Hiya Dear Friend,
Today we’re going to explore a health challenge that affects millions of Americans, particularly women: Hashimoto’s thyroiditis—a type of hypothyroidism.
In the past, I’ve given you a big picture look your thyroid health (get those details here). But did you know that most women with hypothyroidism don’t even know they have it? If you happen to be one them (or if you know you have this condition already), I hope this blog gives you clarity and helps you move towards greater health.
We’re going to focus primarily on Hashimoto’s thyroiditis today because this type of hypothyroidism accounts for about ninety percent of all cases in the US. Hashimoto’s is caused by an autoimmune attack on the thyroid. And it is by far the most prevalent cause of a slow functioning thyroid. But before we get to the top four Hashimoto’s triggers, let’s review some thyroid basics.
Your butterfly-shaped thyroid gland is the master thermostat for your body, determining, among many things, the rate of your metabolism, your energy levels and how well you’re burning fat.
Hashimoto’s occurs when your thyroid gland slows down.
If you’re dealing with this condition, you could experience a variety of symptoms including: Feeling tired, sluggish, cold and achy. Experiencing depression or anxiety. Difficulty managing your weight gain (no matter how disciplined you are. In addition, your body starts to store fat—some of it in the form of harmful cholesterol). Folks have problems with their hormones, including irregular or heavy periods, and even fertility troubles. Not to mention constipation, dry skin, sleep problems and even hair loss. Oiy!
Do these symptoms sound familiar? If so, Hashimoto’s could be the culprit. That’s why I’ve invited Aviva Romm, Integrative M.D. to give us the 411 on some of the biggest Hashimoto’s triggers. Aviva is a Yale-trained M.D. and Board Certified family physician, midwife and herbalist who is focused on helping women not only heal their bodies and minds, but transform their lives.
Take it away, Aviva!
Top 4 Causes of Hashimoto’s Disease
Thanks, Kris. As a functional medicine doctor and herbalist, my approach to thyroid health is to look for the root causes. Because when we know what led to the problem, we can create a more effective and holistic treatment plan. And in some cases we can reverse it and prevent other conditions from developing. While sometimes medications may be necessary to treat your thyroid condition, knowing the root cause will increase your chances of improving your health.
Celiac Disease
Celiac disease is a frequently misdiagnosed autoimmune condition. It’s also a common underlying cause of Hashimoto’s disease. When you have celiac disease, your body produces antibodies in reaction to gluten. These antibodies can attack the thyroid gland, as well as the thyroid receptors on your cells. This leads to a drop in thyroid hormone production and can prevent your body from using the thyroid hormones you’re still producing. Learn more about how to identify whether you have celiac disease here.
Leaky Gut Syndrome
Leaky gut syndrome is when your intestinal lining acts less like a barrier, and more like a sieve, allowing proteins to enter your bloodstream. This triggers the production of antibodies and causes an autoimmune reaction in your thyroid (aka Hashimoto’s). Gluten and other food intolerances, antibiotic and ibuprofen use, ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease are all linked to leaky gut syndrome. To find out more about leaky gut, check out this blog.
Adrenal Overdrive
Your adrenals, like your thyroid, are glands. They produce hormones and chemicals your body needs to function properly, including cortisol, adrenaline and aldosterone. These hormones control things like your blood sugar, insulin, fight-or-flight reaction, inflammation and blood pressure. So how are your adrenals connected to Hashimoto’s?
When you’re chronically exhausted, are calorie restricting or have chronic inflammation or infections, your adrenal glands tell your thyroid slow down. Why? So that your body can save energy for important tasks, like keeping inflammation at bay and storing fat so you have more energy to burn when needed. Slow thyroid equals Hashimoto’s and all the issues that come with it. And if adrenal overdrive becomes chronic, it can lead to an autoimmune disease, which will further deteriorate your thyroid health.
Here are some steps you can take to identify adrenal overdrive: work with your doctor to do a 24-hour saliva test, review a list of common signs (like the one in this blog) and check out Kris’ video on adrenal fatigue here.
Viral Infections
Whenever patients come to me with symptoms of fatigue, joint pain, anxiety and depression, I check for Hashimoto’s disease and a couple of viral infections that not only cause the same symptoms as Hashimoto’s but can be an underlying trigger for autoimmune hypothyroidism.
Viral infections that have a strong association with Hashimoto’s include Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), Yersinia enterocolitica (an intestinal infection), Helicobacter pylori (a stomach bug) and Cytomegalovirus. It is important to note that EBV is more likely to be contracted or reactivated if you are under a lot of stress and aren’t getting enough rest and nutritious, immune-supporting foods. Yersinia and H pylori are more likely to occur when your stomach’s immune defenses are down, often due to low stomach acid or B vitamins.
The best way to identify these viral infections is through blood testing. Treatments can range from herbal and nutritional support to prescribed medication, depending on the condition and the severity.
Thanks for this fantastic overview, Aviva!
Use the information in this blog to talk to your doctor so you can work together to identify the root cause of your thyroid issues.
If you have any of the symptoms we’ve covered, it’s a good idea to talk with your M.D. to run some thyroid labs, such as TSH, Free T3, Free T4, Reverse T3 (RT3), Thyroid peroxidase antibody (TPOAb) and Thyroglobulin antibody (TgAb).
I hope you feel empowered to become your own biggest advocate and team up with a supportive, open-minded health practitioner to get to the bottom of your situation.
Now it’s your turn: Share your thyroid health stories in the comments, whether you’re just starting to put this part of your health puzzle together or you’ve already found what works best for you.
Peace & glorious glands,
In 2003, I was diagnosed with Hashimoto’s. I recall experiencing symptoms in 2001, after I was rear-ended and experienced whiplash. My neck hurt and so did my feet. I was on a drug to change my brain’s pattern of having migraines and I was doing quite well until the whiplash. One of the symptoms I felt that day of the accident was fatigue. It wasn’t just being tired, it was fatigue, which I am still experiencing today. I went blind in 2003 due to a blood clot in the central retinal vein. It is a miracle that I do have some sight because of the optocilliary shunt vessels that rerouted the blood through my effected eye. I have whole body pain and degenerative disc disease, and I do experience residual eye pain. I am no longer working and this whole ordeal effects my cognitive abilities as well. I have always been in decent physical shape but I have gained 50 lbs. without any effort. Regardless of how I eat, I gain. I feel as though my life is out of my control. With the opioid problems, I no longer have any pain management as my long time physician who treated me very well are all retired. I am dealing with hypertension, depression, and much anxiety. Anxiety is a new condition I deal with and I believe it is because of the circumstances the autoimmune condition has put me in. Yes, I feel very victimized by this. Activity triggers pain so I am sedentary. I have a new primary physician and she has recently helped me by giving me generic zanaflex. That ability to be able to relax tense muscles (fibromyalgia), is wonderful. I also have a new pain management physician who has treated my cervical for pain. He began with treating the worst pain with facet joint injections. I have had two sets. But I am experiencing some depression and I do not know if it is a side effect of the steroid or not. I am going to see my primary doc at the end of this week and I will share that I am feeling quite low and anxious. I do not know if the cough I’ve had since September could be from Hashi’s. I do have G.E.R.D. and gastritis–the latter thanks to taking aleve but G.I. doc says unrelated. I suffer with migraines and so for that I go to the ER now. It is crazy to live like this. I think the anxiety is due to the fact that I never know if my pain needs will be addressed in time so I can avoid suffering. That is my fear because migraines cause me extreme pain. I apologize that this is not inspirational. It is like living on a ledge. I never know if I will step too far over and fall.
I have had a leaky gut problem since 2014. I spend a lot of money on the doctor, tests, labs, etc… NO RESULTS. The final decision of my doctor; “I am stressed out” and I think that is bullsh**.
My immune system is really weak. and I have no energy most of the times. Suddenly, I decided to go VEGAN, I don’t know how it happened, but I tried. I went vegan for 3 weeks and all the symptoms of the leaky guts disappeared. Then I felt so hungry and tired of vegetables and went back to eating meat. BUT, this time eating meat was painful, because I noticed how I felt different when I went VEGAN. So eating meat was not delicious and satisfying anymore. Then, I went back to strict VEGAN, NO meat, No Dairy. Then I added natural supplements from Sprouts market, such as L-glutamine, probiotics, digestive enzymes, and Quercetin. Also, I drink a lot of ginger tea, honey, and lemon. Also, I add miracle turmeric as an anti-inflammatory medicine. I have just started but I highly recommend you go VEGAN. That’s the only way. I have just started and followed Kris, I have never felt better in my life. God Bless :*
Hey,
Thanks for sharing. There are tons of things I have known here with regards to hypothyroidism and Hashimoto. I am getting myself checked-up because I could not totally tell because I experience some of the symptoms. So I guess, I’ll be going to the doctor tomorrow.
Hi Kris & Dr. Romm, thank you for tackling Hashimoto Disease in detail. I was diagnosed with it 20 years go, and with SLE (Lupus) 12 years ago. I am new subscriber to Kris’s website and wonder if you can point me to additional reading regarding people who have both of these autoimune diseases. Blessings, Carolyn
Can this infection cause Hashimoto’s thyroiditis? Since this causes abscesses, can it cause idiopathic abscesses? Idiopathic fever? My coworkers and I, all immunocompetent, got Disseminated Histoplasmosis in Dallas-Fort Worth from roosting bats, that shed the fungus in their feces. The doctors said we couldn’t possibly have it. The doctors were wrong. It causes inflammation throughout the body, focal neurologic deficits, causes “autoimmune” symptoms, and is not as rare as believed. This common airborne pathogen causes many idiopathic diseases and conditions, including hematological malignancies, myelitis, myositis, vasculitis. etc. I read “Inflammatory myofibroblastic tumors of the lung in children are a non-neoplastic process characterized by an unregulated proliferation of inflammatory cells. The etiology of these ‘tumors’ is “not certain and often difficult to ascertain.” But it was caused in a child by Disseminated Histoplasmosis. I think it can cause interstitial cystitis and its comorbid conditions. It causes hypervascularization, calcifications, sclerosis, fibrosis, necrosis, leukopenia, anemia, neutrophilia, pancytopenia, thrombocytopenia, hypoglycemia, polyps, abscesses, stenosis, and perforations, inflammation of various organs, GI problems, hepatitis, etc. More than 100 outbreaks have occurred in the U.S. since 1938, and those are just the ones that were figured out, since people go to different doctors. One outbreak was over 100,000 victims in Indianapolis. It at least “mimics” autoimmune diseases, cancer, mental illness, migraines, seizures, etc. It’s known to cause rheumatological conditions, inflammation, and precancerous conditions. It can cause numerous and various diseases/conditions of unknown cause. It causes hematological malignancies, and some doctors claim their leukemia patients go into remission when given antifungal. My friend in another state who died from lupus lived across the street from a bat colony. An acquaintance with alopecia universalis has bat houses on her property. It’s known to cause delusions, wild mood swings, and hallucinations. I believe the “side effects” of Haldol, leukopenia and MS symptoms, are not side effects but just more symptoms of Disseminated Histoplasmosis, since it causes leukopenia and MS symptoms. What about the unknown reason why beta blockers cause tardive dyskinesia? The tinnitus, photophobia, psychosis “caused” by Cipro? The hypersexuality and leukemia “caused” by Abilify? The fungus is an Oxygenale and therefore consumes collagen. Fungal hyphae carry an electrical charge and align under a current. It’s most potent in female lactating bats, because the fungus likes sugar (lactose) and nitrogen (amino acids, protein). What about female lactating humans…postpartum psychosis? The bats give birth late spring/summer, and I noticed suicide rates spike in late spring/early summer. A map of mental distress and some diseases appear to almost perfectly overlay a map of Histoplasmosis. The bats eat moths, which are attracted to blue and white city lights. Apparently, even the CDC didn’t know bats CARRY it and shed it in their feces. Researchers claim the subacute type is more common than believed. It is known to at least mimic autoimmune diseases and cancer, and known to give false-positives in PET scans. But no one diagnosed with an autoimmune disease or cancer is screened for it. In fact, at least one NIH paper states explicitly that all patients diagnosed with sarcoidosis be tested for it, but most, if not all, are not. 80-90+% of people in some areas have been infected. It can lay dormant for up to 40 years in the lungs and/or adrenals. It causes RNA/DNA damage. Other doctors are claiming things like sarcoidosis IS disseminated histoplasmosis. My coworkers and I had GI problems, liver problems, weird rashes, plantar fasciitis, etc., and I had swollen lymph nodes, hives, lesions, and started getting migraines and plantar fasciitis in the building, and haven’t had them since I left. It gave me temporary fecal incontinence, seizures, dark blood from my intestines, and benign paroxysmal positional vertigo. I had symptoms of several autoimmune diseases, including Fibromyalgia, Sarcoidosis, ALS, MS, etc. that have disappeared since leaving the area and taking Itraconazole antifungal. No one, including doctors, could figure out what was wrong with us, and I was being killed by my doctor, who mistakenly refused to believe I had it and gave me Prednisone (at least 2 years after I already had Disseminated Histoplasmosis) after a positive ANA titer, until I miraculously remembered that a visiting man once told my elementary school class that bats CARRY histoplasmosis….so much of it that they evolved to deal with the photophobia and tinnitus it causes by hunting at night by echolocation. There’s a lot more. I wrote a book about my experience with Disseminated Histoplasmosis called “Batsh#t Crazy,” because bats shed the fungus in their feces and it causes delusions and hallucinations, I suspect by the sclerotia it can form emitting hallucinogens, along with inflammation in the CNS.
Unfortunately my husband was just diagnosed with the opposite issue, Grave’s Disease. Also an autoimmune disorder that attacks the thyroid. Very different issue, but I do wish more doctors would take the approach that looks for the underlying cause, not just looking to treat symptoms.