THYROID One common features among the oldest living people is no immunes system antibodies against the thyroid gland.

 

Master gland of metabolism, the thyroid is a butterfly-shaped gland located around the windpipe.  The thyroid gland combines iodine from the diet with the amino acid tyrosine to produce two hormones, T3 and T4.  You can think of T3 as the active form of thyroid hormone and T4 as the storage molecule.  In balanced health, your body can convert easily between these molecules, balancing current need with current T3 stores. 

 

Released by the thyroid into the bloodstreams, thyroid hormones travel through the bloodstream, enabling cells to convert oxygen and calories into energy. Among the things that the thyroid controls are your thermostat, whether you are warm or cold.  The thyroid gland also controls how your body metabolizes energy.  An overactive thyroid can leave you with weight loss anxiety and jitters while an underactive thyroid can cause fatigue, weight gain and depression.

 

The most common problem with the thyroid gland is hypothyroidism.  In hypothyroidism, tissues and cells of the body react as if they are not getting enough active thyroid hormone, T3.  As is always true in complex systems, we can get hypothyroidism from many causes: not producing enough hormone, not converting effectively from inactive T4 into active T3, or  inefficiencies importing and using T3 in the tissues.

 

Because of the complex interactions between the thyroid and other systems in the body, hypothyroidism looks and feels different in each person who has it.   The most common symptoms are: fatigue, depression, cold hands and feet, weight gain, hair loss, brittle nails, muscle and joint aches, puffiness around the eyes, heart palpitations, increased cholesterol, irregular menses, constipation, fullness in the neck.

 

There are complex interactions between the thyroid and both the immune and the detoxification system.  Many scholars feel that the thyroid functions as a canary in a coal mine and that the rising level of autoimmune diseases of the thyroid indicate increasing stressors in these systems.

 

Thyroid testing

Thyroid treatment

Normal Labs but Symptoms of Hypothyroidism: