Mom’s Blog

Thyroid is a small pear shaped endocrinal gland that secretes hormones. These hormones maintain the heart rate, body temperature and energy levels. They also tend to lower the level of calcium in blood plasma. A healthy thyroid is not palpable. It can be felt only when it is swollen due to iodine deficiency.

Diseases associated with thyroid dysfunction can be generally classified as under:

* Hypothyroidism- under active thyroid
* Hyperthyroidism- overactive thyroid
* Anatomical problems- Goiter
* Tumors- cancer and adenoma

Conventional thyroid medications that treat thyroid dysfunction involve synthetic hormones, radioactive iodine treatment, surgical incisions and other symptomatic treatments. Like all conventional drugs these treatment options have serious side affects that require regular monitoring and control.

Some of the treatments used in conventional medicine can create major side effects. Radiation that was once considered effective in treating acne, inflammation and infection of the tonsils, thymus and lymph nodes had to be discontinued due to its side effects. In fact it was proven that the treatment caused dangerous side effects like thyroid cancer.

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Posted on June 15th, 2007 by Dee
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One of the most widely held myths about natural foods is that they are always safe in any quantity and in all conditions. This is however not true. Firstly, excess of anything is bad whether it be anger, love, humility or food. Secondly, some natural products can be harmful in certain specific conditions.

Soy and soy products like soy oil, tofu, and soy milk have become very popular based on the positive support provided by health magazines. Soy is touted as a substitute for estrogen for women, as an inhibitor of breast cancer and as a healthier choice. It is also a source of low-fat protein as compared to meats and poultry. It is yet to be known whether all this information is based on scientific analysis or whether it is all a marketing gimmick to promote business.

Soy is possibly the most highly proteinaceous vegetable crop known. But it can prove to be detrimental to thyroid functioning. Thyroid, a small pear shaped gland at the base of the neck, secretes crucial hormones that are responsible for maintaining the rate of many body functions like body temperature, heart rate. It also helps in keeping the calcium levels in blood plasma in check and maintaining a healthy level of energy.

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Posted on June 13th, 2007 by Dee
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When we see symptoms like cold hands and feet, low body temperature, sensitivity to cold, a feeling of always being chilled, headaches, sleeplessness, coarse skin, swollen eyes, loss of hair, fragile nails, joint aches, constipation, mental tedium, fatigue, repeated infections, croaky voice, ringing in the ears, dizziness, loss of libido, or uncontrollable weight gain, we hardly associate them with any thyroid dysfunction.

This, above all is the main reason behind thyroid diseases like hypothyroidism being amongst the most under diagnosed diseases. There are convincing indications that thyroid diseases are assuming alarming proportions in lot many countries without people being aware of it. The worst part is that the laboratory blood tests too lead to confusion, as even normal levels of hormone balance are not definite indications of absence of thyroid dysfunction.

There is usually a hidden fear that makes a majority of people avoid clinical investigation since they do not want to undergo hormonal thyroid medications. The irony is that the thyroid treatmentcan be as simple as a regulated change in diet. Although the matter needs more research, it is generally accepted that diet plays a significant role in thyroid health.

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Posted on March 19th, 2007 by Dee
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Graves’ disease, known as Graves-Basedow disease in Europe, is caused by an antibody-mediated autoimmune reaction and is characterized by goiter, exophthalmos, and hyperthyroidism. These characteristics are specific and conditions that can be used to detect the possibility of the presence of the Graves’ disease.

1. Goiter - a swelling in the neck just below the Adam’s apple
2. Exophthalmos - the protuberance of one or both eyes accompanied by fatigue, weight loss and other symptoms of hyperthyroidism.
3. Hyperthyroidism - an overproduction of thyroid hormones, commonly known as T4 and T3.

Graves’ disease is the most common cause of goiter and the most prominent visible symptom is that of an enlarged thyroid. A small goiter is not visible to the naked eye and can be established only with the aid of X-Ray or an ultrasound examination.

Hyperthyroidism, an over active thyroid, is a relatively lesser cause for Graves’ disease and surveys and researches reveal that presence of this disease is higher among women as compared to men; the ratio being 8:1. It occurs mainly between the age of 30 and 50 but it has been known to affect adolescents, pregnant women, menopausal women and older women too. Due to a marked familial prevalence, there are speculations regarding it being triggered by a genetic disorder but this hypothesis have not been confirmed and established with a reasonable degree of certainty.

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Posted on March 9th, 2007 by Dee
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