Hypothyroidism is the condition in which, your thyroid gland doesn’t produce enough thyroid hormone. The deficiency of thyroid hormones can affect the normal functions of our body such as heart rate, body temperature and all aspects of metabolism. Hypothyroidism is more prevalent in older women.

Let’s have a look on thyroid gland

Thyroid is a butterfly- shaped gland, that is located in the lower front region of the neck, below Adam’s apple along the front of wind pipe. It has two sided lobes, connected by a bridge called Isthmus in middle. When the thyroid gland is of normal size, you can’t feel the size. When there is a change, you can feel the abnormalities.

Thyroid gland with a tumor

What causes hypothyroidism?

When your thyroid gland doesn’t produce enough hormones, the balance of chemical reactions in your body get disrupted.

  • The most common cause of hypothyroidism is an autoimmune disorder known as Hashimoto’s thyroiditis. This is the case where your immune system produces antibodies that damages your own tissues.
  • Due to congenital disease, some babies are born with a defective thyroid gland or no thyroid gland at all. This is the reason in most of the stage, new born require thyroid screening.
  • During the time of pregnancy, women develop hypothyroidism. Postpartum hypothyroidism is widely occurring because they produce antibodies to their own thyroid gland. Untreated hypothyroidism increases the risk of miscarriage, premature delivery
  • Iodine deficiency is also the main reason for hypothyroidism. Very little iodine can lead to hypothyroidism and too much iodine can also worsen hypothyroidism.

Symptoms of hypothyroidism

  • Fatigue
  • Constipation
  • Weight gain          
  • Puffy face
  • Thinning hair
  • Depression
  • Enlarged thyroid gland(goitre)
hypothyroidism
Thyroid gland

Complications

Untreated hypothyroidism can lead to number of health problems. Goitre is a condition where constant stimulation of thyroid to release more hormones which can cause the gland to become larger in size. It is also associated with an increased risk of heart disease and heart failure because of high level of LDL cholesterol. It also affects our mental health, depression may occur early in hypothyroidism and become more severe over time.

Diagnosis

There are a lot of methods which are used in the process of diagnosing hypothyroidism. A couple of them are,

  • Blood tests – that measure thyroxine and thyroid stimulating hormones is one modality of diagnosis. Amount of TSH is important because it’s the hormone that signals your thyroid gland to produce more thyroxine
  • Thyroid scans – during this test, you will have a radioactive isotope injected into the vein on the inside of your elbow, a special camera produces an image of your thyroid gland.
Blood test

Treatment

The treatment methods are given by,

  • Standard treatment of hypothyroidism involves daily use of the synthetic thyroid hormone levothyroxine . This is oral medication that restore adequate hormone levels , which reduces the signs and symptoms of hypothyroidism.
  • Do proper and regular exercises that makes the body healthier and fit
  • Follow proper diet, avoid excess consumption of millets, highly processed food, beverages like coffee , tea. Rather take balanced and controlled diet like cruciferous vegetables and fruits
  • Have a regular check up, to know about your hormone levels and intake proper medication which your physician prescribes you.

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