I have been writing about hypothyroidism for quite some time now and it’s one of those topics that everyone knows about, but very few people actually know the full truth. I myself am a hypothyroidist and I have a pretty good idea of what I am talking about.
Well, the thing is, hypothyroidism is not one thing, but a whole array of conditions that can cause different symptoms, so it can be quite a confusing subject. I am a hypothyroidism specialist and it is my job to make sure that I am on the same page with my patients. This is usually done by going through the patient’s history, examining what is known about the condition, and then performing a thorough medical checkup.
The problem, in my opinion, is that the medical community typically treats hypothyroidism as a single thing. This means that the different symptoms are lumped together and sometimes the medical community is a little too reluctant to recognize that some of the symptoms are due to different things. When a hypothyroidism patient comes in for a medical exam, I usually ask for a blood test to check their thyroid hormone levels.
This is the most frequent reason for hypothyroidism patients to come to me in the first place. I’m also often asked about other things like weight gain, skin changes, and hair loss. What it really comes down to is that hypothyroidism is actually a condition that causes the skin to sag, and that skin changes can also cause problems with hair and body hair.
That’s why we need a test to check our levels of thyroid hormone. This is a common symptom of hypothyroidism, but it’s also one of the most common reasons that hypothyroidism patients come to us.
There’s only one thing to do when your hair is shedding or your face is getting all puffy. In fact, if your hair and face are getting all puffy, take a look at your thyroid hormone levels. If your levels are low, then you need to get your thyroid gland checked sooner rather than later.
I personally have had a few hypothyroid patients tell me that they thought that they’d had a bad hair day, or that their face was puffy after having their thyroid levels checked, but they were wrong. The only thing I’ve found that has made a huge difference is to give them something to eat right before they come in for the test.
Hypothyroidism is an autoimmune disease, so the thyroid gland is the primary “target” of the disease. It is usually caused by the immune system attacking the thyroid gland, but sometimes the thyroid is the “target” of the disease. If your thyroid gland isn’t getting enough of the hormone T3, you could have hypothyroidism.
This is why some people have a swollen thyroid, others do not. When they are not on the same diet, or when they are not getting enough of the hormone T3, they will swell. There is a lot more information here on the web about thyroid diseases, but the bottom line is that the thyroid gland is the primary target. So if the thyroid is not getting enough T3, the gland will be swollen.
There is also a lot more information about hypothyroidism on the web. This is why hypothyroidism is often called the silent killer.