This day is used to educate the general public on the role of the thyroid in their overall health. I'll be honest, until I trained to become an Integrative Nutritional Therapist Practitioner, I had no idea of the importance of my thyroid gland, let alone what it was or were it was situated.
The thyroid is a small gland located at the base of the neck. It's a butterfly-shaped gland that produces two hormones: triiodothyronine (T3) and thyroxine (T4). Although very small, it plays a significant role in one’s health.
The primary function of the thyroid is to control the body’s metabolism. Most people associate metabolism with how well you burn calories. But metabolism also affects body temperature and heart rate. If you have a problem with your thyroid, it affects your metabolic rate (it either slows it or accelerates it).
When we feel we are starting to deteriorate in our health or things don’t feel or seem as they should, the underlying cause should be thoroughly investigated. In an athlete/fitness warrior and even in the general population, causes may be, inadequate nutrition, improper training habits, infection or endocrine dysfunction.
An investigation of potentially reversible underlying health issues may be needed when there are noted disruptions in training, competition, recovery and overall health and wellbeing.
Thyroid dysfunction can be brought about by overtraining (physical and mental stress), intensive training and prolonged levels of chronic stress which have been shown to suppress thyroid activity together with poor nutrition.
Signs of low thyroid function
The thyroid gland plays a vital role in overall cellular metabolism. Meaning, it sets the rate at which many thousands of ongoing chemical reactions occur in each cell of the body. It does this by producing specific hormones that are tightly regulated.
There are numerous conditions that affect the thyroid, causing it to speed up or slow down. If the thyroid works more slowly than normal, this is hypothyroidism, while hyperthyroidism means the thyroid is working faster than normal.
TYPICAL HYPOTHYROID SYMPTOMS:
Fatigue
Weight gain or inability to lose weight
Hair loss, brittle, or dry hair
Abnormal menses
Constipation
Muscle aches and cramps
Cold intolerance (can’t tolerate cooler temperatures)
Dry skin
Depression or irritability
An overactive thyroid can cause symptoms such as the below:
Nervousness, anxiety and irritability
Mood swings
Difficulty sleeping
Persistent tiredness and weakness
Sensitivity to heat
Swelling in the neck
An irregular and/or unusually fast heart rate (palpitations)
Twitching or trembling
Weightloss with an inability to gain weight
Athletes with an overactive thyroid are more vulnerable to heat-related illness due to increased oxygen consumption and heat production, they also run the risk of vastly depleting their muscle energy stores. This means that hyperthyroidism may affect muscle mass. Hyperthyroidism may also affect bone density increasing an athletes' risk of bone fractures.
STRESS AND THYROID HEALTH
My approach to supporting thyroid health (or any health issue for that matter) involves looking at the bigger picture. I want to understand what is going on in an individual's body. After all, all bodily systems are interconnected, and when there are imbalances in one area, there is typically knock-on effects in other areas.
As an Integrative Nutritional Therapy Practitioner, it is my job to uncover and address underlying imbalances that may be contributing to a health issue that is impacting wellbeing, performance and recovery. This means that when I work with my clients to make health improvements, these improvements are likely to be longer lasting.
Stress is often the ‘elephant in the room’ when it comes to alterations in thyroid function. Research shows that there is a strong connection between stress and thyroid health and it is therefore impossible to address thyroid health issues without at least considering the possible involvement and impact of stress on the thyroid and overall health.
Stress can be physical, psychological, dietary, a lifestyle factor. I would say that any individual I see, has a combination of these factors.
If you want to feel your best, perform at your best and have that zing for life - health must come first!!
If any of the above resonates with you, please get in touch and book a complimentary 20 minute call with me by clicking here.