Thyroid problems are caused by the over production or deficiency in the production of hormones such as thyroxine secreted by the thyroid glands. The main function of these hormones is to regulate metabolism and the low
thyroid symptoms will be those related to a slow metabolism. Hypothyroidism or the deficiency of these hormones is the most common disease condition, which is prevalent mostly in women. It is estimated that around 10% of Americans suffer from thyroid disease, though diagnosis is mostly ignored. Hypothyroidism progresses slowly and the early
thyroid symptoms are vague and minor that they escape diagnosis. In some cases psychological disturbances are also noticed where clarity of thought and intelligence deteriorates along with organic psychosis, memory loss and retardation of faculties, which take most of the hypothyroid patients to a psychiatrist’s clinic at first.
Hypothyroidism is mostly caused by the thyroid gland inflammation, which makes it incompetent in secreting adequate hormones.
Thyroid gland failure is caused by autoimmune thyroiditis, which is caused by the body’s own immune system of the patient. Another cause could be radiation treatments against cancer or acne or exposure to radiation. If the thyroid cells fall short in meeting the hormone requirements of the body, hypothyroidism would be the result. Many
thyroid conditions such as goiter can be effectively treated with radioactive iodine therapy, where a part of the gland is destroyed to prevent the spread of the disease and to avoid the risk of over production of hormones. However in many cases this treatment would leave the gland useless and there is a risk of most of the cells getting damaged during therapy.
Some of the low
thyroid symptoms include fatigue, head aches, dry skin, heat or cold intolerance, depression, fluid retention, unhealthy nails, hives, allergies, acne, weight gain, asthma, irritable bowel syndrome, constipation, hives, carpal tunnel syndrome, irritability, decreased memory, muscle/joint pain, heart palpitations, difficulty in swallowing, depression and low sex drive among others. The side effects of low
thyroid could be serious because with every degree of body temperature drop, it is estimated that the base metabolism shows a staggering 6% reduction, which explains the depression and fatigue in low thyroid patients.
Thyroid cancer is more prevalent in people over 30 years of age. Women are more at risk to contract
thyroid disease. Thyroid cancer can be caused due to radiation exposure or therapy besides other reasons. People with a marked family history are more prone to thyroid cancer attacks. The common types of thyroid cancer are papillary carcinoma and follicular carcinoma. Remember that both these types are fully curable if treated in time. In the early stages, thyroid cancer does not set off any notable
symptoms but as the cancer spreads a lump appears in the neck region which can be easily felt by the patient. In the advanced stages thyroid cancer can result in difficulty in swallowing, enlarged lymph nodes in the neck area and pain, breathing difficulty and hoarseness of voice. Very often surgery is recommended to remove the lump.
