Causes of an Underactive Thyroid

An underactive thyroid gland affects many people across the globe. The condition is formed when the thyroid gland stops producing enough of the hormone thyroxine. Thyroxine is critical in the regulation of metabolism, the body’s ability to produce energy from food. Reduced metabolism can see a slowing of many different body functions, causing debilitating symptoms of the condition for the patient. Here we focus in on the causes of the condition and then provide a quick overview of the symptoms, diagnosis, and treatment of an underactive thyroid gland.

Causes

The clear majority of cases of an underactive thyroid gland are due to damage inflicted on the thyroid gland. This is normally because of the immune system, which is trying to fight infection, mistakenly attacking the thyroid gland and damaging it beyond repair. This makes the gland unable to produce the correct amount of hormones required. Damage to the thyroid can also occur because of previous treatment for thyroid cancer of an overactive thyroid gland. This can be thanks to surgery or chemotherapy. Certain medications for different conditions have also been linked to causing an underactive thyroid – speak to a medical professional about your medication and any possible link to thyroid complications.

A lack of iodine in the diet can lead to an underactive thyroid; although this is rare in the U.S. Babies in the womb can develop congenital hypothyroidism when the thyroid doesn’t form properly. The last major cause of an underactive thyroid is issues with the pituitary gland that regulates the thyroid gland.

Symptoms

The most common symptoms of an underactive thyroid gland are tiredness, feelings of depression and weight gain. However, there are a number of other symptoms that include: constipation; sensitivity to cold; muscle cramps and aches; memory loss in the elderly; heavy or irregular periods; early puberty in teenagers; carpal tunnel syndrome; growth and development issues in children; and dry, scaly skin.

There are other symptoms that appear at a later stage of having an underactive thyroid gland, such as hearing loss and anaemia, but typically the condition will have been diagnosed long before these appear.

Diagnosis

The only true diagnosis for an underactive thyroid gland is through a thyroid function test. This procedure takes a sample of your blood and analyses the level of the hormone thyroxine found within. Lower levels of thyroxine show an underactive thyroid gland. If you feel you are showing symptoms of an underactive thyroid gland, then you should seek out a medical professional to undertake this procedure.

Treatment

Daily hormone pills must be taken for life to make up for the missing hormones that the thyroid gland should be producing. These pills have no side effects when taken in the correct dosage and allow patients with an underactive thyroid gland to live a happy and healthy life. If you wish to get access to hormone pills on the U.S market but live elsewhere, try https://internationalpharmacy.com/products/nature-throid-tabs-thyroid-usp.