Hypothyroid-Hashimoto’s and Iodine
written by Kimberly LeBrun, LAc. at Life Chiropractic
Here are the statistics in the US
Hypothyroid – 1.75 million
Hyperthyroid – 275,000
Goiter – 22 million
Thyroid Cancer- 15,000
Death due to thyroid cancer – 2,000
99% of nodules are non-cancerous
24:1 females to males
**** 90% hypothyroid have Hashimoto’s AND don’t know it.
#1 reason is autoimmune disease
It is unlikely that the thyroid gland is the only tissue under attack. Physician’s can’t diagnose autoimmune disease in the current western model until it has already attacked the thyroid, cartilage=arthritis, islet cells=diabetes etc. Patients take more medications for their thyroid because the immune system continues to attack the thyroid.
The question is why is this happening? It’s because MD’s aren’t running full panels on the thyroid because it doesn’t change the course of treatment. Patients will still continue on Synthroid and Armour and just increase doses as time goes on. It doesn’t change the course of treatment because doctors are not addressing their autoimmunity issues. Doctors test TSH and T4 levels on a regular exam but, leave out T3 uptake, total T4, total T3, reverse T3 and TAA/TPO antibodies. The antibodies is the big one with autoimmune Hashimotos but, not always..it can be a combination to detect.
There is a lot of undiagnosed Hashimoto’s in the US. When I first learned of this and started testing patients, I found that 1/3 of my patients had Hashimoto’s and didn’t know it. That is huge out of approximately 40 patients a week. Once I began treating them appropriately, their symptoms and labs improved.
An interesting Patient of mine: A male in his second year of college-never went through puberty. His diagnosis was Chrons’s disease and he was never able to gain weight to go through puberty. I took him on as a patient from another practitioner of Chinese medicine. Upon his intake that wasn’t revealed before, his father had thyroid cancer and his brother had his thyroid removed. Wow!! Doctor’s/specialists have been testing him for everything under the sun and never asked this question!!! Well, the thyroid gland does produce testosterone! So, I gave him the full panel and sure enough his results showed his immune system attacking his thyroid! Hashimotos!! Like I said previously, if a person has any autoimmune issues-what other tissues are under attack? I put him on supplements and herbs and after not seeing him for his summer vacation, he grew almost 2 inches and his voice was deeper. His labs showed improvement but, not what I needed rapidly. His growth plates are still open surprisingly and now I needed to refer him to a specialist for bio-identical hormones to fix his testosterone levels. I’m in hopes that his autoimmune Hashimoto’s is under control from me suppressing it and hope that the bio-identical hormones can get him through puberty before his growth plates close!
Although adequate iodine consumption is important for the thyroid hormone production and iodine deficiency being the most common cause of hypothyroidism worldwide, its supplemental use in autoimmune Hashimoto’s is contraindicated. Iodine is the major cofactor and stimulator for thyroid peroxidase(TPO). TPO is the enzyme that is under attack with Hashimoto’s thyroiditis. Increased iodine intake increases the immune attack on the thyroid. This can lead to a hyper function autoimmune response destroying the thyroid further.
Speaking of the thyroid gland there are supplements one can take to help with its function. Many people with Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis are iodine deficient. However someone with Hashimoto’s SHOULD NOT take iodine until both the immune system component and adrenals are addressed. If taken right off the bat iodine can cause more harm than good and this is one reason why many healthcare professionals will tell someone with Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis to avoid iodine altogether. So iodine can be essential to take for a person who has a deficiency but the timing is extremely important with regards to Hashimoto’s.
Call today to schedule a Free Consultation with Kimberly LeBrun, Acupuncturist for Life Chiropractic. 303-678-1979
Follow Us