“An astute clinician should always ask what else is going wrong, as a result and cause, when identifying a thyroid imbalance.”
Thyroid disorders are one of the most common complaints I receive in my functional medicine practice, simply because they are dramatically under-diagnosed in the United States. According to the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists, approximately 50% of the 27 million Americans suffering from thyroid dysfunction go on undiagnosed. Sadly, this statistic will continue to increase every year as more individuals develop thyroid disorders. So, why is thyroid dysfunction becoming increasingly common and why are individuals (despite being tested through traditional blood work) not being properly diagnosed? That comes down to the current model of care for thyroid health practiced by traditional medicine.
In my practice, I use a functional medicine approach to thyroid health. This involves proper/comprehensive testing to understand the root cause of an individual’s thyroid problem and how it inter-relates to their overall body biochemistry. By using this type of approach, I am able to help patients understand why they have a thyroid problem and more importantly, how they can support and manage their thyroid for the rest of their life. This enables patients to take control of their health and gain a better understanding of their individual body needs.
Every cell in the human body is dependent on thyroid hormone, so as you can imagine, thyroid dysfunction can affect every organ in a negative way. Thyroid hormone is crucial for supporting the immune system, maintaining healthy cholesterol levels, balancing reproductive hormones, and proper digestive/brain health just to name a few. Due to its high demand, an imbalance in thyroid hormone levels can lead to far reaching symptoms such as fatigue, weight gain, abdominal bloating/constipation, hair loss, depression, and low libido.
Due to the complexity of thyroid dysfunction and the multitude of symptoms it can cause, many individuals continue to go un-diagnosed because the standard lab markers that their doctor or endocrinologist is running continue to come back “normal”. If you or a loved one is suffering with symptoms of thyroid dysfunction, I encourage you to watch my educational videos on this page to help you understand how to get to the root cause of your thyroid problem by using a functional medicine approach.