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When to Consider Having Your Thyroid Checked
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Thyroid disease can be tricky to pin down, because its symptoms can masquerade as a wide variety of health problems. That’s because its origin, the thyroid, coordinates and signals all the metabolic processes in your body – from mood and energy to digestion, weight, body temperature, hair, skin, and much more!
For women, thyroid disease is a particularly big concern, with up to one in eight women suffering from some type of thyroid disorder. That’s a lot, considering that as a whole, only about 12 percent of Americans have thyroid disease. If you have some of the signs and symptoms below, you should consider getting your thyroid checked.
Is It Thyroid?
As with all other processes and organs in your body, the thyroid runs on hormones -if we want to get technical, a combination of TSH, T3 and T4. An imbalance of these hormones can cause various symptoms and issues.
There are two main types of thyroid disease: hypothyroidism, or lack of thyroid hormones, and hyperthyroidism, an oversupply of hormones. One can precede the other, and people can have both forms at different points in their lives.
Hypothyroidism’s hallmarks are unexplained fatigue, sensitivity to cold (always needing a sweater or blanket, perhaps?), constipation, dry skin, hair and nails, and unexpected weight gain. Hyperthyroidism, on the other hand, shows up as sudden weight loss, rapid or irregular heartbeat, sweating, and irritability. Both of these conditions may present differently with age.
Other thyroid problems can include: nodules or lumps in the neck, goiter, swollen glands, coughing, or gland inflammation.
What We Can Do
When we suspect thyroid problems, we’ll test you for the appropriate levels of thyroid hormones. Imbalances in your blood work help us establish a unique and individualized treatment plan. Our integrative and regenerative medical approach means we won’t just hand you a prescription and call a day. Instead, we’ll work to optimize your body’s hormone function and build your metabolism back to normal with vitamins, minerals, supplements, and bioidentical hormone therapy. Other treatments include herbal remedies, and changes in lifestyle, diet and exercise.
We serve patients nationwide from our two offices in Portland, Maine and Jupiter, Florida. Contact us anytime with questions or to set up a free screening.