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Hypothyroidism is a very common problem with thyroid
related illness and can cause you to have low energy,
concentration problems, it can affect mood and cause you to
gain weight. If you have chronic fatigue syndrome or
fibromyalgia, I would suggest that this is one of the first
things you should have checked. But there are some
particularly telling — but little known — signs and
symptoms of hypothyroidism that some doctors, and even
fewer patients, are aware of, but can help lead to the
correct diagnosis.

Hypothyroidism is very often associated with hair loss. You
may notice a heavier-than-normal loss of hair from the
head. Even body hair, — including underarm and pubic hair —
may shed or thin. This sort of hair loss can be due to a
thyroid problem, but it can also show up with other
hormonal imbalances, illnesses, age, and due to genetics
and heredity.

If you have any unexplained hair loss, and especially, if
you have loss of hair from the outer edge of your eyebrows,
it’s time for a thorough thyroid evaluation from a
knowledgeable practitioner. But one type of hair loss is
considered unique to hypothyroidism. It is the loss of the
hair in the outer edge of the eyebrows. This is a
characteristic sign of hypothyroidism, and is not linked to
other diseases.

Many people have elevated cholesterol levels, and doctors
are becoming more aggressive about recommending treatment.
Often for borderline-high levels, doctors recommend a trial
of diet and exercise to get the numbers down and back into
balance. If that doesn’t work, or if the numbers are
especially high, doctors may recommend cholesterol-lowering
drugs, most commonly, the statin drugs, like Lipitor.

Undiagnosed, untreated hypothyroidism can make elevated
cholesterol resistant to treatment. Despite diet, exercise
and prescription medications, cholesterol levels may remain
high, confounding doctors and patients alike. Generally, if
you have high cholesterol, you should always have a
thorough, comprehensive thyroid evaluation to completely
rule out hypothyroidism before taking cholesterol-lowering
thyroid medications. And if you are on cholesterol-lowering
drugs that aren’t working, definitely talk to your doctor
about your thyroid.

It’s one of those topics we often don’t want to discuss,
but persistent or chronic constipation can be a sign of an
underactive thyroid. Because the thyroid regulates
metabolism, the metabolic slowdown of hypothyroidism also
slows down the digestive system, and food moves more slowly
through digestion and elimination, frequently resulting in
chronic constipation. Often, common remedies — such as
increasing water intake, fruits like dried prunes or prune
juice, upping the fiber intake — are tried, with no
results. Over-the-counter, herbal and prescription drugs
may also fail to resolve the problem. If you are
experiencing chronic constipation, you should always be
exhaustively evaluated for an underactive thyroid.

Many women consider loss of sex drive as an unavoidable
part of getting older, but it doesn’t have to be that way.
Low — or no — sex drive may actually be a sign of
undiagnosed, untreated hypothyroidism in some women. If
you have a problem with your libido, any medical workup
your doctor does to evaluate you should also include a
complete thyroid examination, to rule out low thyroid as a
potential cause. There are even suspcions of infertility
related to hypothriodism.

As many as 21 million Americans — some 9.5% of the
population age 18 and older — have a mood disorder,
including major depression, dysthymic disorder (milder,
longer-term depression), and bipolar disorder. Depression
and mood changes can be a symptom of untreated low thyroid.
And unfortunately, some of the millions of people diagnosed
and treated for depression and mood disorders are actually
suffering from undiagnosed hypothyroidism.

There is no blood test for depression, so diagnosis is made
based on a discussion of the symptoms. But thyroid disease
diagnosis requires evaluation and testing, and so with
today’s 5-minute doctor visits and managed care cost
containment, mood-related symptoms are quickly attributed
to depression, and a prescription written for
antidepressants or antianxiety medications, rather than a
more time-intensive thyroid evaluation, and the cost of
bloodwork to test the thyroid.

While some thyroid patients can have a separate mood
disorder that also warrants treatment, it’s essential that
everyone diagnosed with depression or other mood disorders
be fully evaluated as early as possible to rule out any
underlying thyroid imbalances.

When you request a test be prepared to tell the Doctor
you want to test your TSH, T3 and T4 at the minimum.
Most Doctors only test for TSH which is a weak base line
to use for testing.

MJ Jensen
Healthtips.markatbooks.com/blog

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