One Body

At the front of your neck and under your voice box, lies a butterfly shaped organ that arguably carries the weight of your body’s health and balance entirely on its’ shoulders. The thyroid gland produces three essential hormones: Triiodothyronine (T3), Tetraiodothyronine/Thyroixine (T4), and Calcitonin. T3 and T4 affect nearly every cell and organ of your body by increasing your basal metabolic rate; controlling your metabolism.  An increased BMR will cause your heart rate to increase, body temperature to rise, food will be used up quickly as energy in liver and muscles is broken down, and children’s brains and bodies will mature and grow. Calcitonin is also released by the thyroid gland to regulate calcium levels. Without the combined magic of these hormones, our bodies would not be able to self-regulate, leading to weight loss/gain, dry skin and rashes, being excessively cold or hot, mood disorders, heavy or scarce periods, and more. 

The reason we are talking about this today is that 1 in 8 women will statistically develop a thyroid disease in their lifetime, and seemingly no one is asking why. The importance of knowing what factors in our food, environment, underlying health conditions and more can debilitate our thyroid are paramount. Even more so, being able to recognize the symptoms of an over or under active thyroid in yourself can save you years of suffering. 

The first factor to note in cases of thyroid disease and dysfunction is nutrition. Specifically, Iron, Iodine, and Selenium. Unfortunately, despite our efforts to eat a healthy and balanced diet, we can still have deficiencies in these important minerals due to soil quality and other conditions such as poor gut health affecting proper absorption.

For the sake of today’s article, let’s discuss how these minerals affect hormone health. 

• Iodine is the main building block of T3 and T4. Deficient intake=formation of nodular goiters that lead to thyroid autoimmunity and is the number one cause of hypothyroidism in regions where nutritional lack exists
• Iron deficiency can significantly reduce thyroid hormone production by decreasing the activity of TPO (Thyroid Peroxidase-enzyme that plays a role in hormone production)
• Iron deficiency can actually predict an inability to self-regulate body temperature and poor maternal thyroid health, supplementation with thyroid hormones can improve your iron levels by assisting absorption
• Thyroid contains the largest amount of Selenium of any other organ in the body. Deficiency has been linked to enlarged thyroid, thyroid cancer, hypothyroidism, and more. 
• Hyperthyroidism can actually increase our body’s demand for magnesium, and low serum magnesium has been shown to indicate abnormal thyroid function

Poor Gut Health

Compromised gut health, with the trillions of bacteria and microorganisms it inhabits, has an impact on every single bodily function, but many people are surprised to learn that our thyroid takes an especially hard hit. In fact, thyroid and intestinal diseases commonly coexist! Think: Celiacs disease and Hashimoto’s.Let’s take a deeper look at this. 

• The gut modulates both the innate and adaptive immune system. A damaged intestinal barrier, such as someone with leaky gut, allows for increased permeability for antigens to pass through when they shouldn’t, inappropriately activating our immune system and leading to autoimmunity.
• As mentioned previously, critical thyroid nutrients cannot be properly absorbed, leading to a myriad of dysfunction within the thyroid and hormone production 
• There is a direct correlation between SCFA’s and the number of regulatory T-cells we have. SCFA’s (short chain fatty acids) are found through soluble fiber such as beans and whole grains, and play an important role in immune regulation, anti -inflammatory effects, and strengthening tight junctions with thyroid hormones
• Taking probiotics can help! In hypothyroidism and hyperthyroidism, Lactobacillaceae and Bifidobacteriaceae are often reduced. An additional study showed that Lactobacillus reuteri supplementation increased free T4, thyroid mass, and physiological parameters in mice such as activity level

What ties into Gut Health? Estrogen levels

There is no perfect balance of how much estrogen we should have at certain points in our cycle, but the key is that it should fluctuate and change throughout the month. The problem arises when we are seeing chronically high levels of estrogen that do not seem to budge. Poor gut health, irregular bowel movements, and a lack of microbiota diversity can lead to estrogen dominance and, you guessed it, thyroid disorders. 

• Thyroid disorders are significantly most common in menstruating women from puberty to menopause, which correlates directly with rising levels of estrogen
• High estrogen stimulates growth of the thyroid gland (known as a goiter when oversized). This is why estrogen increase at puberty, it is a catalyst for growth all around!
• Excess estrogen can also block uptake of thyroid hormones, leading to eventual hypothyroidism (low levels of thyroid hormones). 
• Leads to a halt in the conversion of T4 →T3 , resulting in low levels of T3 which can show up as being cold, fatigue, constipation, dry skin, weakness, and weight gain

The Common Denominator: Blood Sugar 

Maintaining a balanced blood sugar deserves every second in the spotlight it is getting lately as a buzzword in health. Blood sugar imbalance is essentially adding fuel to the fire for someone with preexisting thyroid dysfunction, with patients with a diabetes diagnosis being up to 3x more likely to develop issues with their thyroid. Constant blood sugar swings cause stress to the body, and stress has a domino effect that can result in catastrophe for the thyroid. 

• T3 and T4 both maintain glucose hemostasis in your body and have a negative correlation with insulin levels
• Those with hypothyroidism are found to have increased insulin levels as thyroid dysfunction alters glucose and lipid metabolism

Your Environment Matters too: Heavy Metals and Endocrine Disruptors 

Now that we have covered every basis of how gut health, nutrition, blood sugar, and estrogen levels tie together to help or harm your thyroid, it’s necessary to note how what is outside of your control is a probable cause as well. Exposure to heavy metals and endocrine disrupting chemicals (think: drinking water, food packaging, pesticides, cleaning agents, and more). 

Heavy Metals:

• Those who live in the volcanic region of Sicily were found to have rates of thyroid cancer nearly double that of the rest of the population, suggesting a high correlation with heavy metal exposure
• In recent decades, incidence of thyroid cancer has doubled globally, paralleling an increase in heavy metal exposure in our environment, food, and water. An example of this is Nitrates and Nitrites in our drinking water. A consequence of an increasingly industrialized way of life.
• Cells suffer hits both directly and indirectly from heavy metal exposure as enzymes bind to the metals and form free radicals

Endocrine Disruptors: 

• PCB’s are chemical compounds largely used in pesticides before they were banned in the 70’s. Unfortunately, they continue to live on in our food chain causing cancer and lowering thyroid hormones
• A high concentration of PCB’s has been found in maternal milk associated with low T3 and T4 and higher TSH
• PBDE’s are used commonly as flame retardants in plastics, mattresses, etc. and are very easily absorbed into tissue once there is an exposure. These are very commonly linked to thyroid cancer
• BPA’s and Phthalates affect thyroid hormone homeostasis and thyroid growth
• BPA from food and drink containers can be transferred to humans and cause possible reproductive issues, most of us are likely to have BPA in urine, plasma, tissues, and serum
• Urinary BPA levels are significantly higher in patients with PTC (Papillary Thyroid Carcinoma)
• PFAS are synthetic chemicals introduced in the 1940’s in food, household products, and water that have a biological half life of up to 8 years 
• Oxidative damage and immunosuppression from PFAS is found  as well as disrupting cellular pathways leads to cancer 
• Agricultural Pesticides  contain known thyroid disrupting chemicals that imitate thyroid hormones and lead to cancer 

Radiation

Thyroid disorders have a high rate of comorbidity with other autoimmune diseases, and part of this may tie into excessive radiation being done in hospitals and dentist offices through X-rays. When thyroid cells absorb excess radioactive iodine, cancer develops. 

• High dose radiation is shown to destroy the thyroid gland
• In one study, incidence of Hypothyroidism was 44% in those who received more than 30 Gy radiation 
• An analysis of patients at St.Judes children hospital in children with 298 patients with malignant, non thyroid related disease, 26 developed subclinical or overt Hypothyroidism 

As stress levels rise in our society along with exposure to chemicals, reduced minerals in soil and absorption of them once they hit our gut, blood sugar dysregulation, and hormone imbalance….it creates a perfect storm for our thyroid. This should not make you feel completely out of control and helpless, destined to follow your family pattern of aunts, mothers, and grandmothers taking synthetic thyroid hormones after their own failed. Here’s what steps you can take:

• Follow a thyroid friendly diet that focuses on iodine, selenium, and zinc while also balancing your blood sugar by eating protein and veggies with every meal, never carbohydrates/sweets alone
• Reduce your exposure to BPA’s by reducing the water and food you consume from plastic 
• Reduce exposure also to fluoride by switching to Hydroxyapatite toothpaste, avoiding nonstick cookware and flame resistant fabrics, and avoiding fragrance
• Consistent probiotics and exercise to maintain microbiome diversity and stress levels
• Consider getting a full thyroid panel if you are concerned