Natural Approach to a Healthy Thyroid

Most people know that an under active thyroid (hypothyroidism) can cause weight gain and fatigue. But did you know that it can also trigger high cholesterol and triglycerides along with a host of other , less obvious symptoms? These include constipation, dry skin, hair loss, slow heartbeat, cold hands and feet, slow wound healing, depression, memory disturbances, and difficulty concentrating. Hypothyroidism can also contribute to an increased risk of heart attack, stroke, and osteoporosis.

This condition is more common than you might suspect. According to the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists (AACE), about 1 in 8 women ages 35 to 65 has low thyroid function, and 1 in 5 females over 65 are affected. (Although men are not immune to hypothyroidism, its incidence is about seven times greater in women.) If you're a woman over the age of 50, you may think fatigue, mood swings, and forgetfulness are the consequences of menopause. But many of the symptoms of hypothyroidism mimic those of the "change of life". As a result, this condition frequently goes undiagnosed in this subgroup of women.

The AACE estimates that half of the 13 million Americans who have thyroid disorders don't know it. Therefore, the routine blood tests should include screening for thyroid activity. The gold standard for the diagnosis of hypothyroidism is the thyrotropin test, a highly sensitive test that measures blood levels of thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH). This pituitary hormone acts like an on/off switch, regulating the production and secretion of thyroid hormones. When thyroid function is low, levels of TSH are abnormally high. Other tests measure free or total T4 (thyroxine) and T3 (triiodothyronine), which are hormones produced by the thyroid gland.

Thyroid replacement therapy usually returns thyroid activity to normal. The best selling brand is Synthroid, which is a synthetic hormone that contains only T4 (thyroxine). In a study published by The New England Journal of Medicine, natural thyroid replacement which contains both T4 and T3,
produced far superior results. The answer is simple, if you want to restore your thyroid to it's proper working order, then take natural thyroid hormones, not synthetic ones.