All About Hypothyroidism And Weight Gain

By Rob V Timothy

The thyroid is a small endocrine gland found in the lower part of our neck. This organ functions to produce thyroid hormones that will regulate our metabolism, temperature, and the use of other hormones and vitamins. Metabolism is the ability of our body to break down our consumed calories and convert it into energy. Food fuels our body; the calories that we consume generally provide energy to our body cells so our organs can physiologically perform properly.
When our thyroid malfunctions, our body's ability to metabolize food is generally affected. Thyroid and weight gain definitely has a relationship; overactive thyroid can leave people with difficulty gaining weight while an underactive thyroid will make a person struggle with weight gain.
Hypothyroidism is when the thyroid does not produce enough thyroid hormones. An underactive thyroid will under produce necessary hormones to regulate certain body functions including our ability to metabolize food. Altered metabolism in hypothyroidism will result in weight gain; the body's ability to produce energy from the food we eat is slowed down.
Stress and iodine deficiency are some factors that are considered to be the cause of this condition. Early stages of hypothyroidism will produce mild signs and symptoms but can be asymptomatic as well. Some symptoms aside from weight gain includes increase sensitivity to cold, constipation, depression, fatigue, sluggish reflexes, water retention, decreased vital signs and decreased sweating. Your doctor will require a diagnostic test to reveal the condition of your thyroid function; a blood specimen will be extracted and measured.
The results will help doctors diagnose you with any thyroid problems that will explain the symptoms that you might be experiencing. Synthetic thyroid hormones in a form of pills will be prescribed in an attempt to bring the thyroid hormones into normal functioning. It should be taken daily and regular laboratory test will be performed to monitor thyroid levels and to also give way to medication dosage adjustments.
Gaining weight must be one of the struggles a hypothyroid patient could face. Diet in conjunction with increase physical activity is highly recommended to these patients. Limiting one's caloric intake and performing regular exercise are one of the few things that must be done aside from the daily intake of medications. Practicing a healthy lifestyle for these patients is necessary to take them away from the risk of becoming overweight or obese. Obesity and overweight will increase the likelihood of another health problem, which will add complexity to the primary condition of hypothyroidism. A patient suffering with hypothyroidism will definitely need great motivation to gain control over his diagnosis.
Malfunctioning thyroid and weight gain can be a big problem for the victims of this illness but always remember it is definitely controllable with medications and healthy lifestyle. Losing weight while being hypothyroid might be difficult and frustrating, weight loss will be slow in pace due to the current misbehaving hormones. It is best to combine pharmacotherapy, diet and exercise to combat this illness and avoid secondary diseases that you might get along the way if you have an uncontrolled hypothyroidism.
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