Thyroid: Master of healthy metabolism

Thyroid:  Master of healthy metabolism

From Alternatives Newsletter May 2006

From its strategic location at the front of the neck, the thyroid produces hormones that help control the entire body’s metabolism.  Its work is an important part of keeping the body in balance.  But still, it’s estimated that about half of the 27 million Americans who have thyroid disease go undiagnosed partly, perhaps, because the symptoms of thyroid disease can be so elusive, according to Dr. Patricia Ryan.
Those symptoms may include cold extremities, hair loss, dry skin, constipation, irregular menses, poor digestion, joint aches, fatigue, multiple infections, weight gain and loss of lateral eyebrows, to name a few.  “Thyroid disease occurs in about one of eight people,” Dr. Ryan said, “and women seem to be at the greatest risk.  We’re not sure why it seems to be so prevalent.”
The thyroid is the only organ in the body capable of absorbing iodine. The thyroid takes in iodine, obtained through food, iodized salt, or supplements, and combines it with the amino acid tyrosine.  The thyroid then converts the iodine/tyrosine into the hormones T3 and T4.  The "3" and the "4" represent the number of iodine molecules in each thyroid hormone molecule, according to Dr. Ryan.
“Physicians often screen for thyroid disease by using a lab test called the TSH,” Dr. Ryan said.  “I actually use both TSH and T3 tests, which provide more in-depth information to help determine thyroid function.  Many people have symptoms of low thyroid, but their physicians tell them their lab is normal,” Dr. Ryan said.  “Lab parameters were set to detect disease states, not the state of optimal functioning.
“Even if the lab tests are normal, there may be some thyroid dysfunction.  So a free T3 lab test may sort this out for some patients.  If tests show a borderline problem, we can recommend dietary and supplement changes that can support thyroid function, including tests that help determine the iodine level in the body.”

Thyroid’s Baffling Symptoms

Thirty-three-year-old AnneMarie Haferbier of Omaha was baffled by a string of unusual symptoms that kept her doctors guessing as well.  She was constantly tired, had dry skin and was consistently losing her voice.  Some of her symptoms mirrored asthma or allergies, and she’d been treated for that for 10 years.  When she gained 25 pounds in one year, her doctor chastised her for poor eating habits, even though she hadn’t changed her diet.

“I went to my doctor and demanded a battery of tests,” she said.  “Initially, she had told me my symptoms had nothing to do with thyroid disease.”  The tests results revealed otherwise.  AnneMarie had thyroid disease.  What’s more, she didn’t have asthma, and probably never did.

So her doctor put her on Synthroid – a conventional thyroid medication.  “It helped immediately,” AnneMarie said, “but I found that after a couple of months my system would go through a cycle where I would feel great and then go downhill.” 

Friends at work told AnneMarie about Dr. Patricia Ryan.  She met with Dr. Ryan, who recommended Armour^® Thyroid, a natural thyroid replacement for underactive or nonfunctioning thyroid.  She has followed that regimen, along with herbs and vitamins prescribed by Dr. Ryan, for about four months.

“I feel very good now.  What I like about Dr. Ryan is that she’s knowledgeable about well-documented symptoms that mainstream medicine doesn’t always acknowledge.  She validates what you know to be true.  It’s great also knowing that she has training in conventional as well as alternative medicine.”

For more information about thyroid disease, contact Alternatives: A Center for Conscious Health.