normal life is hardly possible if the levels of these hormones in the blood are disturbed. As stated above, they are produced by the thyroid gland, and for their production, the thyroid gland needs a proper and regular supply of iodine.

This supply of iodine to the thyroid gland is met from the food and water we take in our daily life. The iodine in the thyroid gland is converted into T4' which is the chief hormone of the thyroid gland.

Some vital information about iodine and thyroid hormones

Iodine is very essential for the body, and more precisely for the thyroid gland, so that the gland can provide a constant supply of its hormones for the maintenance of the body.

The thyroid gland has got a great affinity for iodine, and goes on taking its supply from the blood. However, if the person takes more dietary iodine than is required by the gland, the excess is excreted by the kidneys.

The thyroid gland functions well on its own, supplying the required hormones, as per demand of the body. Even for emergency purposes, it keeps a reserve of these hormones in the gland itself.

When the demand of the body for such hormones increases during a pregnancy or in lactation, or when the child is growing, i.e. during puberty, the thyroid gland may have to work more to meet the needs of the body, so that it may get enlarged temporarily.

It is common to examine both boys and girls in their growing years, with enlarged thyroid glands. One only needs to assure them, emphasizing that such an enlargement of the thyroid gland is only physiological- called puberty goiter.

Cancer of the Thyroid Gland

Early detection of cancer of the thyroid gland should be given priority while dealing with any problem related to this gland.

There may be a solitary nodule/ s in a thyroid gland, or even a nodule/ s of a multinodular goiter, which may be malignant. Or, the whole gland may undergo a malignant change.

Hence, nodule/s in a thyroid gland must be given prompt consideration, and if the whole gland is enlarged, one needs to palpate, to check if there is any hard/indurated area of the thyroid gland, which may be of a malignant nature. It may happen, especially when the swelling of the thyroid gland is of recent origin, and has rapidly increased in size.

Tests for detection of thyroid cancer:

Ultrasonographic examination of the thyroid gland and/or computed tomographic (CT) scanning/magnetic resonance imagining (MRI), as well as fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC), help in establishing the diagnosis of the malignancy of the thyroid gland. A radioisotope scanning of the thyroid gland may also be required in some of the cases. It tells precisely about the hyperactive areal s in the thyroid gland.

Edometriosis Related To Thyroid Condition

by Shelley Ross

No one knows a woman’s body quite like that woman herself. In many cases, a woman does not need a doctor to tell her when something isn’t right. For many women, a general feeling that something isn’t right accompanied by pelvic pain, painful intercourse, or other related symptoms prompts them to enlist the aid of a gynecologist for a diagnosis.

Endometriosis is often the culprit. Affecting millions of Americans each year, this disease can be bothersome in milder cases, but it can actually be debilitating in other cases. For some women it means pain and discomfort. For others, it means infertility.

Unfortunately, doctors don’t know the reason for the disease. There are many theories, but none of them have been absolutely proven. What research has unraveled, however, is a strong relation between endometriosis and thyroid condition. In fact, some studies show that 40% of women suffering from endometriosis suffer from underactive thyroid.

Underactive thyroid or hypothyroidism is a condition that is often diagnosed. If you suffer from endometriosis, it would also be a good idea to get tested for this disorder. There are various warning signs that may serve as a signal that you suffer from hypothyroidism.

The most common ones include depression, weight gain, fatigue, high cholesterol, hair loss, feeling cold, low libido, tingling in the hands and feet, and infertility.

Infertility is both a side effect of hypothyroidism and endometriosis. In the case of endometriosis it occurs because of cells that lodge themselves outside of the uterus. These are the same type of cells that build up inside of the uterus and are shed each month during menstruation.

When a woman develops endometriosis, however, the cells accumulate outside of the uterus. When a woman menstruates, the cells don’t shed and they continue to build up. This can lead to scar tissue and adhesions. Often, the fallopian tubes are blocked, preventing a woman from conceiving.

Hypothyroidism also affects fertility. Not only are your hormones unbalanced, a woman suffering from hypothyroidism often doesn’t experience ovulation. Without ovulation, there is no egg for the sperm to fertilize.

With no egg to be fertilized, conception is impossible. If you are not sure if you are ovulating, you can buy inexpensive ovulation kits at your local pharmacy or many supermarkets. In a matter of minutes, you can find out if your body is ovulating as it should be.

As research continues, experts continue to explore links between hypothyroidism and endometriosis. Doctors are also hopeful for a definitive cure for endometriosis, a disease that affects the lives of so many women. It is important for endometriosis suffers to consider the possibility of other related disorders such as hypothyroidism.

It doesn’t hurt to talk with your doctor about the possibility of your having this disorder, taking a test, and finding out whether you do in fact have an improperly functioning thyroid. With so many treatment options available for both endometriosis and hypothyroid disease, it is important to receive the proper diagnoses that will you to work in conjunction with your doctor to follow the best course of treatment possible.

About the Author Shelley Ross has an interest in Endometriosis. For further information on Endometriosis please visit http://www.treatendometriosis.com/endometriosis.html

Risk Factors:

Thyroid problems affect irrespective of age and sex. According to the American Thyroid Association, half of the people with thyroid problems do not even know about it. It often goes unnoticed as the symptoms are mistaken as that of some other disease. For eg tiredness is a major symptom but is generally overlooked as a general feeling or is associated to other health problems.

However certain groups of people are more susceptible to the disease then others. For eg women are 8 times more likely then men to face the disorder. You are also more prone if you have a family history of the autoimmune diseases. In such a case regular checkup of the thyroid gland is highly recommended.

People with a high exposure to radiation also have higher chances of a thyroid disorder as the gland is sensitive to any radiation. Similarly elderly people amongst us also run a higher risk of disorder.

There are two main problems that you could experience regarding your thyroid gland. First, with hypothyroidism, your thyroid gland does not produce enough hormone. When not enough is present in the body, a number of things can go wrong.

With your heart, the muscles that pump the blood are weakened and so the amount of blood that reaches your body is reduced. The heart muscle also does not relax normally between beats. Hypothyroidism can cause problems with your blood vessels. With not enough of the thyroid’s hormone, they will stiffen from a lack of nitric oxide.

The other common problem with the thyroid gland is over production of the hormone, or hyperthyroidism. In this condition, the heart beats at an increased rate. It may not cause problems in someone who is healthy, but this is very dangerous if you are already dealing with one of the many kinds of heart disease. If your heart is continually overworked, you could experience heart failure, or a heart attack.

Both of these conditions are extremely serious for heart disease patients. Therefore, it is crucial that the health of your thyroid gland be checked regularly. If your doctor is not doing so, ask that it be done, especially if you are experiencing other symptoms of hypothyroidism or hyperthyroidism.

The Link Between Thyroid Cancer And Hypertension
Thyroid cancer occurs in the body due to the growth of abnormal cells in a person's thyroid gland, which cannot be controlled naturally by the body. Thankfully, in most cases thyroid can cancer be cured. In this particular article we will take a look at the connection between thyroid cancer and hypertension.

About 20,000 people with thyroid cancer are diagnosed each year in the United States, and the cancer is typically present as a nodule on the thyroid.

Thyroid cancer usually does not have any symptoms and in over 99% of cases, even if a person does have a nodule on their thyroid it is not cancer, but a benign growth. If cancer does grow in the thyroid, it normally does so in a nodule.

There are a number of things which will point to a person suffering from thyroid cancer, the most common being a lump is found in the neck. However there are other symptoms that may occur but they can very often be associated with other conditions
(To read the rest of this article click on the Title above here.)

Your Thyroid and Weight loss – The Connection is Real

Your thyroid dictates much of your metabolism, any malfunction or disease afflicting this area may cause you to have problems in metabolism leading to a drastic problem with your weight – you may either gain weight, lose weight, or may find that losing weight is harder than usual.

Those that plan diets do not take into consideration how their thyroids and metabolism may affect their weight loss program. Most experts and even the media pitch in and recommend that the best way to lose weight is cut calories.

Those with a condition called hyperthyroidism suffer from an overactive thyroid leading to one having his or her metabolism skyrocket. If this is the case, then you will probably lose weight fast. This is a nice proposition for some who wish to lose weight. However, this is actually hazardous to the health.

Aside from the medical difficulties such a disease brings, one will also notice weight problems as a result. These people have trouble keeping on weight and may notice weakness and bulging of the eyes. This disease may need special treatment from doctors.

Hypothyroidism on the other hand works in the other direction – slowing metabolism until the body gains weight at an incredible rate. Like hyperthyroidism, hypothyroidism causes a general weakness in the body. It too may need special treatment and may cause serious health problems if left unattended.

While cutting calories in itself can be very hard for most people – imagine, the people involved in life and death struggles at the supermarket regarding whether to buy that extra box of sweets, some have exactly the opposite problem.

Instead of eating too much calories – which is a problem in itself, they eat too little calories instead.

The problem with some is that they believe that since the experts say that they have to cut calories, cutting calories to an inordinate amount will reap greater results. Unfortunately, it doesn’t work that way. While cutting calories helps diets, consuming too little calories pushed the body into a hoard mode, the body’s metabolism slow to adapt to the lesser amount of available energy.

If your body enters this mode, your body will work at such slow metabolism that losing weight becomes impossible. The technique here should be to reduce calories without the body slowing its metabolism. Only then can losing weight become easier.

Another problem that can arise from decreased metabolism is that when your metabolism slows due to a drastic reduction in metabolism, and then you suddenly eat a good, hearty, calorie-filled meal, you are bound to gain more weight owing to the increased surplus of energy.

This is why an imbalanced meal is highly discouraged among those that seek to lose weight. The sudden loss and increase of calories will cause an imbalance in one’s energy consumption directly affecting fat deposit.

Here is a simple computation to help you get to the right amount of calories you will need per day so that you get your nutrients in the right balance.

First of all, multiply your weight in kilograms by 30. If you only know your weight in pounds, divide it by 2.2 to get to its English equivalent. We divide this number by 30 because that is the number of calories you need to maintain your weight per pound of weight.

For example if your weight in pounds is 150, divide it by 2.2. That will give you a figure of 68.18. This is your weight in kilograms. Multiply this by 30 and you will arrive at the amount of calories you will need per day to maintain 150 lbs.

You may consult a nutritionist to help you come lose weight. In the end it all comes down to math. If you consume more that your body needs, it stores it as fat. Now is probably a good time to start studying the back of those grocery cartons.

Try to keep your diet at a 40% protein, 25% fat, and 35% carbohydrate meals at 300 calories per meal. Spread out these meals in a day for optimum results.

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is the most common inflammatory form of arthritis, affecting more than 2 million Americans. It is a chronic, systemic, progressive autoimmune process for which there is no cure, currently. However, there are medications available that can put this disease into remission.

Prior to treating rheumatoid arthritis, it is important than any patient suspected of having the disease undergo a thorough and complete examination. This will include an in-depth history, careful physical examination, laboratory testing, and imaging procedures such as x-ray, diagnostic ultrasound, or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).

While rheumatoid arthritis can affect many internal organ systems such as the eyes, lungs, and heart, its symptoms can be magnified by other conditions.

That is why it is so important that thorough laboratory testing be done. Many of the symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis such as generalized aches and pains in the joints and muscles, fatigue, listlessness, and low grade fever can be due to other conditions.

Anemia, which is frequent in patients with active RA, is a common cause of fatigue.

For instance, it is not uncommon for patients to have an overlap of their rheumatoid arthritis with systemic lupus erythematosus. This condition is referred to as “rupus.”

Also, inflammatory muscle diseases such as polymyositis can often present with joint inflammation along with weakness.

Another organ system dysfunction that is often neglected or overlooked is thyroid disease.

There is an increased incidence of autoimmune thyroid disease in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. When thyroid inflammation occurs, the end result can be hypothyroidism- an underactive thyroid gland. The thyroid gland is responsible for many metabolic functions in the body. When it fails to work properly, symptoms such as cold intolerance, fatigue, lethargy, weight gain, muscle and joint aches and pains can often occur.

Hypothyroidism is significantly more common in female patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) than in women in general due to the increased association of these two conditions.

Prevention:

Accumulation of acids in your body, due to insufficient digestion of food, food allergies and consumption of acid-forming substances, can cause thyroid disorder. Acid-related causes of thyroid disorder also include exposure to heavy metals and toxic chemicals in the water supply and in highly processed food. When your body’s acid level rises too high, your thyroid function will be depressed and your metabolism will slow.

Lack of digestive enzymes, also caused by over-consumption of processed foods, further causes your thyroid disorder. Your body’s ability to neutralize acids is further reduced. As you get older, the more toxins you're exposed to, the more likely you will develop a thyroid disorder if you haven't already.

THE DAMAGE

With a thyroid disorder, your body’s cells and organs will not metabolize as quickly as they should. The presence of excess acid only makes the problem worse. Your cells and organs will become overrun with acid that they need to eliminate, but your thyroid disorder will reduce their ability to deal with these acids. The acid, in turn, will perpetuate or worsen your thyroid disorder.

For example, a sluggish thyroid reinforces the digestive problems that cause acid to accumulate in your body. Because a thyroid disorder slows your cellular metabolism, it reduces your body’s ability to eliminate acid waste. The more acid-forming substances you consume, the more this cycle repeats.

Thyroid disorder also reduces your immune system function, leading to chronic infection. With the accumulation of acid in your body, infection will spread quickly, further reducing your body’s ability to neutralize acids.

As with other organs, the thyroid needs glucose and oxygen to function. When acid waste accumulates in the bloodstream, these vital substances cannot get through. Without adequate oxygen and glucose, thyroid function is reduced. The resulting thyroid disorder further reduces the body’s ability to clear the bloodstream of these acids that prevent the oxygen and glucose from getting through.

THE BENEFITS OF A BALANCED pH

Because thyroid disorder causes so many other degenerative diseases, a thyroid that functions properly can restore health in so many other areas of your body. When you neutralize the acids in your body and eliminate acid-forming substances from your diet, you give your thyroid a chance to heal. Improved thyroid function will, in turn, help your other body organs function properly.

To neutralize acids and restore your body’s pH balance, you need to reduce or eliminate consumption of acidic foods and other acidic substances. Adding more alkaline foods and minerals to your diet can help restore thyroid disorder. As your acid level falls, you'll find that your thyroid function will increase. Your body’s metabolism will increase as a result, and you'll be able to neutralize acids even further. The end result will be restored health, higher energy, and a decreased risk of thyroid disorder.

Treatment/Therapy:

In a broad sense, estrogen makes calories from food to be stored as fat. Thyroid hormone makes calories from food to be converted into energy.

Excess estrogen interferes with normal thyroid hormone function. Progesterone helps "oppose" and keep undesirable side effects of excess estrogen from happening.

Progesterone helps the body use fat for energy, and when progesterone is present in healthy levels, the thyroid functions more as it is supposed to.

Self Care strategies for Living with Thyroid

If someone close to you (such as a friend or family member) has been diagnosed with a thyroid problem, you may be initially shocked and unable to provide a significant amount of assistance. However, after a time, you will undoubtedly want to support him or her tackle their thyroid symptoms. Here, we’ve compiled a few ways you can be there emotionally and intellectually as you can together deal with a thyroid problem(http://www.mitamins.com/disease/Thyroid-Support.html).

Be Open

The first way to help the person with thyroid problems is to simply be open to the fact that he or she has a thyroid condition. Don’t avoid talking about it; instead, be available whenever your loved one needs to chat. And rather than trying to find a solution to thyroid symptoms, be a non-judgmental shoulder to cry on. Don’t insist that he or she do anything within the first 24 hours of finding out about the thyroid condition unless a physician insists that immediate steps are necessary.

Learn about Thyroid Problems (http://www.mitamins.com/disease/Thyroid-Support.html)

Scour every medical journal you can, searching for up-to-the-minute information on thyroid symptoms and problems such as hypothyroidism and hyperthyroidism. Pick up medical pamphlets on thyroid problems in both doctor’s offices and health food stores. You may even want to join an Internet-based message board or two and find out from others what suffering from thyroid symptoms is really like. By being as informed as you can, you’ll be better able to help your family member make wise thyroid problem treatment options.

Understand that Medicine May Not Be the Total Answer

Though modern medicine is capable of effectively curing some forms of thyroid problems, it may not completely eradicate all thyroid symptoms for your family member.

Instead, suggest to them that they look into natural remedies as alternatives to, or in conjunction with, medical treatments, such as taking a supplement rich in bladderwrack or selenium.

Other holistic helpers include B vitamins, such as B12, B6, and folic acid, all of which seem to help tackle thyroid problems by boosting the body’s immune system. The more you know about these “alternative” remedies, the more help you can be in tackling your family member’s thyroid symptoms (http://www.mitamins.com/disease/Thyroid-Support.html).

Attend Appointments with Your Loved One

If at all possible, you may want to join your family member or friend when he or she heads to the primary care physician or endocrinologist for appointments. This way, you’ll hear first-hand what’s being recommended to treat his or her thyroid problem. And you can also ask the professional about alternative remedies or ways to recover should thyroid surgery be necessary.

Of course, some family members may not want you actually IN the doctor’s appointment, but may still appreciate your offering to take them to the office and waiting for them. This is still a highly appropriate method of supporting someone with a thyroid condition, and will actually make you feel better, too. Remember - there’s no need to allow a thyroid problem to come between you and a family member. Reach out and you’ll both reap the benefits of some hand-holding.

Diet change strategies:

Many dietary oils can negatively affect thyroid health. We cook with them almost every day and they are plentiful in commercially prepared foods. It is possible they are among the worst offenders when it comes to the thyroid gland malfunctioning.

So what options are there for those who need thyroid support?

Well, marine phytoplankton has come to be known as thyroid health food. The electrolytes and nutrients marine phytoplankton possesses are what the human body needs to control metabolic rate.

Another natural supplement for thyroid support showing positive results in studies is the juice of the go-ji or lyceum berry from Asia. The fruit is seen as an immunomodulator - it can balance abnormal responses in the body and is seen by many as a natural treatment for thyroid problems.

Are there any vitamins that can be take for thyroid support?

Well, kelp is a combination of vitamins, minerals and supplements and has been said to work well in the treatment of thyroid problems. If you are on thyroid medication, be sure to take a good multivitamin with minerals and a few grams of Vitamin C everyday.

Vitamin A is also very essential for the treatment of hypothyroidism as enough of it must be present in the body to enable the gland to absorb enough iodine. Adding Vitamin A to your diet could not only prevent thyroid problems, it could also help alleviate the symptoms if you suffer from hypothyroidism.

Make sure your food is rich in copper, which means that you will have to include thyroid foods like yeast, offal, nuts, raisins, and eggs. Just a little care and you could minimize your problems and offer thyroid support.

These dietary oils are the vegetable oils which are polyunsaturated oils. The most common source of these oils used in commercially prepared foods is the soybean. Soybean has been proven to slow thyroid functions.

It must be stressed that coconut oil is not a thyroid cure by itself. However, it can help people with low thyroid function because it stimulates metabolism and boosts energy.

Coconut oil contains medium chain fatty acids which is a different type of fat. Also known as medium chain triglycerides, medium chain fatty acids are known to increase metabolism and promote weight loss.

It can raise basal body temperatures while increasing metabolism. Used in combination with other factors, coconut oil has the potential to greatly improve thyroid system function. Coconut oil has helped many people end their dependence on thyroid medication.

Thyroid diet recommends a very low-calorie diet for weight loss in cases of hypothyroidism but it is necessary to maintain metabolism. Low calories and lower metabolism sends body into hoard mode, which is a process, thyroid patients are susceptible to.

Thyroid diet suggests breaking up calories into multiple "mini-meals" per day. These thyroid conditions result in metabolic slowdown.

This diet has many frustrating impediments for weight loss. It offers both conventional and alternative solution for help. The Thyroid sufferer have to focus on a low-glycemic, high-fiber, lower-calorie diet, optimal timing of meals for maximum hormonal impact, thyroid-damaging foods to avoid, helpful herbs and supplements.

They face unexpected weight gain, despite diet and exercise showing symptoms as:

- Fatigue and exhaustion
- More hair loss than usual
- Moodiness
- Muscle and joint pains and aches

Hyperthyroid leads to metabolism that stores every calorie even after rigorous diet and exercise programs. Even optimal treatment doesn't help weight problems plague for many thyroid patients.

For the majority of thyroid patients, treatment alone doesn't seem to resolve our weight problems.

Using Ayurveda Therapy:

The only real treatment for thyroid disease, whether hypothyroidism, hyperthyroidism or any other condition of thyroid gland, is cleansing of the system and adoption of a rational diet thereafter, combined with adequate rest and relaxation. To begin with, juices of fruits such as orange, apple, pineapple, and grapes may be taken every two or three hours from 8 am to 8 pm for five days. The bowels should be cleaned daily with lukewarm water.

After the juice fast, the patient may spend further three days on fruits and milk, taking three meals a day of juicy fruits such as apple, pineapple, grapes, papaya, with a glass of milk, at five hourly intervals. Thereafter, the patient may adopt a well-balanced diet consisting of seeds, nuts and grains, vegetables and fruits.

The patient should take plenty of rest and spend a day in bed every week for the first two months of the treatment. More and more exercise should be taken after the symptoms subside.

The appetite of the thyroid patient is usually very large and the weight reduction cannot be prevented for some time. This is because until the heart beat slows down and the tremors stop, there will be incomplete assimilation of good.

But as soon as the balance is restored, weight will slowly increase. To help the absorption of food, a narrow waist compress and, later, a neck compress should be worn for five nights a week. As weight increases, the almost constant hunger will gradually disappear, on no account should any stimulants be administered to create an appetite.

Certain foods and fluids are extremely injurious for thyroid patients and should be avoided by them. These include white flour products, white sugar, flesh foods, fried or greasy foods, preserves, condiments, tea, coffee and alcohol.

No drugs should be taken as they cause irritation in the tissues. Iodine is undoubtedly most helpful in many cases, but it should be introduced in organic form all foods containing iodine should be taken liberally. These are asparagus, cabbage, garlic, onion, oats, pineapple, whole rice, tomatoes, watercress and strawberries.

Great care must be taken never to allow the body to become exhausted and any irritation likely to cause emotional upset should be avoided. The cure of thyroid disease is not a speedy one and there is often a recurrence of symptoms but these should gradually become less pronounced. Strict adherence to diet is essential for complete cure.

Half the daily intake of food should consist of fresh fruits and vegetables and the starch element should be confined to whole wheat products and potatoes. Potatoes are the most valuable form of starch. They should preferably be taken in their jackets. The protein foods should be confined to cheese, peas, beans lentils and nuts. All fresh proteins must be avoided.

The diet outlined here should be strictly adhered to for a year and the compresses on neck and waist applied for five consecutive nights in a week for two months and discontinued for one month. Water treatments should be taken to increase skin elimination.

Application of sponge to the entire body before retiring and a cold sponge on rising will be very helpful. It is most important that the bowels are kept working efficiently to avoid danger of a toxic condition of the blood arising from that source.

All efforts should be made to prevent emotional stress. There may be slight recurrence of this extremely nervous complain for some times, but the attacks will become less severe and of shorter duration as the treatment progresses. And above all, there must be no lessening of the patient's efforts to help himself because success can only be attained by assiduous efforts.

Vitamin & Nutrient Associations

Even when we try to eat well, we're disadvantaged. The nutritional content of most food has been compromised over the years, not only by deficient soils and modern production, transportation, storage and processing methods, but also by the enormous amounts of chemical and artificial substances added to promote growth, storage life, taste and appearance.

It's for this reason that more and more medical authorities are advocating the use of vitamin and mineral supplements. However, finding them in the right combination can be both confusing and costly.

The nutrition products I am going to recommend you make use of knowledge gained from the botanical world's 6,000 year history. They incorporated health building nutritional herbs with the best modern technology to help our bodies cleanse and detoxify so that the cells - the tiniest living units - can be as fully nourished as possible.

This allows the cells to grow, repair and to perform their functions with the best possible efficiency so that we feel and look better and are more able to prevent and fight disease. Once the body begins to clear itself of toxins it can more efficiently absorb nutrition.

As Aloe Vera Juice is a refreshing and anti-bacterial drink, you might find that taking this daily, diluted in some filtered water will not only refresh you like ‘a shower inside you’ but also assists in dealing with any digestive issues you may also be experiencing.

You may find benefit from our information on detoxification as well as a bit about detoxing because of change of diet

It may be due to difficulties with your digestive system that is causing your body to be starved of key nutrients, vitamins or minerals. In this case you may find useful answers by reviewing our article on Nutrition For Your Cells. There is also more information here about why is nutrition such an issue nowadays?

It may be that your metabolism has slowed due to pressures that have been placed on your system through life in general or through specific “challenges” you have faced in the last few months or last few years. Review this by looking at our article about balancing your Metabolic Rate.

Further reading through our articles on Thyroid health issues will give you a body of information that will help you decide what options you have to deal with the underlying causes of your problem through giving your body the nutrition products that will assist you body to heal from the inside out.

We wish you well in your search for solutions to this Thyroid problem and your movement towards better health in all areas.

More Resources available about Thyroid :

A Simple Plan To Diagnose And Treat Low Thyroid Function
It’s an epidemic problem -- and you could have it. Low thyroid function affects more than 30 million women and 15 million men. And it can lead to problems losing weight; decreased sex drive; depression; anxiety; thinning hair; and poor quality, thick, cracked fingernails.

So what’s responsible for low thyroid function and why are so many people affected?

Chronic thyroid problems can be caused by many factors, including environmental toxins such as pesticides, which act as hormone or endocrine disruptors and interfere with thyroid hormone metabolism and function.

In one study, people released pesticides from their fat tissue as they lost weight.

This interfered with their thyroid function and caused hypothyroidism. The toxins slowed metabolism and prevented them from losing more weight.
(To read the rest of this article click on the Title above here.)

The Link Between Thyroid Cancer And Hypertension
Thyroid cancer occurs in the body due to the growth of abnormal cells in a person's thyroid gland, which cannot be controlled naturally by the body. Thankfully, in most cases thyroid can cancer be cured. In this particular article we will take a look at the connection between thyroid cancer and hypertension. About 20,000 people with thyroid cancer are diagnosed each year in the United States, and the cancer is typically present as a nodule on the thyroid. Thyroid cancer usually does not have any symptoms and in over 99% of cases, even if a person does have a nodule on their thyroid it is not cancer, but a benign growth. If cancer does grow in the thyroid, it normally does so in a nodule. There are a number of things which will point to a person suffering from thyroid cancer, the most common being a lump is found in the neck. However there are other symptoms that may occur but they can very often be associated with other conditions
(To read the rest of this article click on the Title above here.)

http://www.thyroidhealthcare.com

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