7 Things You Didn’t Know Could Impact Your Thyroid Health

Thyroid issues can be quite hard to diagnose sometimes because a wealth of issues must be taken into account. Thyroid disease is a rare condition in that treatment is almost always tailored to the patient, just as it is predicted all medicine will be in the future, finding the perfect alignment for each individual instead of chalking out a large swathe marked ‘normal’ and trying to fit everyone into that. Here are seven things that you perhaps didn’t realize can also affect your thyroid health.

Pregnancy

When you are pregnant – and even if you don’t know yet that you are pregnant – your thyroid hormone levels will rise slightly, in response to the presence of two pregnancy hormones (human chorionic gonadotrophin (hCG) and estrogen), which stimulate the thyroid. This can cause symptoms that along with those of early pregnancy: dizziness, nausea, morning sickness, etc., can cause alarm. This is why doctors will routinely offer a pregnancy test as the first step towards diagnosing illness – sometimes to the patient’s frustration.

Medications

If you are on some medications, these can affect a) the way your thyroid works and b) the readings of thyroid hormone levels in your blood. As the latter is often used as a diagnostic tool when trying to work out what’s going on with you, it is important to let your doctor know what medicines and supplements you are taking – even something as innocuous as a calcium tablet can affect your thyroid. Iodine supplements, especially, can seem like a very sensible idea, but it can wreak havoc with your thyroid health so it is best to avoid it, unless your doctor has given you the go ahead.

 Once your dosage has been perfected, you will be able to add your medications back in, if necessary, or your doctor can help you to find substitutes that don’t affect your thyroid medications, such as those found at International Pharmacy.

What You Eat

Many foods can affect your thyroid hormone levels, with some foods ‘mopping up’ thyroid hormones from the bloodstream, while others can emphasize their effect, making a minor dose seem like an overdose! Goitrogens – found in cruciferous vegetables like cauliflower and cabbage – can block your thyroid from producing sufficient levels of thyroid hormones, leaving you deficient, while any foods that contain high levels of iodine can overstimulate your thyroid. This is an especial shame as thyroid illness often brings iodine deficiency along with it – except when, frustratingly, it does the exact opposite!

And What You Don’t!

If you go for your thyroid hormone blood test without having eaten for ten hours or so, your thyroid levels are more likely to be higher. This is the body’s stress response – probably also worsened by the fact that you are having to break your routine to go for a blood test! – and it can be problematic for those who have mild conditions as it can boost their levels into the normal range.

Time of Day

Your thyroid hormone levels tend to be higher in the morning, just after you’ve got up and slowly decline throughout the day. So, the time of day you go for your blood test is important: be sure to mention it to your doctor when they are discussing the results with you.

Stress

Mental stress can cause physical symptoms in much the same way that psychosomatic illness is still a real illness, albeit caused by psychological issues rather than tangible ‘real world’ causes.

In the same way, your thyroid symptoms might be caused by stress, but this doesn’t mean that your thyroid does not have a problem that needs to be treated with seriousness.

Lifestyle

This last one is sure to cause a few eyerolls in more cynical readers, but it is a fact that lifestyle issues, such as excessive drinking, smoking or being overweight, can and do affect the thyroid. Your weight will also come into play when your medication dosage is being ascertained: heavier people need higher doses of artificial thyroid hormone to return to good health. The good news is that taking steps to improve your lifestyle can improve your health – including that of your thyroid, perhaps drawing back from the borderline of irrevocable thyroid dysfunction into good, unmedicated, health. (Always consult your doctor before making major changes to your lifestyle or medication regimen.)

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Phillip Olivas

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