Adrenal-Thyroid Connection

Adrenal-Thyroid Connection

When your adrenals are constantly stressed, this sets off an autoimmune, inflammatory response in your entire body. The adrenal-hypothalamus-pituitary feedback loop regulates the secretion of cortisol. All of your organs and your immune system are impacted negatively by the resulting constant assault of cortisol. Low adrenal function can actually cause someone’s thyroid problem to be much worse than it would be otherwise.

When people with both low thyroid and low adrenal function are put on thyroid hormone alone, they sometimes feel worse. If you have low adrenal levels and take thyroid hormone by itself, the increased metabolism may accelerate the low adrenal problem. Also, interactions between the hormones are sometimes as important as the direct action of the hormone itself. Some adrenal hormones assist in the conversion of T-4 to T-3, and may assist in the final effect of T-3 on the tissues. Some scientists believe that even the entrance of thyroid hormone into the cells is under the influence of adrenal hormones. If your adrenal level is low enough, you could benefit by taking both adrenal and thyroid support together.

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Sugar & Thyroid Blues

Sugar & Thyroid Blues

Do you have impaired thyroid function?

The Association of Clinical Endocrinologists says that 27 million Americans suffer from thyroid dysfunction, and about half go undiagnosed. Subclinical hypothyroidism, a condition in which TSH is elevated but free T4 is normal, may affect an additional 24 million Americans. Taken together, more than 50 million Americans are affected by some form of thyroid disorder.

Symptoms of Low Thyroid

•           Fatigue

•           Weight Gain

•           Depression

•           Constipation

•           Hair falls out easily

•           Dry skin

•           Poor circulation and numbness in hand and feet

•           Morning headaches that wear off as day progresses

If you have many of these symptoms, you may want to get a thyroid test.  But keep in mind, that just suboptimal function may not show up.

If you have impaired thyroid function, you must quit sugar in short order. Sugar causes leaky gut, which is often cited as a precursor to autoimmune disease. Sugar inflames and mucks up your entire endocrine system, which includes the thyroid and adrenal glands. Sugar causes insulin spikes, which destroy the thyroid gland and the adrenals. In addition to the damage caused by insulin, a compromised thyroid gland will slow the removal of insulin from the bloodstream.

Balancing your blood sugar is critical for healing your thyroid gland. The body needs a blood sugar range between 85-99,  Inflammatory chemicals will be released in the body when you get out of range. These inflammatory chemicals are called cytokines, which have  a domino effect that is difficult to stop and can lead to thyroid dysfunction.

Symptoms of Imbalanced blood sugar

•           Poor memory, forgetful

•           Fatigue after meals

•           Increased thirst and appetite

•           Difficulty sleeping

•           Waist girth is equal or larger than hip girth

•           Feel shaky, jittery, tremors

•           Blurred vision

•           Depend on coffee to get going in morning

•           Lightheaded if meals are missed

•           Crave sweets during the day

•           Agitated, easily upset, nervous

•           Wake up nauseated

Blood Sugar Imbalance, Thyroid, and Adrenal Impact

Blood sugar and adrenal problems go hand in hand.  If you have one imbalance, you will most likely have the other.  This will impact the liver, pituitary, gut, heart, and hippocampus.  Remember, most of our inactive form of T4 gets converted to the active form T3 in the liver and gut.  The fluctuations in blood sugar drastically affect the thyroid glands function in multiple ways.  Healing hypothyroidism is futile if your blood sugar level is too high or too low.

To balance your blood sugar, omit all sugar and simple carbohydrates, meaning refined flour products such as bread, rolls, buns, pasta, and pizza.  In addition, ditch the alcohol, coffee, soda pop, junk food, and fast food.  Eat plenty of high fiber vegetables, seeds, nuts, vegetable juices, and green smoothies.

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