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Is Their A Connection Between Weight Gain And Underactive Thyroid
Underactive Thyroid also known as hypothyroidism causes slowing down of physical activities mainly due to deficient thyroid hormones. Let us first understand what is thyroid before going into the details and symptoms due to its deficiency. Thyroid is a gland which is positioned in the front of the neck.
Why is this gland important and what are its functions? Thyroid gland produces hormones which help in controlling a number of activities and organs in the body. The primary function of these hormones is in metabolic rate of the body.
It decides how fast can a person metabolize food and nutrients? It also controls the body temperature and bowel. The thyroxin hormone produced by the thyroid gland is carried in the body in the blood stream. A number of cells and tissues of our body need these hormones for proper operation.
What is underactive thyroid and symptoms associated with it?
Underperforming thyroid causes a condition known as hypothyroidism. This condition causes symptoms like tiredness, feeling of weakness, difficulty in concentrating, difficulty in memorizing things, constipation, sudden gain of weight, body aches, feeling of depression, dryness of skin, and dull hair. These symptoms can appear all of a sudden and are very different as compared to an overactive thyroid.
Causes of Hypothyroidism
Autoimmune diseases are one of the main causes of this condition, where in the body produces antibodies which attack the thyroid gland. Different antibodies cause different types of thyroid disease. This condition is common among women and tends to run in families. More and more women are being affected by this disease.
Thyroid and weight gain
The main purpose of the thyroid gland is to regulate the metabolism of the body. If the thyroid hormones do not function as is required it can cause weight gain or weight loss. An underperforming thyroid gland will not be able to regulate the body’s metabolism rate thereby causing weight problems. You can become overweight even after consuming very little food.
Metabolism slows down drastically, which is one of the main culprits for causing increase in weight. Without proper treatment hypothyroidism cannot be controlled. Thyroid issues can be treated with the help of hormone treatments. Losing of weight cannot be possible in this condition due to the slow metabolism rate. Thyroid affects a lot of people and changes the quality of their lives. With proper thyroid testing techniques one can solve this issue to a large extent and keep control over the disease.
Diagnosis
Hypothyroidism can be diagnosed with a blood test. Testing of thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) and thyroxin is done to diagnose the condition. The TSH hormone is produced in the pituitary gland. This gland stimulates the thyroid gland to produce the thyroxin hormone. If the levels of thyroxin are less in the body the pituitary gland releases more TSH hormone, which helps the thyroid to produce more thyroxin hormone. The more the levels of TSH mean the thyroid gland is underactive and not producing sufficient thyroxin. Lesser the amount of thyroxin confirms hypothyroidism.
Treatment
Treatment for underactive thyroid is to take thyroxin tablets every day. This tablet replaces the deficient thyroxin in your body. Patients start feeling better soon after a few days of treatment. Blood test is done every few months to check the levels of thyroxin so that your doctor can adjust the dosage. Most patients will need treatment for lifetime. There are no known side effects of these hormone tablets. They are safe to consume but only after consulting your doctor. Inclusion of iodine rich foods, yoghurt, eggs, milk and fruits like strawberries helps in normal functioning of the thyroid. Consuming selenium rich foods like fish and nuts also helps.
With the help of proper hormone testing one can get relief from weight gain. Weight loss becomes difficult without proper functioning of the thyroid gland. Making a list of food you eat for a week will help one in controlling weight. Thyroxin treatment will improve the symptoms and make you feel better.
- Certain weight loss products can also be considered to curtail weight gain caused by thyroid. One of this products is Proactol Plus you can check our review if you follow the link . These products should be used along with the regular hormone tablets and only after consulting your doctor. Hypothyroidism can be controlled by testing and proper diagnosis along with hormone treatments
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