Thyroid Supplements

Basics of hypothyroidism

When we are talking about the thyroid function, there are two hormones involved.  They are abbreviated as T3 and T4 and their names are, respectively triiodothyronine and thyroxine.  While a fully functional thyroid produces four times as much T4 as it does T3, T3 is actually the more powerful of the two.  

Hypo- as a prefix means having too little; so hypothyroidism is a malfunction of the thyroid gland that means it makes less than what the body needs.  Patients who suffer from this condition often do so for years before they find relief because many of the symptoms are subtle or they don’t report all of them to their family physician.  

Symptoms of hypothyroidism

As we mentioned, the symptoms of an underactive thyroid gland can vary greatly from person to person and some of them are so subtle or become almost normal to the person who is suffering that they don’t even think about mentioning them to their doctor.  Others can actually be embarrassing to mention; people feel responsible for the symptoms and don’t seek help.  
Here is an overview of the common symptoms of hypothyroidism:

Weight problems

It might be persistent weight gain that prompts a person to seek help from their doctor, but others may be hesitant to mention this in the worry that they doctor will just tell them to exercise more.  People with hypothyroidism often try very hard to lose weight or even maintain their weight, but to no avail.  Without the necessary thyroid hormones in their bodies, their metabolism takes a nose dive and they have trouble controlling their weight.  

Hair loss

The average person has about 100,000 individual hairs on their head, and that same average person will lose between 40 and 100 of them per day.  While it can be scary to have to pick clumps of hair out of the shower drain every day, it is normal to lose hair at this rate.  With a drop in hormone production as occurs with an underactive thyroid gland, the number can double, triple or even be ten times more than usual.  In fact, this one symptom is often the one that sends people in to their doctors for help.  

If you have had a baby, you have probably experienced the frightening experience that new mothers know all too well.  A few days or weeks after giving birth, your hormones change dramatically and many women experience a short period of heavy hair loss because of it.  This loss, while temporary is similar to the ongoing hair loss a person with hypothyroidism will encounter.  

Fatigue

Everyone goes through periods when their energy levels are just sapped and they have trouble getting through the day.  When there are more days like this than there are days that you have enough energy, it could be the signal that something is very wrong with your thyroid gland.  Muscle weakness and reduced sex drive are related symptoms that add up to a change in your overall energy level and well-being.  

When the condition is allowed to continue, other concurrent symptoms usually show up.  These can include dry and brittle hair and nails, irritability, memory loss and the inability to withstand cold temperatures.  

When people have only one or two of these symptoms, they are like to chalk them up to lifestyle choices, and so are their doctors.  Many physicians make the assumption that the person just needs to eat a little better and get some exercise.  When you are working against your body’s endocrine system, however, it might not be that simple.  

Just making lifestyle changes is not enough to reverse an underactive thyroid, but the combination of thyroid supplements with these changes is a great way to combat the symptoms of the disorder.  When you add a thyroid boosting supplement, which has natural vitamins, minerals and herbs that target the thyroid gland, you have a powerhouse combination.  

A good supplement will help your thyroid work its best to regulate hormone levels and get your metabolism back on track.  Of course, you can’t expect to sit on the couch, take a supplement and have all your symptoms disappear.  You have to use a supplement as part of an overall health makeover to get your body working to its potential.  

You can fight the symptoms of hypothyroidism with a good thyroid supplement and healthy lifestyle choices that will set you up for increase metabolism and better overall health.