Thyroid - Part 1
What does the Thyroid do?
Our thyroid is like the mom (or the mom-like role) in the house. It manages everything and keeps everything working like clockwork, but since this work is done quietly and behind the scenes, most aren’t aware of everything it’s doing.
Your thyroid is a butterfly-sized organ located in your throat. It’s over your voice box and near your throat chakra for those interested in Ayurveda.
It manages your resting state and all of the processes that are needed to clean up house and keep everything running smoothly. Like, your metabolism, body temperature, calcium uptake, and your thyroid turns on the immune system and digestive function.
It’s the yin to the adrenals yang. Meaning, the adrenals handle your stress reaction and the thyroid cleans up after the stress is over.
The problem is…we’re rarely in relaxation mode. We spend most of our day feeling the stress reaction and that means our adrenals are running the show most of the time. And that, my friend, is the reason many of us have thyroid issues.
Also, when stressed (high cortisol), your body tries to conserve precious energy and sloooows down your metabolism. That way you have a reserve of energy to run away from the danger. This is another reason we tend to gain weight when stressed. I’ll take you deeper into the stress/thyroid connection in Part 2.
Let’s take a deeper look at everything your thyroid does:
Your heart: Thyroid hormones influence your heart rate and help control blood flow by relaxing the muscles in the walls of your blood vessels.
Your fertility: Thyroid hormones influence your fertility and menstrual cycle. When they're out of whack, you might have irregular ovulation and periods.
Your bones: The rate at which old bone is broken down is driven by thyroid hormones; when that process speeds up, bone is destroyed faster than it can be replaced—which can lead to osteoporosis.
Your weight: Because the thyroid regulates your metabolism (how quickly your body burns through fuel), an overactive thyroid—or hyperthyroidism—is linked to weight loss, while hypothyroidism is linked to weight gain.
Your brain: Low thyroid levels can bring on forgetfulness, difficulty concentrating, brain fog, and depression.
Your skin: When your thyroid is underactive, your body stops making and shedding skin cells at its normal pace. Cells build-up, causing dry, dull-looking skin. (Hair and nail growth slow down as well.)
TYPES OF THYROID IMBALANCE
Hypothyroid (low thyroid)
When our thyroid is struggling it tends to work slower than usual, and this is hypothyroidism. It’s a very common condition in women, and the cause most of the symptoms we relate to thyroid issues, like; fogginess, depression, constipation, weight gain, thinning hair and feeling cold all of the time.
Hyperthyroid (high thyroid)
A much rarer condition, hyperthyroidism is when the thyroid is overproducing thyroid hormones. Symptoms include; rapid heartbeat, sweating, anxiety, trembling, and insomnia. Hyperthyroid can become Grave’s Disease, which is a very serious condition.
Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis
This is an autoimmune condition, and I’m seeing this more and more every day. Found in a blood test, usually by a skilled Naturopath (and some MDs are testing for this too), this indicates the immune system is attacking the thyroid and usually causing hypothyroid symptoms. Check out Part 4 for more on Hashimoto’s.
In this masterclass, I’ll be focusing on hypothyroidism & Hashimoto’s because they’re the most common thyroid issues.
THYROID HORMONES
TSH – Thyroid Stimulating Hormone
This is the main hormone that’s tested in blood tests. If your thyroid is sluggish, your pituitary gland will send out lots of TSH to try to stimulate your thyroid and get it going. This is why there’s an inverse relationship between TSH and your thyroid. If your TSH is HIGH, then your thyroid is probably low.
Your thyroid makes T3 & T4, which are partially made with iodine. Sometimes, your TSH will be fine but your T3 & T4 are off, so it’s always best to have all three hormones tested. Frustratingly, even if your doctor requests all three, the T3 & T4 test might be dropped if your TSH is in range. Don’t worry, there’s a way to test your thyroid function at home, stay tuned :)
Usually, the range you’ll see in your blood work is 1 – 5 mU/L, but many Naturopathic and Functional Medical Doctors work with a smaller range. Their upper limit is 2.5 – 3 mU/L (meaning, anything over 3 qualifies for a hypothyroid diagnosis). Many experts believe their patients feel best when their TSH is between 1.5 – 2 mU/L. So, if your TSH is on the high end of the “okay” range but you’re feeling lots of symptoms, it might be worth some additional investigation.
You might still have symptoms, even if you’re inside that tighter TSH range, and this is due to the next two hormones. (And I get into why your hormone levels can be a-okay but you’re having symptoms in Part 3)
T4 - Thyroxine
When TSH leaves your pituitary gland, it heads straight to your thyroid and tells it to make T4. 96% of the hormone made in your thyroid is T4, but the majority of it needs to be converted to T3 for your thyroid to work properly
T3 - Triiodothyronine
This is the most active hormone in your thyroid. T3 is made by converting T4, and this is usually done in the liver and sometimes in the heart and in the intestines by the gut bacteria. If you’re going through a lot of stress or trauma, some of your T4 will be made into rT3 (reverse T3) instead, which is an inactive form. High cortisol will also ramp up the production of the inactive rT3, and this depresses your thyroid function.
Knowing how much T3 your body makes is an important indicator of your thyroid function. But, if you can’t get tested, another good option to see how your thyroid is functioning is the Thyroid Temperature Test.
THYROID TEMPERATURE TEST –
This test was created by a physician who realized that blood work didn’t always give the full picture of thyroid function. This is a simple test you can do at home and will show how your thyroid is working on a day-to-day basis.
Your thyroid manages your temperature, so by taking your temperature at a specific time each day, you can take a look at how your thyroid is doing.
It’s very important to take your temperature when you first wake up and before you move around (definitely before you stand up). This is so you can check your thyroid before your morning cortisol level starts climbing. It’s best to take it when you first start to stir. Have your thermometer close enough that you can just reach your hand out from under your covers to grab it.
This test is powerful because it can show symptoms of “Thyroid Resistance”.
If you high levels of cortisol, such as in the early stages of adrenal fatigue when the adrenals are overworked, your cells may no longer respond to signals from the thyroid. This brings on a condition called thyroid resistance. In this case, you may have normal thyroid hormone levels, but your cells don’t respond well to signals from the thyroid.
When under chronic stress, you will feel physically beat because none of your hormones are working effectively.
What to do if your temperature is outside of range:
Ask your doctor to test your TSH, T3, & T4. This test shows how your thyroid functions, so don’t be surprised if your blood work comes back a-okay. It just means that you’ve caught it at the first stage of change (yay!)
If your temperature is a little low, incorporate some of the food recommendations In Part 5. If it’s quite low, add in a thyroid support supplement.
If your temperature is high, email me (Lisa) and I’ll give you some specific recommendations.
Got any questions or comments? Comment below, jump to our private Facebook Group, or the Ask Lisa page :)