How Thyroid Problems Affect Your Health + How to Promote A Healthy Thyroid

The thyroid gland is quite an important part of your body --it plays a role in all its major functioning. When your thyroid isn't performing well, many other areas of your health are negatively affected.

Photo credit: Nikki Kinkaid

Take a look at how thyroid problems affect other areas of your health, then read on to learn how you can improve the health of this important gland.

1. Sex drive
The health of your thyroid gland (or lack thereof) plays a role in your sex drive.

A study in the 2005 Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism showed a connection between some thyroid conditions (such as hypothyroidism and hyperthyroidism) and sexual problems like low sex drive and erectile dysfunction in men. 

The good news: The sexual issues experienced (by the men in the study) were found to have improved after they received treatment for their thyroid issues.

According to an article on WebMD, a nurse practitioner, Lynn Moyer, has said that female patients often report an improvement in sex drive after being treated for a thyroid issue.

2. Anxiety 
Hyperthyroidism (overactive thyroid) has been linked to anxiety.

3. Depression 
Hypothyroidism (underactive thyroid) has been linked to depression.


4. Weight
Many people report weight problems (both weight gain and excessive weight loss) as a common problem with thyroid disorders.


5. Reproductive health
Menstrual irregularities, hormone imbalances, and fertility problems are some of the most common issues for women with thyroid disorders. 

6. Heart health
A thyroid that doesn't function properly can lead to serious heart problems like cardiovascular disease and heart failure. For example, hyperthyroidism can cause an increased heart rate, increasing the amount of blood pumped to your heart, which can lead to heart failure. Hypothyroidism, on the other hand, can increase cholesterol, which causes heart complications.
 

7.  Alzheimer's
Women whose thyroid hormone levels were either too high or too low were shown to have a significantly higher risk of developing Alzheimer's disease. Interestingly enough, the study did not find the same risks for men.





                                      Remedies for A Healthy Thyroid:
You can start boosting the health of your thyroid gland right at home. With the right nutrition, you may even be able to get your thyroid problems under control.

Photo credit: Keith Davenport

(*Disclaimer: Of course you should consult with a trustworthy healthcare professional before you do anything. This is not advice. Do not go and swallow anything and then say Healthy-Happy-Wholesome told you to. This information is simply shared information for you to peruse at your own risk... Blah, blah, blah. Just please use the information responsibly and do not do anything without a trusted health professional's clearance.*)

Now that that's out of the way...

1. Maca Root Powder
A lot of folks attest to maca's powerful health benefits, saying it rejuvenates their energy and vitality, restores sex drive, and even improves mood disorders.

More noteably, maca root has also been said to support a healthy thyroid by balancing hormones. Testimonies from maca users can be found online. Some of them have even had blood tests taken before and after taking maca to note the improvements in their thyroid levels.


2. Essential Fatty Acids
EFA's like omega-3 and omega-6 are needed in order for your thyroid to function and be healthy. Chia seeds and flax seeds (or a teaspoon of flax seed oil daily) are one way to amp up your omega 3-fatty-acid intake. 

3. Amino Acids
Amino acids, like L-tyrosine, phenylalanine, tryptophan, and arginine, have a significant impact on your thyroid health. For example, not getting enough tyrosine can be enough to create hypothyroidism.

Since an overactive or underactive thyroid has been linked to anxiety and depression, it may be of interest to know that "amino acid therapy" has proved useful in some cases.

Common daily dosages for thyroid problems:
L-Tyrosine: 1,000 milligrams

Tryptophan: 500 milligrams

Arginine: 850 - 5,000 milligrams
L-Phenylalanine: 200 milligrams


4. Iodine  
Iodine (not the kind in table salt!) is necessary for thyroid hormone production. An underactive thyroid can often be restored by increasing iodine intake. On the other hand, too much iodine can have the opposite affect and cause thyroid problems, so it's important to monitor your iodine levels and intake carefully.

To increase your iodine intake from food sources, you can incorporate foods like kelp, parsley, and seaweed into your diet.

 
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100 - 200 micrograms of iodine is the typical daily amount for thyroid disorders.

Note: Magnesium is necessary to balance the body's absorption of iodine.

5. Minerals 
Magnesium, potassium, selenium, and zinc not only reduce inflammation, but they're also important for overall thyroid health.

Zinc: Just 10 milligrams of zinc daily was shown by the University of Massachusetts, to improve thyroid problems in women. 

Interesting note: The high zinc content found in oysters is a reason why they're considered to have aphrodisiac properties!

Selenium: 200 micrograms of selenium is the typical daily dosage for people with thyroid problems. 

Magnesium: Between 600 - 800 milligrams of magnesium daily is common among those dealing with thyroid problems.

Potassium: Around 99 milligrams daily is usually the maximum dosage used to improve thyroid problems.

Potassium may also help alleviate some of the symptoms that come with Hashimoto's Thyroiditis, Grave's Disease, and hypothyroidism. The symptom reduction is possibly due to the fact that people with those three diseases are usually deficient in potassium.


6. Vitamin A
Vitamin A is so critical for a healthy thyroid that without enough of it, the gland can actually deteriorate. Vitamin A also regulates hormones and can prevent your thyroid from becoming enlarged. 

25,000 IU of Vitamin A daily is usually the suggested dosage.

7. B Vitamins
Vitamin B5 and B6 help balance your hormones while B12 is necessary for proper thyroid hormone production. Since most people with low thyroid levels are especially deficient in Vitamin B12, incorporating more into your daily diet is a good way to improve your symptoms and boost a sluggish thyroid. A deficiency in Vitamin B-2 can destroy your thyroid's ability to function.

*Read this article to learn about the 12 important B Vitamins and how much to take daily.



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*Disclaimer 2: A thyroid evaluation should be done by a trusted healthcare professional in order to know if you have a thyroid problem and what precisely that problem is. There are a range of different types of thyroid "problems" such as underactive thyroid and overactive thyroid, but for the sake of being brief, this article only scratched the surface.



Sources:
Carani, Cesare, et. al. "Multicenter Study on the Prevalence of Sexual Symptoms in Male Hypo- and Hyperthyroid Patients," The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism Vol. 90, No. 12 6472-6479

Boydens, C., Pauwels, B., Decaluwé, K., Brouckaert, P. and Van de Voorde, J. (2015), Relaxant and Antioxidant Capacity of the Red Wine Polyphenols, Resveratrol and Quercetin, on Isolated Mice Corpora Cavernosa. Journal of Sexual Medicine, 12: 303–312. doi: 10.1111/jsm.12786

Tan, Z. S., Beiser, A., Vasan, R. S., Au, R., Auerbach, S., Kiel, D. P., … Seshadri, S. (2008). Thyroid Function and the Risk of Alzheimer’s Disease: The Framingham Study. Archives of Internal Medicine, 168(14), 1514–1520. http://doi.org/10.1001/archinte.168.14.1514