What is Hypothyroidism?

Hypothyroid occurs when the thyroid gland fails to produce enough thyroid hormones. Hypothyroid is more common in women than men and the incidences increases with age. Blood test specific for thyroid hormones helps to detect hypothyroid.  Thyroid antibody test should also be done with thyroid hormone test as it would help in early detection of autoimmune thyroid disease and help to distinguish it from other forms of thyroid dysfunction. It helps to detect Graves’s disease or Hashimoto Thyroiditis.

Important Signs and Symptoms of Hypothyroidism

• Fatigue even after sleeping for 8-10 hours
• Weight gain or inability to lose weight
• Mood swings, anxiety or depression
• Irregular menses, infertility, low sex drive
• Muscle pain or bone pains
• Constipation
• Dry, cracking skin or brittle nails
• Excessive hair loss or hair thinning
• Brain fog, poor concentration or weak memory
• Hoarse voice, neck swelling

Ways to Improve Thyroid Function

• Keeping a regular check and record of your thyroid hormones through blood test. This helps to monitor and regulate the dose of medicine change if required.
• A gluten free diet would be of great help especially if you are a case of autoimmune thyroiditis/ Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis. Gluten resembles thyroid tissues. If you suffer from a leaky gut your body may mistakenly attack your thyroid believing it is attacking gluten molecules. This would cause the thyroid to remain underactive even after taking hormonal supplementations.
• Make sure you are taking a high quality multivitamin with iodine, zinc, selenium, iron, vitamin D and B12.
• Get at least 8 to 10 hours of sleep. Sleep is very essential to facilitate the repair and regeneration process of the body.
• You need to take extra care if you suffer from a leaky gut. A proper functioning digestive system is critical to good health.
• Avoid refined vegetable oils including soybean, corn, sunflower and canola. Prefer eating coconut oil. It helps to reduce brain fog and enhance your cognitive performance.
• Get enough Vitamin A and Vitamin D as they are very critical for optimal thyroid and brain function. Cod liver oil capsules are a great option as it contains Vitamin a, Vitamin D and omega 3 fatty acids all together but under the guidance of your doctor.
• Filter your drinking water to avoid fluoride, chlorine and other halogens as they interfere with the thyroid function.
• Reduce stress levels. High levels of physical and mental stress can be detrimental to your thyroid function. This is the reason it is critical that you manage stress, massage, acupressure, meditation and yoga would be of great help.
• Taking help of medicines which are natural and have no side-effects would be more beneficial. They would help the immunity to build and maintain healthy thyroid function. Homoeopathy helps to produce thyroid hormone naturally by stimulating the immune system and helps in better functioning of the thyroid gland. Homoeopathic remedies work by stimulating the body’s own healing capacity by encouraging the body to reactivate hormone secretions. Homoeopathic medicines help to reduce stress if any and rebuild self-confidence because it deals with the patient as a person and not only the disease. Homoeopathy improves the body’s immunity which in turn helps to keep the thyroid gland functions normal. Homoeopathic medicines are not addictive and do not damage any other organs of the body unlike conventional medicines.