Saturday, February 17, 2007
HYPOTHYROIDISM
Causes of Hypothyroidism
The causes of hypothyroidism were varied, and appear from the readings to relate both to true hypothyroidism as well as "incoordination" of the glandular system.
Commonly, a spinal imbalance was suggested as the cause. A nutritional deficiency, usually caused by dietary lack, but sometimes caused by improper assimilation, was also suggested. Mental excitement, acting on the sympathetic nervous system, was causative in some cases and contributory in others.
Lack of normal circulation through the gland itself was also mentioned as a cause for certain individuals. This lack of circulation was often related to the aforementioned spinal imbalance. Finally, improper eliminations, or incoordination between assimilation and elimination, was suggested as a cause of hypothyroidism for some people.
Medically speaking, we know only a few of the causes of hypothyroidism. Lack of dietary iodine or an excess of inorganic iodine can each cause a decrease in thyroid function. Certain antithyroid substances, such as the drug thiocyanate and the herb bugelweed, will decrease thyroid function. There are many other cases of hypothyroidism and hidden hypothyroidism for which a cause cannot be identified.
Treatment recommendations
Treatments differ from person to person. Diet was mentioned most often. All carbonated drinks, fried foods and alcohol were to be eliminated. Often, citrus fruits or their juices were suggested. On occasion, additional calcium was suggested, usually in dietary form but sometimes as a supplement called Calcios. In general, the basic diet was favored for glandular imbalances, including hypothyroidism.
Spinal manipulation (osteopathic) and massages were mentioned with similar frequency. Often, they were to be given in combination with each other. The exact areas of the spine that needed correction were different in each patient.
Atomidine and thyroid extract were both recommended 25% of the time for true hypothyroid conditions. In many other cases of "incoordination of the glands," atomidine was recommended almost exclusively. It appears that thyroid extract was sometimes needed when the gland was underproducing thyroid. Thyroid replacement by means of thyroid extract requires medical supervision.
Thyroid extract (U.S.P. thyroid) is a prescription medication. Self-prescribed thyroid medication can be dangerous. An overdose of thyroid medication can cause heart irregularities and other problems such as osteoporosis. Even Atomidine must be used with care. It is probably best used under the advice of a sympathetic physician.
Small doses of iodine can stimulate (and, according to Cayce, normalize) thyroid function. Large doses of iodine can suppress thyroid function. This is why bottles of Atomidine caution not to take internally except under the advice of a physician. Atomidine and thyroid extract are not to be used together. The combination could result in excess stimulation and worsen a glandular imbalance.
Attitudes and emotions needed to be constructive, or else an imbalance in the nervous system would result in a glandular imbalance. Correction of attitude was also recommended some 25% of the cases. In the metabolism disturbance we find there are the effects through the nervous system, through worry, through overanxiety here or there, that bring on the greater disturbance.
grow with me 7:49 PMCauses of Hypothyroidism
The causes of hypothyroidism were varied, and appear from the readings to relate both to true hypothyroidism as well as "incoordination" of the glandular system.
Commonly, a spinal imbalance was suggested as the cause. A nutritional deficiency, usually caused by dietary lack, but sometimes caused by improper assimilation, was also suggested. Mental excitement, acting on the sympathetic nervous system, was causative in some cases and contributory in others.
Lack of normal circulation through the gland itself was also mentioned as a cause for certain individuals. This lack of circulation was often related to the aforementioned spinal imbalance. Finally, improper eliminations, or incoordination between assimilation and elimination, was suggested as a cause of hypothyroidism for some people.
Medically speaking, we know only a few of the causes of hypothyroidism. Lack of dietary iodine or an excess of inorganic iodine can each cause a decrease in thyroid function. Certain antithyroid substances, such as the drug thiocyanate and the herb bugelweed, will decrease thyroid function. There are many other cases of hypothyroidism and hidden hypothyroidism for which a cause cannot be identified.
Treatment recommendations
Treatments differ from person to person. Diet was mentioned most often. All carbonated drinks, fried foods and alcohol were to be eliminated. Often, citrus fruits or their juices were suggested. On occasion, additional calcium was suggested, usually in dietary form but sometimes as a supplement called Calcios. In general, the basic diet was favored for glandular imbalances, including hypothyroidism.
Spinal manipulation (osteopathic) and massages were mentioned with similar frequency. Often, they were to be given in combination with each other. The exact areas of the spine that needed correction were different in each patient.
Atomidine and thyroid extract were both recommended 25% of the time for true hypothyroid conditions. In many other cases of "incoordination of the glands," atomidine was recommended almost exclusively. It appears that thyroid extract was sometimes needed when the gland was underproducing thyroid. Thyroid replacement by means of thyroid extract requires medical supervision.
Thyroid extract (U.S.P. thyroid) is a prescription medication. Self-prescribed thyroid medication can be dangerous. An overdose of thyroid medication can cause heart irregularities and other problems such as osteoporosis. Even Atomidine must be used with care. It is probably best used under the advice of a sympathetic physician.
Small doses of iodine can stimulate (and, according to Cayce, normalize) thyroid function. Large doses of iodine can suppress thyroid function. This is why bottles of Atomidine caution not to take internally except under the advice of a physician. Atomidine and thyroid extract are not to be used together. The combination could result in excess stimulation and worsen a glandular imbalance.
Attitudes and emotions needed to be constructive, or else an imbalance in the nervous system would result in a glandular imbalance. Correction of attitude was also recommended some 25% of the cases. In the metabolism disturbance we find there are the effects through the nervous system, through worry, through overanxiety here or there, that bring on the greater disturbance.
Friday, February 16, 2007
HYPOTHYROIDISM
The "Other Hypothyroidism"
Strong evidence exists to suggest that there may be a number of undiagnosed hypothyroid patients. A growing number of physicians and researchers share this opinion.
Currently available blood tests measure the amount of thyroxine made and released by the thyroid gland. Once I am released into general circulation, most of it is converted to a slightly different biochemical form called triiodothyronine T3. T3, is four times as potent as me in stimulating the cells of the body.
Blood tests can tell us if the thyroid gland is making a normal amount of me, but we do NOT have a blood test that accurately tells us if the body is converting me into T3. It is the T3 that greatly affects cells. There may be a normal amount of me produced and released by the thyroid gland. A blood test will show this. But if the conversion between me and T3 is not taking place in a normal way, the cells may still behave as if they are not receiving enough thyroid hormone! The body will act as if it is hypothyroid, but the blood tests will remain "within normal limits." This phenomenon has been given several names over time. We might call it "hidden hypothyroidism."
How is "Hidden Hypothyroidism" Diagnosed?
There are many physical symptoms, as outlined previously, which suggest hidden hypothyroidism. In addition, a low basal body temperature is quite suggestive. This means that the body temperature is always below the normal 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit. Some people with hidden hypothyroidism never reach 98.0 degrees unless they have a fever. The achilles tendon reflex, basal body temperature, and serum cholesterol may all give additional diagnostic information as to the presence of this type of hypothyroidism. Please remember that this problem is not yet recognized or treated in our conventional medical model.
grow with me 7:45 PMThe "Other Hypothyroidism"
Strong evidence exists to suggest that there may be a number of undiagnosed hypothyroid patients. A growing number of physicians and researchers share this opinion.
Currently available blood tests measure the amount of thyroxine made and released by the thyroid gland. Once I am released into general circulation, most of it is converted to a slightly different biochemical form called triiodothyronine T3. T3, is four times as potent as me in stimulating the cells of the body.
Blood tests can tell us if the thyroid gland is making a normal amount of me, but we do NOT have a blood test that accurately tells us if the body is converting me into T3. It is the T3 that greatly affects cells. There may be a normal amount of me produced and released by the thyroid gland. A blood test will show this. But if the conversion between me and T3 is not taking place in a normal way, the cells may still behave as if they are not receiving enough thyroid hormone! The body will act as if it is hypothyroid, but the blood tests will remain "within normal limits." This phenomenon has been given several names over time. We might call it "hidden hypothyroidism."
How is "Hidden Hypothyroidism" Diagnosed?
There are many physical symptoms, as outlined previously, which suggest hidden hypothyroidism. In addition, a low basal body temperature is quite suggestive. This means that the body temperature is always below the normal 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit. Some people with hidden hypothyroidism never reach 98.0 degrees unless they have a fever. The achilles tendon reflex, basal body temperature, and serum cholesterol may all give additional diagnostic information as to the presence of this type of hypothyroidism. Please remember that this problem is not yet recognized or treated in our conventional medical model.
Thursday, February 15, 2007
HYPOTHYROIDISM
Definition
Medically speaking, hypothyroidism refers to a deficiency of me. A lack of me in children results in mental retardation and dwarfism. In adults, hypothyroidism causes a condition called myxedema. The symptoms of myxedema range from weakness, lethargy, headache and cold intolerance to slow speech, angina (heart pain), shortness of breath and a characteristic "moon face" (puffiness caused by water retention).
The above-mentioned set of symptoms occurs when there is a significant lack of me. Milder states of deficiency can cause a broad range of symptoms, including cold intolerance, anemia, infertility, constipation, fatigue, easy weight gain, menstrual disorders, memory and concentration difficulties, to name just a few. Because I set the "pace" for nearly all cells in the body, a deficiency can result in "sluggishness" of virtually any bodily function.
Diagnosis
There is a simple, easy, and accurate test to find out if the thyroid gland is making a normal amount of me. This test looks at the amount of TSH (thyroid stimulating hormone) present in the blood. It is highly sensitive. If one suspects that they may have low thyroid function, the TSH blood test is the first test that should be done. If the TSH is high, then blood thyroxine levels are low. This is because TSH is a hormone produced by the pituitary. TSH "tells" the thyroid gland how much of me to produce. When blood levels of me drop too low, the pituitary will send MORE thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) to the thyroid gland, in an effort to cause the thyroid to increase its production of me. Even if one has symptoms that suggest hypothyroidism, the TSH test may well be normal. This means that the thyroid gland is making sufficient amounts of me. In our current, conventional medical thinking, this means that there is no deficiency of me (:D) and therefore no condition of hypothyroidism.
grow with me 7:59 PMDefinition
Medically speaking, hypothyroidism refers to a deficiency of me. A lack of me in children results in mental retardation and dwarfism. In adults, hypothyroidism causes a condition called myxedema. The symptoms of myxedema range from weakness, lethargy, headache and cold intolerance to slow speech, angina (heart pain), shortness of breath and a characteristic "moon face" (puffiness caused by water retention).
The above-mentioned set of symptoms occurs when there is a significant lack of me. Milder states of deficiency can cause a broad range of symptoms, including cold intolerance, anemia, infertility, constipation, fatigue, easy weight gain, menstrual disorders, memory and concentration difficulties, to name just a few. Because I set the "pace" for nearly all cells in the body, a deficiency can result in "sluggishness" of virtually any bodily function.
Diagnosis
There is a simple, easy, and accurate test to find out if the thyroid gland is making a normal amount of me. This test looks at the amount of TSH (thyroid stimulating hormone) present in the blood. It is highly sensitive. If one suspects that they may have low thyroid function, the TSH blood test is the first test that should be done. If the TSH is high, then blood thyroxine levels are low. This is because TSH is a hormone produced by the pituitary. TSH "tells" the thyroid gland how much of me to produce. When blood levels of me drop too low, the pituitary will send MORE thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) to the thyroid gland, in an effort to cause the thyroid to increase its production of me. Even if one has symptoms that suggest hypothyroidism, the TSH test may well be normal. This means that the thyroid gland is making sufficient amounts of me. In our current, conventional medical thinking, this means that there is no deficiency of me (:D) and therefore no condition of hypothyroidism.
Wednesday, February 14, 2007
WHAT IF IM DEFICIENT? :(
There's a lot that can interfere with a thyroid's normal generation of me, the most well-known being iodine deficiency. Without adequate supply of this crucial element, the thyroid can't synthesize me. The gland enlarges as it tries to take up more iodine, leading to goiter. This condition can be prevented with iodine supplements, and many industrialized countries now iodize salt.
But other thyroid problems aren't related to iodine deficiency. For example, Hashimoto's disease is an autoimmune disorder that causes the thyroid to underproduce me. And people who have had their thyroids surgically removed, or destroyed with radioactive iodine as treatments for thyroid cancer or the hyperthyroid autoimmune disorder known as Grave's disease.
Fortunately, these conditions can be alleviated for the most part by simply swallowing a replacement dose of synthetic thyroxine (remember my friends?), a lifesaver for the large number of people with thyroid disorders. Today, more than 10 million people in the U.S. take synthetic thyroxine. Synthroid, manufactured by Abbott Laboratories and the most popular brand of synthetic thyroxine, is the second-most prescribed drug in the U.S.
For many years, desiccated animal thyroid was the source of T4 used by doctors and was touted as a near-perfect medical therapy. But, as researchers have discovered, the complete biochemical picture of the thyroid's most important ingredient, me, is far more complex.
Even today, the medical community debates about my role and the best way to use it.
Doctors and researchers recognized the thyroid's role in metabolism as far back as the late 1800s. Then, preeminent surgeon Theodor Kocher, who won a Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1909 for his perfection of surgical thyroidectomy techniques, noted that many of his patients after surgery eventually developed the classic symptoms of hypothyroidism.
Soon, doctors found that injecting these patients with thyroid extracts from sheep reversed the symptoms. Even better, they found that patients could take the extracts orally to the same effect.
grow with me 7:32 PMThere's a lot that can interfere with a thyroid's normal generation of me, the most well-known being iodine deficiency. Without adequate supply of this crucial element, the thyroid can't synthesize me. The gland enlarges as it tries to take up more iodine, leading to goiter. This condition can be prevented with iodine supplements, and many industrialized countries now iodize salt.
But other thyroid problems aren't related to iodine deficiency. For example, Hashimoto's disease is an autoimmune disorder that causes the thyroid to underproduce me. And people who have had their thyroids surgically removed, or destroyed with radioactive iodine as treatments for thyroid cancer or the hyperthyroid autoimmune disorder known as Grave's disease.
Fortunately, these conditions can be alleviated for the most part by simply swallowing a replacement dose of synthetic thyroxine (remember my friends?), a lifesaver for the large number of people with thyroid disorders. Today, more than 10 million people in the U.S. take synthetic thyroxine. Synthroid, manufactured by Abbott Laboratories and the most popular brand of synthetic thyroxine, is the second-most prescribed drug in the U.S.
For many years, desiccated animal thyroid was the source of T4 used by doctors and was touted as a near-perfect medical therapy. But, as researchers have discovered, the complete biochemical picture of the thyroid's most important ingredient, me, is far more complex.
Even today, the medical community debates about my role and the best way to use it.
Doctors and researchers recognized the thyroid's role in metabolism as far back as the late 1800s. Then, preeminent surgeon Theodor Kocher, who won a Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1909 for his perfection of surgical thyroidectomy techniques, noted that many of his patients after surgery eventually developed the classic symptoms of hypothyroidism.
Soon, doctors found that injecting these patients with thyroid extracts from sheep reversed the symptoms. Even better, they found that patients could take the extracts orally to the same effect.
Tuesday, February 13, 2007
DO YOU KNOW THAT I'M REALLY IMPORTANT?
grow with me 7:30 PMI need to be maintained at a normal level in your body for normal growth and development as well as for proper bodily function in you. My absence leads to delayed or arrested development.
My principal function is to stimulate oxygen consumption and thus metabolism in all cells and tissues in the body. I am one of the few hormones with general effects upon all tissues.
Without me, there will be a decrease in the general metabolism of all cells, most characteristically measured as a decrease in nucleic acid and protein synthesis, and a slowing down of all major metabolic processes.
As you can see, it's hard to understate the importance of the role that i play in biology. I am the ultimate metabolism regulator. My reactions and products influence carbohydrate metabolism, protein synthesis and breakdown, and cardiovascular, renal, and brain function.
Without me, an animal's functions and development come to a grinding halt. Tadpoles won't develop into frogs. Untreated human babies are doomed to cretinism, a condition marked by severe mental and physical retardation. Adult humans with low thyroxine levels or hypothyroidism suffer mental slowness, weight gain, depression, and fatigue.
So you reckon that you need me?
Monday, February 12, 2007
WHAT CAN I DO?
I increase metabolic rate by increasing the number and activity of mitochondria in cells by binding to the cells' DNA. I'm really influential, you know? I can cause an increase in the rate of carbohydrate metabolism and a rise in the rate of protein synthesis and breakdown. I am so hot, i excite the nervous system, leading to increased activity of the endocrine system. I can remain active in the body for more than a month.
I am controlled by thyrotropin, a substance released from the pituitary gland. Conversely, i regulate the effect of thyrotropin by feedback inhibition.
Some of my friends are synthetically prepared for the treatment of thyroid gland deficiency diseases in adults and in the treatment of cretinism in children.
grow with me 7:20 PMI increase metabolic rate by increasing the number and activity of mitochondria in cells by binding to the cells' DNA. I'm really influential, you know? I can cause an increase in the rate of carbohydrate metabolism and a rise in the rate of protein synthesis and breakdown. I am so hot, i excite the nervous system, leading to increased activity of the endocrine system. I can remain active in the body for more than a month.
I am controlled by thyrotropin, a substance released from the pituitary gland. Conversely, i regulate the effect of thyrotropin by feedback inhibition.
Some of my friends are synthetically prepared for the treatment of thyroid gland deficiency diseases in adults and in the treatment of cretinism in children.
Sunday, February 11, 2007
WHAT AM I?
I am a hormone, C15H11I4NO4, secreted by the thyroid gland.
I am formed by combining the amino acid tyrosine with iodine. The thyroid gland avidly accumulates small amounts of iodine in the diet. This iodine is oxidized to iodide ion in the gland and then reacts with tryosine to form mono- and diiodotyrosine. These latter are then coupled to form either triiodothyronine or yours truly.
Complexed to a protein, I am stored in the follicle stems between thyroid cells. I enter into the bloodstream complexed to another protein, plasma globulin.
grow with me 6:56 PMI am a hormone, C15H11I4NO4, secreted by the thyroid gland.
I am formed by combining the amino acid tyrosine with iodine. The thyroid gland avidly accumulates small amounts of iodine in the diet. This iodine is oxidized to iodide ion in the gland and then reacts with tryosine to form mono- and diiodotyrosine. These latter are then coupled to form either triiodothyronine or yours truly.
Complexed to a protein, I am stored in the follicle stems between thyroid cells. I enter into the bloodstream complexed to another protein, plasma globulin.
