Thyroid: The Master Regulator

This post comes from not only a highly personal, but highly demanded request. Thyroid function abnormalities are at the top of my most seen and discussed patient issues. The complications of thyroid dysfunction are widespread and vary depending on the type of issue you have. Here I will break down the most common types, Hashimoto’s thyroiditis and Graves’ disease, as well as my recommendations for natural support. Please know that both disorders are highly complex, predispose to other illness, and need to be closely monitored by a health care team consisting of several professionals due to varying management given your health status. The thyroid is responsible for growth, metabolism, and development, so when there is a problem in any area involved in any of those processes, a wide variety of symptoms can arise.

Hashimoto’s thyroiditis (hypothyroidism) is a chronic autoimmune disease that causes inflammation of the thyroid and either inability to make or use thyroid hormone. When this inflammation occurs, it causes low hormone level. To compensate, the pituitary gland (in your brain) tells your thyroid to make more, and more hormone causing more inflammation, continuing to feed the process.  When this arises, you could have symptoms including weight gain, fatigue, body aches, brain fog, insulin resistance/ diabetes, irregular or infrequent menstrual cycles, infertility, thyroid nodules/goiters and depression. Think about it this way, your master control is set on slow mode. Everything from mental function to digestion is running at ½ speed.

Grave’s Disease (hyperthyroidism) is a chronic autoimmune disease that causes inflammation of the thyroid and over production of thyroid hormone. This can happen when you have a nodule or goiter that produces too much hormone or simply when your thyroid has been overstimulated and enlarged for a long (due to chronic autoimmune disease) time. To compensate with the thyroid making too much hormone your pituitary gland slows way down and stops producing signal. With high thyroid hormone you might experience fatigue, body aches, anxiety, nausea or diarrhea, weight loss, hair loss, increased flow or frequency of menstrual cycles, pressure behind your eyes or bulging eyes, and increased sweating. Think about your master control being set on high speed, everything runs 2x faster than it should.

No matter the imbalance, we need to support the thyroid from a foundational level. But what do we do about it? Any time you have a thyroid disorder, you should see a specialist. They can rule out nodules, goiters, and cancer that might need removed. There are also medications that can and should be prescribed on a case-by-case basis, we will not discuss those here. We will discuss how to support your thyroid from the ground up and in conjunction with your other health care members, that’s the whole point of this blog. Many issues can be reversed, even thyroid issues, but I find that they take much longer due to the amount of time it takes to get a diagnosis. This next section will help anyone with a family history all the way through severe disease.

When it comes to thyroid imbalance, there are 2 key areas we should focus on: decreasing inflammation and promoting good thyroid hormone balance. We do this through diet, detox, and supplementation.

Diet is foundational, when we aren’t eating the right things, we can’t make the correct building blocks to thyroid hormone. All, yes, I said all, thyroid patients should be on a gluten free (or mostly) diet. The structure of the gluten protein is very similar to thyroid hormone, therefore eating it confuses the body on how much hormone is circulating. Gluten is a double-edged sword because in the US there are many added chemicals, that are known to be disrupting to the endocrine system (ie thyroid). So not only does gluten mock thyroid hormone, but it actively causes gut and thyroid inflammation. When going gluten free there are several things to note, don’t try to do it all at once, phase it out so it is financially and mentally sustainable. Next, changing from gluten containing to gluten free products should not mean that we swap for other ultra-processed items, it means we shift to whole food eating. Food should come from fruits, veggies, meats, nuts, seeds, ect. Some packaged foods are okay, but moderate, and ensure they are high quality, REAL food (you’ll know by reading the label). If you have not read the “Gut Reset” blog this is a great time to do that.

Next, we need to focus on detoxing inflammation, stress, and built-up toxins. This can be done by getting a good sweat going, through your preferred exercise or sauna, using Epsom salt baths or castor oil, or with fasting. All of these promote the body’s natural systems of detox and are best used with one another. Sweating is a great way to release toxins from the lymph system, promote liver detox, and allows the body to repair/build, muscle, and other tissue. There is not a right or wrong way to do this, if you’re not healthy enough to exercise, sauna is a great alternative. Black, cold pressed castor oil can be used in packs or as a topical and rubbed directly over the thyroid, liver, and soles of the feet. This will promote point specific detox and optimize flow through that area. Apply a small amount to the area the given at bedtime and give a light massage. Finally fasting can vary widely and may not be preferred or the most ideal for all patients, but you should have breaks in eating or drinking any calories (water is fine) for 13-36 hours. When doing fasting you should start slowly and increase overtime, longer fasts 36-72 hours should be done sparingly and with approval of your health care team. When you fast for more than 13 hours your body starts to heal the lining of the gut, removing inflammation, it also promotes good bacteria growth (gut flora), and allows blood sugar and insulin regulation to become in check. During the longer fasts of over 18 hours, your body goes into a state of autography, or self-healing. Your gut makes stem cells that circulate to areas that need healing and repairs them. These fasts are well studied and have tremendous benefit, but again, speak to your health care team before jumping into prolonged fasting.

Finally, there are several supplements you can add to optimize your thyroid’s ability to function. These should also be taken in connection with your other health care team. Many of these are widely used in other areas of the world and are actually apart of many foods we consume on the regular. The goal with supplementation is not to “add another pill” but help boost your body during the most intense time of healing and allow your diet to take over so eventually you’re not taking anything. But again, thyroid is one of the harder areas to completely heal to it takes time, patience, and purposeful effort.

First and foremost, all thyroid patients should have vitamin levels checked. This includes but is not limited to vitamin D (see my blog post), B12, calcium, potassium, magnesium, zinc, iodine, and when possibly selenium. These are some of the most essential nutrients in your thyroid, deficiency in any of these areas could be the deeper cause of your imbalance. Correcting all these imbalances is essential. Outside of that these supplements can help in various ways:

Hypothyroid:

-Inositol: is great or balancing hormone regulation, insulin resistance, balance calcium release therefore helping with parathyroid (glands on top of your thyroid) function, and balancing TSH signaling and production, and is the precursor to TSH formation

Aprox 500mg per day to start.

-Ashwagandha: increases thyroid function and has shown to stabilize TSH and T4 levels in as little as 8 weeks

Aprox 600 mg in divided dose (ie 300mg am and 300mg pm)

-Glutathione: is essential in the formation of thyroid hormones and often is found to be low in hypothyroid patients, supplementing can help promote proper hormone production and decrease oxidative stress on the body.

While supplementing directly can be done, supplements are often destroyed by the gut acid, so instead you can add N-Actyl-Cystine or milk thistle.

-Armour/NP thyroid: These are types of natural thyroid hormone that contain both T3 and T4 (both essential thyroid hormones) by taking these it decreases how hard your thyroid has to work in converting T4 into T3 and should decrease inflammation. Studies show improved fatigue and other undesirable symptoms without compromising thyroid hormone management. (ask your provider about this or adding a T3 supplement to your routine as these are all RX and dose will vary)

Hyperthyroid:

-Quercetin: an anti-inflammatory flavonoid found in citric foods decreases inflammation and helps to down regulate thyroid function. It also has shown to help stop or slow the growth of cancer cells

Aprox 500 mg per day

-L-Carnatine: helps manage undesirable symptoms of hyperthyroidism- it does not help the thyroid levels however.

aprox 2-4 grams per day

-Bugleweed and Lemon Balm: Both are shown to decrease thyroid hormone

Typically found in combo doses- always start with the lowest possible dose

Both:

-Probiotic: Both thyroid conditions are shown to have sensitivity or intolerance to gluten and that allows negative bacteria to grown in the stomach and the gut. Balanced probiotics help keep bacteria (good and bad) in check.

Aprox:

-Vitamin D: This should be taken based on serum (blood) level less than 50. Vit D is essential in all functions in our body

Levels: 0-30: take 10,000 iu daily (many providers will do weekly dosing, I prefer daily, so you don’t get a peak and trough response). 30-50: take 5,000 iu daily. 50-100: include good dietary sources (see the Vit D blog) and take less than 5,000 iu daily, typically in a multivitamin.

-Selenium: is essential in the function of the thyroid and will help lower inflammation of thyroid tissue.

Aprox 80-100 mcg per day for up to 6-12 months  

-Vitamin C: is highly anti-inflammatory and helps prevent the overgrowth of abnormal cells, reduces antibodies, and helps with absorption of medications such as levothyroxine

Aprox 500-1000mg per day

All of these supplements are suggestions that should be discussed with your health care team. Ultimately, you should try to get as many of these from the food you eat as possible.

I hope this helps on your journey to healing.

Until next time, remember, health is about finding the balance that works for your life.