Thyroid dysfunction now an epidemic in the US!

Thyroid dysfunction is, it seems, almost epidemic in the United States, and it can affect every cell, organ, gland, and function in the body. There are at least 24 major patterns of thyroid disease so far discovered. It is always extremely important to accurately diagnose and treat thyroid problems because this condition may lead to a variety of more serious illnesses. The causes of thyroid problems are diverse and numerous; they may include infective foci in the head, such as chronic root canal, mercury amalgam and heavy metal toxification, as well as chronic viral and other microbial infections, auto immune diseases such as Hashimoto’s and Grave’s syndromes. The list of potential stress factors is long.

Does significant pathology lurk beneath the surface?

Thyroid gland dysfunction is not always accompanied by obvious tell-tale signs such as goiter or bulging eyes or myxedema in the face or hair loss. Due to modern lifestyles, a latent form of mixed thyroid dysfunction is common and minor swelling or knots may be barely visible; however, sometimes significant pathology lurks beneath the surface in the form of toxic or cancerous nodules. So, occasionally, a thyroid scan is necessary to clarify a diagnosis.

What causes thyroid conditions like Hashimoto’s or Graves?

The most common thyroid condition in the U.S. is hypothyroidism and about 90% of these cases are autoimmune in nature; they’ve been named Hashimoto’s. I will mention, as a side note, that a frequent mistake in treating these thyroid cases is not identifying the cause(s) of this autoimmune condition, but simply putting the patient on Synthroid or a related synthetic version of this T4 drug and hoping it will convert into T3 (the active hormone.) The fact that many patients are allergic to one or more of the fillers used in its manufacture is usually overlooked. Another mistake is giving Hashimoto’s patients too much iodine which further aggravates their condition. It’s usually best to be treated by a doctor versed in holistic or functional medicine and who is more focused on treating causes, and thoroughly understands the complexities of the thyroid syndromes.

A less common, but very disruptive thyroid condition, is called Grave’s disease. It also is autoimmune in nature and creates a significant hyperfunction of the gland that can cause heart conductivity problems like tachycardia, as well as tremors, sweats and weight loss. The conventional medicine approach is to remove or destroy the gland and put the patient on Synthroid or a synthetic analogue. Usually, no attempt at all is made to determine the root causes of the underlying autoimmune condition. If you hope to save your thyroid, you will need to deviate from solely conventional endocrinological approaches and seek a truly holistic doctor to work with. This will generally require more in depth blood and hormone testing, and testing for chronic viruses/pathogens and heavy metal toxicity.

Even though your blood chemistries are within normal ranges you still have symptoms why?

And finally, you don’t need to settle for having your thyroid blood chemistry markers within the normal statistical reference range while using Synthroid, yet still having most of the lingering symptoms of hypothyroidism such as stubborn weight gain, cold extremities, and sensitivity to cold, high cholesterol, fatigue, constipation, brain fog and/or anxiety of unknown origin to name a few. There is a holistic answer to all of this; it need not remain the frustrating dilemma it often ends up as. Call us and we will give you a free 10 minute phone consult with Dr. Cushing to discuss your issues and what we can do for you!