Although it’s only about two inches long, your thyroid performs critical work in your body, and controls many physical functions. The diminutive butterfly-shaped gland is located at the lower front of your neck.
If something goes awry with your thyroid, many problems can arise that cause diverse symptoms.
Fortunately, Dr. Jacob Holdren, Dr. Steven Foley, and our team at Regenerative Health & Wellness Medical Center offer extraordinary care for people with thyroid conditions, as well as a host of other services.
Rather than confining ourselves to analyzing a narrow set of symptoms, we evaluate every patient’s overall health history, lifestyle, and other important factors that are interrelated and act together to impact your health and well-being.
As part of your endocrine system, your thyroid manufactures hormones that control many functions, including:
Another endocrine gland, your pituitary, is what gives your thyroid its instructions about the amounts of certain hormones to produce.
Given the number of bodily functions your thyroid influences, you can imagine the consequences of a malfunctioning thyroid. And thyroid problems aren’t rare — over 12% of the population will experience these issues at some point in their lives.
Based on the list above, when your thyroid gets out of whack for any reason, the corresponding symptoms can include exhaustion, weight gain or loss, high cholesterol, erratic periods, insomnia, skin and hair issues, loss of focus, and more.
If your thyroid starts functioning improperly, it can become overactive and produce a surplus of hormones (hyperthyroidism) or sluggish and underactive (hypothyroidism), leaving you with a hormone deficit.
Disorders associated with hyperthyroidism include Graves’ disease, an autoimmune disorder that causes weight loss, hand tremors, or protruding eyes.
On the other end of the spectrum, Hashimoto’s disease is a condition that causes your immune system to attack your thyroid, leaving you with hypothyroidism and symptoms such as low energy and weight gain.
Thyroid problems can also lead to the development of a goiter, although this condition is less common than it was years ago. The main symptoms are noticeable swelling of your thyroid gland and neck and a cough. The main cause for goiters is lack of iodine, and awareness of iodine-rich foods and iodized table salt have greatly reduced the problem.
Some little-known but important facts about the thyroid include:
When you come to the Regenerative Health & Wellness Medical Center for diagnosis or treatment of thyroid disease, we do a full assessment of your current health, learn about your health history in detail, and order a full blood panel so we can acquire as much pertinent information as possible.
Typically we receive your blood panel results in about a week, and from there we can start creating your customized treatment plan.
If you suffer from inexplicable fatigue, mysterious weight gain — despite the fact that you eat well and are active, are stymied by skin and hair problems, or constipated, your thyroid could be to blame.
Our treatment plan may include our medically supervised weight loss program, bioidentical hormone therapy, stress management techniques, other lifestyle changes, and more to solve your thyroid problems. One thing is certain: We’re dedicated to creating the right combination of treatments for you.
Call either our Holly or Colorado Springs office to make an appointment, or contact us through our website.
