What Are The Symptoms of Hashimoto's Disease?

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Have you begun wondering why you are suddenly losing your hair? When brushing your hair, are you noticing more and more hair piling up in your hair brush than you remember? Are you noticing that you're gaining weight lately, even though you've been careful not to over indulge in carbohydrates and sweets, and you've been working out at the gym? Have you been depressed lately and experiencing migraine headaches? If you do have some of these symptoms, you might need to go to the doctor and get some tests done to find out if you have the disease more commonly known as Hashimoto's disease.
Hashimoto's disease causes both hypothyroidism and hyperthyroidism. Most of the people who have thyroid problems have either one or the other, not both. If you have hypothyroidism, you gain weight and are tired most of the time. Your thyroid is slow. But if you have hyperthyroidism, you have a thyroid that works overtime. It's totally the opposite. With Hashimoto's Disease, it can create hormone imbalances that cause the body to be very confused.
What should you do if you have some of the symptoms above and suspect you have Hashimoto's disease? The very first thing you should do is, go to the doctor. Tell your doctor what your symptoms are and what you suspect could be the problem. From there, tests will likely be done to examine your blood and find if you do have this disease.
If the prognosis is that you do have Hashimoto's disease or at least hypothyroid disease, you can never truly cure an auto-immune disease, but you can be treated to relieve the symptoms and reverse the disease. Usually a doctor will either prescribe thyroid hormone replacement agents such as Levothyroxine or Dessicated Thyroid Extract. For some, the good news is that your symptoms should disappear and you can live a normal life after that.
The thing you have to pay attention to and remember is that if you do have either hypothyroidism or hyperthyroidism you need to get yourself tested and take your medication. If you go for an extended time without taking your medication, your muscles could deteriorate or you could have a heart attack. So be diligent if you are one who had this disease.
Otherwise, you'll live a perfectly normal life, and your hair will come back and stop falling out when you take your medication. That is unless you're a male who has the family inheritance of balding, then that's another case for another kind of doctor.
Dr. Jonathan Berns, D.C. helps people everyday in the Tampa, Florida area overcome the very misunderstood and often mistreated conditions caused from dysfunctional thyroids. Visit Tampa Thyroid Program at Integrative Health of Tampa to learn more about thyroid management.

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Hashimoto's, Gluten, and The Immune System - Things Every Patient Should Know

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What does it really take to be gluten free?

This is something that I discuss with patients almost every single day in my clinic and it is surprising the misconceptions that many people have about gluten free diets.

Many thyroid patients have discovered, from various sources, that the first thing they should do after getting diagnosed with Hashimoto's Disease, an autoimmune form of hypothyroidism, is implement a completely gluten free diet.

When you talk to people that have made this discovery and have made this dietary change on their own these are the things that you will hear them say:
"I am kind of gluten free""I am almost gluten free"

Here is the problem:

If you have an immune sensitivity to gluten, a protein found in barley, wheat, rye, spelt, kamut, and processed oats, then your body is creating antibodies to that food every single time it sees it. That means you are creating inflammation in the stomach and throughout the entire body.

So even if you go two days, or even four days gluten-free, and then you have just a little bit, well, you've completely reversed everything that you've done, and you've basically gone back to square one.

Every time you eat it you elevate the antibodies and inflammation all over again and it take weeks or months to clear this out of the body. '

What happens for some patients is they get frustrated because they go a few days, they eat a little bit, they go a few days, they eat a little bit, and they never actually make any progress, and so they'll finally just say, "The gluten-free diet is not working."

The reality is that for some Hashimoto's patients, by just removing gluten they make a lot of progress without doing a lot of the other stuff that can be done to really modulate the immune system in Hashimoto's patients.

For 99 percent of Hashimoto's patients this dietary step is the first step that must be taken, and that's a step that you can do all on your own, not knowing anything else about your problem or how the immune system has malfunctioned.

Once a Hashimoto's patient has made initial dietary changes then diagnostic steps can be taken to determine all the other immune triggers and pathways that all not functioning properly.

What sort of other things does a Hashimoto's patient need to uncover to get on the fast track to recovery?
What are the every sources of inflammation that you are unaware of but could eliminate if discovered?What is the extent of the damage to the GI tract from the inflammation?What is the ORDER of steps that must be taken to move from point A to point B?

The traditional model simply looks at some labs and concludes, "these numbers are off, let's give you some Synthroid and let those numbers come back into the normal range."

A lot of the time, on paper, the lab ranges are going to come back into the normal range, but that doesn't mean that you feel and function good. If those numbers look good and you feel horrible, what have you accomplished?

In all reality, you haven't accomplished much. They are just manipulating numbers on paper.

Not that you don't need that part of the treatment, but obviously it's not addressing the real issue.

So just to recap, if you've started a gluten-free diet, it really needs to be 100 percent gluten-free diet, or it's not a gluten-free diet at all, and you're not going to get any benefit from it.

Two, if you've had this problem for a long time and you're just making that change, it may take a while before you see any benefit from it. There's the possibility that you may start to see changes within the first week, but for other people there's so much damage done as a result that it could take months, and you just have to know that that it is something that has to be done.

The Boydston Institute, founded by Dr. Robert Boydston DC, specializes in the comprehensive, all natural treatment of Hashimoto's and other chronic autoimmune diseases. His Adrenal Fatigue Recovery Program is sought by patients all over the country.

To learn more about the Boydston Institute visit: http://www.drboydston.com/thyroid.html

Dr. Robert Boydston is a Board Certified Doctor of Chiropractic, and a national leader in Natural Thyroid and Autoimmune Treatment. He is also the author of the Hashimoto's Recovery Report that is available as a free download on his website.

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Treatment Methods Options, Root Cause and Indicators of Hashimoto's Thyroiditis Symptoms

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Hashimoto's Thyroiditis symptoms: Precisely what is it?

The most regularly occurring thyroid ailment in the Country is Hashimoto's thyroiditis which is in addition, regarded as autoimmune or persistent lymphocytic thyroiditis. It is usually an inherited affliction which impacts on close to 16 million US citizens and is about six times more common in women than in men of all ages. The capacity of thyroid cells to create thyroid hormone is affected by the body's own immune system which is a key characteristic of Hashimoto's thyroiditis. Hypothyroidism will happen if the amount of thyroid hormone which can be created is not sufficient for the body's requirements. An actual Goiter may well form in a number of sufferers when the thyroid gland is bigger.

Hashimoto's thyroiditis: Precisely what are the indicators?

A good number of sufferers with Hashimoto's thyroiditis could have simply no signs for many years, and the medical diagnosis is made accidentally when an enlarged thyroid gland or irregular blood tests are identified as part of a routine assessment. Decreased levels of thyroid hormone and pressure effects in the neck due to the actual goiter are usually the first signs or symptoms to manifest. Edema in the lower front of the neck which often is painless may be the first indicator of the actual disorder This may well eventually lead to a pressure sensation within the throat and the enlargement may come to be easily apparent. Respiratory issues may well take place in addition to issues with swallowing if left without treatment.

Hashimoto's thyroiditis: What precisely is the trigger?

Hashimoto's thyroiditis comes from a malfunction within the immune mechanism. Whilst operating adequately, the immune system is intended to safeguard the body against invaders, like as harmful bacteria, microbes, and various other foreign compounds. Antibodies are manufactured by the body's defence mechanism that in people with Hashimoto's thyroiditis indicates that the immune system views the ordinary thyroid cells as unknown tissues and it might then damage most of these cells. Regardless of the fact numerous environmental elements have been analyzed, none have been positively verified to be the actual trigger of Hashimoto's thyroiditis.

Hashimoto's thyroiditis: Precisely how is it determined?

Research laboratory tests, physical signs and symptoms and a physical evaluation can typically detect the indications of Hashimoto's thyroiditis if conducted by a health practitioner qualified in the medical diagnosis and treatment methods of thyroid disorders which can easily recognize a goiter and can identify hypothyroidism signs.

Hashimoto's thyroiditis: Treatment solution choices?

With regards to sufferers with thyroid enlargement (goiter) or hypothyroidism, thyroid hormone treatment is obviously needed, given that adequate dose corrects virtually any signs and symptoms due to thyroid hormone deficiency and will certainly help reduce the goiter's proportions. Medication and therapy consists of consuming a single daily pill of levothyroxine. Much older sufferers that might have underlying coronary heart disease are typically started off with a lower dose and steadily increased, whereas younger healthy and fit sufferers could be started out on full hormone substitute dosages right away. Thyroid hormone behaves fairly slowly within the human body; consequently it may possibly take quite a few months after treatment is actually started out to notice improvement in signs and symptoms or goiter shrinking. Medicines dose might have to be regulated every now and then and the treatment is commonly for a person's entire life on account of Hashimoto's thyroiditis being generally permanent and progressive in characteristics. Very small variations in thyroid hormone amounts are recognized by the human body that is very acutely sensitive to this and optimal modification of medication is typically based on laboratory tests rather than thyroiditis symptoms.

A competent Health professional in thyroiditis symptoms and treatment methods of this kind of health problem needs to manage Hashimoto's thyroiditis accurately.

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What If Hashimoto's Is Ignored?

Hashimoto's disease is a medical condition where one's immune system attacks the thyroid gland. This results in thyroid gland inflammation, which causes damage and often leads to hypothyroidism or an underactive thyroid gland.

This medical condition affects both men and women alike of any age including children but more common in the middle-aged women.

The hard part about this disease is that there are no unique signs and symptoms that will point the disease right away. This condition progresses slowly over the years until there is a sudden drop in the thyroid levels. This means there is already a chronic damage in the thyroid.

Being the most common cause of hypothyroidism, their signs and symptoms are almost the same. Here are some of the signs and symptoms that should never be ignored:

Increased fatigue, sleepiness, and sluggishnessDepressionIncreased sensitivity to coldUnexplained weight gainPale and dry skinDry, coarse hairHair falling outElevated cholesterol levelHoarse voiceDecreased concentrationMuscle crampsMenorrhagia or prolonged or excessive menstrual bleedingPuffiness of the face especially around the eyes.

As soon as one notices some of these symptoms, one should already consult a doctor. Hashimoto's thyroiditis is treatable. Without treatment, symptoms may slowly become more severe that might lead to goiter or an enlarged thyroid gland.

What Causes Hashimoto's Disease

There is still no definite medical answer as to why one's immune system would attack its own thyroid gland. Doctors and researchers think it can be some type or bacteria triggering such response from the thyroid.

Hypothyroidism is the most known and common cause of Hashimoto's disease. There are several causes of hypothyroidism. It could be as simple as not enough iodine intake or could be a result of being treated with hyperthyroidism as the body's system tries to bounce back.

The Complications From Hashimoto's Disease

Every disease left untreated will seriously lead to a number of complications. It is always best to catch medical conditions at an early stage. This gives higher chances of responding to treatment, better prognosis, and a higher percentage for recovery.

If Hashimoto's disease remains untreated for a long period of time, here are just some of the complications that might arise:

Goiter - The most common complication arising from Hashimoto's disease. A condition where enough damage has been made to the thyroid gland making it severely enlarged.Heart Problems - Because of the elevation in cholesterol levels in a person with Hashimoto's disease or with hypothyroidism, this increases the chance for heart diseases.Mental Health Issues - As depression is one of the major symptoms in this ailment, it can grow more severe as time goes by it is untreated. This can lead to complications with sexual desire both for men and women.Myxedema - This most severe form of hypothyroidism can be a life-threatening condition.Birth Defects - This is why pregnant women are checked for thyroid hormone imbalances.

Dr. Marc Ott, D.C. opened what is today Integrative Physical Medicine of Orlando, where he has been making changes in peoples lives by helping them overcome and in many cases reverse thyroid dysfunction.

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Learn Why Hashimoto's Disease Turns Your Body on Itself

Hashimoto's thyroiditis is also known as Hashimoto's disease. It is the first auto immune disease discovered. Hashimoto's thyroiditis affects the thyroid gland and its production of the thyroid hormone.

The thyroid gland is in control of protein production, regulation of the metabolism, and distribution of energy use for various processes in the body. This disease affects the body's normal functions related to the tasks of the thyroid gland.

People with Hashimoto's have inflamed thyroid glands. Being an auto immune disease, the body attacks the gland and damages the said gland. Two types of antibodies are responsible for inflaming the thyroid gland; Thyroid Peroxidase Antibodies (TPO) and Thyroglobulin Antibodies. They attack the thyroid and damage its epithelial cells. A blood test can determine whether a person has Hashimoto's thyroiditis.

Symptoms include:

Weight gain due to imbalance of metabolismIntolerance to the coldDry hair that could eventually lead to hair falling outLack of focus and energyConstipationSwelling of the legs

Common Causes for Hashimoto's Thyroiditis

When the thyroid gland is not in its normal condition, production of the thyroid hormone is affected. The thyroid can either produce too much thyroid hormone (hyperthyroiditis) or be under active and not produce the enough hormones needed (hypothyroidism).

Hypothyroidism is most commonly caused by Hashimoto's thyroiditis. Thus, the symptoms of an individual with Hashimoto's thyroiditis are very similar to those of one with hypothyroidism. Sometimes, Hashimoto's disease is misdiagnosed as chronic fatigue syndrome, or even depression.

Genetically, Hashimoto's can be present and common among family members. This auto immune disease is related to the HLA-DR5 gene and the CTLA-4 gene. There are also environmental factors that can lead to Hashimoto's disease.

Too much iodine intake and exposure to tobacco or smoke from cigarettes can lead to this as well. People with a family history of Hashimoto's should avoid such environmental factors.

What Can Be Done?

Individuals with Hashimoto's can experience bursts of hypothyroidism. Consistently getting checked by a doctor for the rate of thyroid hormones produced or needed is advised. In some severe cases where the thyroid gland is too damaged or inflamed, thyroid hormone replacement may be needed. This will balance the thyroid hormones in the body. Undergoing thyroid hormone therapy is one of the leading solutions for thyroid problems.

Leaving the condition untreated may lead to body malfunctions like muscle failure which can lead to heart failure. In children, growth may slow down because of the thyroid gland's abnormal condition that affects the processes needed for proper maturation.

Dr. Gerry Hinley, D.C. believes Chiropractic's philosophy that teaches a person could heal from within, without drugs, surgery or their harmful side effects. He opened Integrative Physical Medicine of Chicago, where he has been making changes in peoples lives by helping them overcome and in many cases reverse thyroid dysfunction.

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How Is Hashimoto's Thyroiditis Treated?

Hashimoto's disease, also known as Hashimoto's thyroiditis is an auto immune disease that causes inflammation of the thyroid gland. The thyroid gland which is part of the body's endocrine system is in charge of regulating the body's energy use, production of proteins, and regulation of the body's metabolism. This gland produces the thyroid hormone which is important for the body's proper growth and development.

Hashimoto's disease is also known as chronic lymphocytic thyroiditis. When the body has this auto immune disease, antibodies are made to attack the thyroid gland as if it were a foreign matter which is bad for the body. This damages the gland and affects the production of the thyroid hormone.

This auto immune disease is the leading cause of hypothyroidism where the thyroid fails to produce the proper amount of thyroid hormone that the body needs. Individuals who have Hashimoto's thyroiditis may experience symptoms similar to hypothyroidism, but in times, they may have bouts of hyperthyroidism as well where the inflamed thyroid produces too much of the thyroid hormone.

Hashimoto's thyroiditis is more common in women and can show up after pregnancy. To detect whether a person has Hashimoto's disease, a blood workup is needed to check for the antibody levels in the blood. That simple test can help provide a diagnosis for the condition and can help determine which treatment would work best.

People with Hashimoto's experience symptoms very similar to those of hypothyroidism. These are: depression, weight gain, brittle hair causing hair falling out, constipation, cramps, and swelling of the legs among other symptoms. If one suspects himself having this disease, a consult with the doctor is advised.

Treatments for Hashimoto's thyroiditis include: hormone replacement therapy, or intake of prescribed medications. In hormone replacement therapy, synthetic hormones that can help regulate the production of the thyroid hormone are given to patients with Hashimoto's. When the gland is permanently damaged, hormone replacement therapy may be needed for life.

Medications can include iodine supplements to help balance out the needed levels of iodine for proper levels of thyroid hormone production. The thyroid needs iodine to produce the thyroid hormone, and insufficient amounts can cause problems for the gland.

When tremendous damage has occurred, the gland may have difficulty converting the iodine into its needed form and that is where medications come in. Always remember though, that proper diagnosis of Hashimoto's disease is needed before any of the treatments for it is used.

Dr. Jonathan Berns, D.C. helps people everyday in the Tampa, Florida area overcome the very misunderstood and often mistreated conditions caused from dysfunctional thyroids. Visit Tampa Thyroid Program at Integrative Physical Medicine of Tampa to learn more about thyroid management.

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Hashimoto's Thyroiditis Is No Big Deal - All Low Thyroid Patients Have It

Now before you smash the computer screen, hear me out. I just had another patient come in and tell me that her doctor had said that to her.

If you are suffering with any of the symptoms of Hashimoto's, you know that it is a BIG DEAL.
Some of the symptoms of Hashimoto's include:
• hair loss
• hair thinning
• constipation
• fatigue
• cold hands and feet
• sleep excessively to function
• brain fog, slow thinking
• dry skin, flaky skin
• occasional HYPERthyroid symptoms

In America the number one cause for low thyroid is an autoimmune condition called Hashimoto's Thyroiditis.

This means that the number one cause for low thyroid n America is an autoimmune attack. Here are some examples of other autoimmune conditions: MS, rheumatoid arthritis, Lupus.

An autoimmune condition means your immune system has turned on you and is targeting your thyroid...and is killing it.... and that's what's causing you to have low thyroid symptoms. Taking thyroid hormones will NOT do anything for this attack. You will continue to lose more and more of your thyroid. The standard of care for that is giving you thyroid hormones. I think you probably understand now that this not a thyroid hormone problem. That's not the battle. The battle is an immune system battle; an autoimmune battle.

Here is a good way to think about the autoimmune attack on the body. It would be like coming into my office in shorts. You bring along your dog or cat. And it is just starts biting and scratching your legs, just really attacking you. I look at you and say "Gee, you have a leg problem. Here are some band-aids. Take these and put them on your legs. Here is a script of band-aids for the rest of your life for that leg problem. You may need more or less of them as you go through life. If I told you this you would probably look at me like I had two heads. It wouldn't make any sense. The animal attacking your legs is the problem, not the legs. It is the same thing with Hashimoto's. The immune system attacking the thyroid is the problem, not the thyroid.

What most doctors are going to do for Hashimoto's is monitor your TSH or thyroid stimulating hormone level. They're going to try to make it stay within a certain numerical range, but that's going to fluctuate all over the place and it's not really getting to the problem.

The immune system will NOT only attack the thyroid, but it will start attacking the cells in the lining of your stomach that help you to be able to absorb B-12. When this happens you'll end up getting pernicious anemia. Since 80% of neurotransmitters are created in the stomach, you can also get brain fog, memory loss, and other neurological symptoms.

The brain is also targeted by the immune system. It likes to attack the cerebellum. You can end up having vertigo, dizziness, and balance problems.
The immune system also attacks your pancreas and can make you start having diabetic symptoms, insulin problems, and adrenal issues.

Since every cell in the body has a thyroid receptor site, any part of your body can be attacked when the immune system no longer can tell what is friend and what it foe.
When most patients suffering from low thyroid symptoms learn about the autoimmune attack on the body, it makes perfect sense to them. It makes sense because that is how they feel. Like their body is being attacked.

Focusing the clinical management on slowing and modulating the autoimmune attack is crucial in Hashimoto's Disease. How can you have a properly functioning thyroid if the body is continually attacking and killing it?

A functional approach to naturally supporting and modulating the immune system in autoimmune cases is the best way to help the body slow down or stop the attack on itself. Natural management of autoimmune conditions is complex. Support that is specific to the individual immune system is essential if you truly want to help Hashimoto's Disease.

You have to find out how their immune system has shifted. Our immune systems have two parts: TH-1 and a TH-2. They are supposed to be balanced. If they are not, then we have a problem.

You have to find out which one of those has become abnormally dominant and why.

Is it because of an antigen? Something that the immune system has been trying to kill for so long that it's increased its immune attack on this antigen and then it flipped the scales and now we have an autoimmune condition.

Or has the immune system become imbalanced because of dysregulation. Hormonal surges can do this. Stress can do this. Blood sugar problems. Inflammation can do this.

So if you know someone that's suffering with Hashimoto's, or with low thyroid, and they don't feel any better even with thyroid medication, it is time to get them this information. It's time to find someone who can investigate this further.

There are millions of you out there right now that have this problem and you don't know it.
The reason why you still have thyroid symptoms, even though you're taking medication, is likely because you have an autoimmune condition.

And yes, it is A VERY BIG DEAL.

Dr. Chris Heimlich is a Board Certified Chiropractic Neurologist and treats people from around the world. You can request his free report that explains why 90% of people diagnosed with hypothyroidis will never feel normal with thyroid hormone replacement alone at: http://scottsdalethyroiddoctor.com/

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