Are you tired all the time? Do you have dry skin, brittle nails, cold hands and feet, hair loss, stubborn weight gain, trouble waking up in the morning? These are all signs of poor thyroid hormone function, or hypo-thyroidism. Thyroid hormone tells all the cells in our bodies to help make energy, so when it’s not functioning correctly many symptoms related to poor energy production arise.

One form of low thyroid function is called Hashimoto’s thyroiditis. Hashimoto’s is actually an autoimmune inflammation problem, in which our bodies make anti-bodies that end up attacking the thyroid gland and interfering with production of thyroid hormone. This may lead to intermittent dumping of excess thyroid, as well as destruction of the gland and formation of nodules, causing intermittent symptoms of both too little and too much thyroid hormone.

Unfortunately, most conventional testing only looks at one thyroid marker called TSH, an inadequate measure by itself. To truly assess thyroid hormone function you need a complete panel including free T3 and free T4, reverse T3 and thyroid antibodies, as well as assessing adrenal cortisol levels, sex hormone levels and GI function.

Good thyroid hormone function is tied to adrenal function, many important nutrients including iodine, selenium, iron and Vit D, sex hormone function including estrogen and progesterone, as well as healthy gastro-intestinal tract and detoxification pathways. Unfortunately, the thyroid gland is one of the most environmentally sensitive tissues in our body, very vulnerable to toxicants such as heavy metals [especially mercury, fluoride, bromine and chlorine] and is easily damaged. Hashimoto’s is commonly triggered after pregnancies as well as infections such as EBV or mono.

Hyper-thyroidism is caused because of too much thyroid hormone production and also may be linked to auto-immune problems, commonly called Grave’s disease. Heart racing, severe anxiety, tremors and un-explained weight loss may be consequences.

Treatment may include an autoimmune diet, a 5R gut repair protocol and thyroid supporting nutrients- often correcting thyroid disorders without medications. If indicated bioidentical hormone prescriptions such as Armour thyroid or Naturethyroid may be recommended.To relieve your fatigue and get your thyroid hormone functioning properly make sure you have a thorough evaluation that looks at all the factor’s involved.

The Functional approach always starts with diet. Check out our repaitvite classes or schedule an appointment with a dietitian. If you live remotely look into Molddetoxdiet.com.

More information on Thyroid and Hashimoto’s