Thyroid Problems

The thyroid is controlled by the hypothalamus and pituitary…remember those little guys?

The thyroid is one of the largest endocrine glands in the body. It is found in the neck just below the laryngeal prominence (Adam’s apple). The thyroid controls how quickly the body burns energy, makes proteins, and how sensitive the body should be to other hormones.  The thyroid participates in these processes by producing thyroid hormones, principally thyroxine (T4) and triiodothyronine (T3). These hormones regulate the rate of metabolism and affect the growth and rate of function of many other systems in the body. Iodine is an essential component of both T3 and T4. 

The thyroid also produces the hormone calcitonin, which plays a role in calcium balance or homeostasis. 

Homeostasis is the state of normal function (‘natural health’ to us).  We believe this is what the body will bring itself to when given all that is needed by it, i.e. minerals, vitamins, enzymes, amino acids, fatty acids, and all the other tiny pieces of the puzzle science thinks it has figured out.

Let’s talk about what wrong looks like.  So many times in our society we just get used to dysfunction and start to think that it’s normal.  Well, it’s not!  Chronic fatigue is not normal.  Wild weight gain is not normal.  Neither is wild weight loss.  The thyroid can be the source of these and other metabolic problems, but often it is not the root cause.  We need to start expecting ‘health professionals’ to help fix the problem—not patch the effects of the problem until some other effect pops up from the so-called treatment.

Hypothyroidism  Signs and symptoms include:

• Fatigue and weakness 
• Weight gain with low calorie diet 
• Morning headaches that wear off thru the day 
• Depression 
• Constipation 
• Hypersensitive to cold weather 
• Poor circulation/numbness in hands/feet
• Muscle cramps while at rest
• More sleep needed to function normally
• Immune system problems
• Dry or brittle hair
• Loss of hair/falls out easily
• Dry skin
• Low axillary temp (armpit)
• Facial edema
• Loss of outside portion of eyebrows 

Hypothyroidism is the underproduction of T3 and T4.  It can be caused by congenital abnormalities, auto-immune disorders, iodine deficiency, or damage/removal of the thyroid.  It is often treated by giving synthetic hormone replacers. 

There are two types of deficiency in the hormone/ nutrional world—primary and secondary.  Primary is when the needed nutrient/hormone is not physically present.  Secondary is when the nutrients/ hormones are present but not able to be metabolized or used in the needed way.  For example, Iodine is the primary nutrient needed for the thyroid to make T3 and T4.  However it also must have amino acids (Tyrosine) from the breakdown of proteins in order to transport that Iodine. 

Also, keep in mind those ‘master glands’ the Hypothalamus and Pituitary—if they’re not getting what they need they’re not going to direct the Thyroid correctly either.

Talk about a ‘chicken or the egg’ conundrum!  Maybe a better first approach would be a diet change to balance ph, provide enzymes, supply non-GMO fresh and local proteins, carbs, and fats, and try a quality whole food vitamin/mineral supplement.  Why not try this before taking synthetic hormones?  The monetary price tag may be higher for this route because most health insurance doesn’t subsidize it, but hey-you can’t wait on the government to get things right! :)

Thyroid issues are so common Young Living founder D. Gary Young formulated a supplement specifically for it.  It’s called Thyromin and it contains the amino acids L-Tyrosine, L-Cystine, L-Cysteine HCL, Iodine from kelp, Potassium, glandular extracts (Pituitary and others) from porcine, Vitamin E, and several herbs traditionally used to support the Thyroid.  *

Productive exercises common this time of year are snow shoveling and raking leaves.  If you need a hard work out, try adding a HIIT workout in between shoveling your neighbors sidewalk.  HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) has a higher pay-off metabolically for a smaller time investment--usually 20 minutes or less if you're not cheating yourself.  Check out some of the free apps for workout generators available on your phone.  I love snow shoveling and raking leaves in the cool weather as part of a warm up or cool down activity before or after exercise.

Another diet tweak to try if you don't already is sprouted grains.  The nutritional value of grains after sprouting is much greater than before.  The extra enzyme, protein, mineral, and vitamin content supports healthy endocrine function.  The easiest one we've found is the humble lentil.  I'll soak a cup of the dry lentils in a 2 quart mason jar with 3 cups of water (they really expand a lot!) overnight.  In the morning I rinse well and pour them into a stainless steel colander on a plate with a dish towel over top and leave at room temp.  By dinner time that night the magic lentils will have popped open and started to send out their shoot.  These are perfect tender nuggets for salads or added to soups and stews after the cooking is done on cold winter days.

A small step in the right direction of our health journey is to balance ph—next time we’ll talk about how and why to do it (did you know Iodine has a very narrow range of body ph where it can be used effectively?). 

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*These statements have not been evaluated by the FDA.  This information is for informational purposes only—it’s your body and nobody cares more about it than you!  This information is not meant to diagnose, treat, or prescribe anything.  If you feel you have a medical need, see the healthcare provider of your choice.

Shout out to NaturalHealthSolutionsPHC.com for some content source.

Feed your Brain- Feed your Hormones

The glands we’ve looked at in the past few posts are all linked to hormones. In order to make good hormones fat is needed—the same requirement the brain has.

Little known facts about the brain:

• It is the fattiest organ in our body, made up of 60% fat

• There are approximately 100,000 miles of blood vessels in our brains

• There are 100 billion neurons and each neuron has between 1,000 and 10,000 synapses

• While computers and the brain are not like comparing apples to apples, it took the world’s 4th fastest computer 40 minutes to compute what the brain does in 1 second.

• Your brain uses up to 25% of your daily calorie intake.

• Your myelin sheath is 70% fat.  http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-508236/Eat-way-cleverness---foods-dramatically-affect-brainpower.html

What does the brain do?

The brain operates with electrical and chemical pathways. Switching between the two with grace and ease.

The nerve impulse travels down the neuron until it reaches the synapse, then it converts to a chemical message to cross the space between the neuron and either the next neuron or the end muscle or gland cells.

Your brain controls virtually every part of your body and your body systems.

There is a growing body of evidence that the heart may have some influence over the brain; however that is a different class...

What does the brain need to be happy and healthy?

Healthy Fats

Have you ever heard the old saying about “Greasing the wheels in your brain”?

Much of the research that suggests a non-red meat, non-dairy diet is highly flawed.  Though well intentioned, many medical professionals recommended people eat diets of trans-fat margarine and cooking oils while removing whole fat dairy and natural fats from meats.  Current heart disease and other research shows how bad for your body trans-fats really are.

Nourishing Traditions, by Sally Fallon is a great resource for lots of references to the research that supports adding healthy red meat, natural fats, and dairy back into a balanced diet.

DHA and Omega fatty acids seem to be hot button buzz words lately. But what do these substances do?

They grease the cogs and help those wheels keep spinning. Remember the myelin sheath? It is 70% fat…. You have to feed your brain! There is a growing body of evidence that if provided the proper nutrition your brain can heal.  But, what is the first thing that happens if someone is admitted to the hospital with a stroke? LOW FAT diet!!!!!!!!! HMMMMMMMMMMMMMM

DO NOT HEAR ME SAY eat unlimited fried food!!! In fact, fried food is not even on my list of healthy fats.

Wild caught salmon, avocados, raw grass fed dairy, grass fed red meat (yes the fat is different in grass fed vs stockyard beef), nuts, seeds, whole pastured eggs, raw organic olive oil, and coconut oil are some great places to start with adding healthy fats into your diet.

Studies have shown that diets rich in healthy fats have lower incidence of depression, greater success with weight loss, and lower incidence of heart disease. High rates of cardiovascular disease is a relatively new phenomenon. In fact when the man who invented the EKG machine presented it to his colleagues at Harvard, they told him to not waste his time with something that wouldn’t ever make money.

Another thing that is very important to a healthy brain is high levels of antioxidants. Free Radicals can do damage to the neurons and myelin sheath of the brain and nervous system. Free radicals have been implicated in many studies linking them to memory loss, cancer, tissue damage in stroke victims and many other health related issues.

So where does Young Living fit into this picture?

YL provides a number of supplements that can help to feed your brain and hormones.

• NingXia Red: high in amino acids which are important building blocks to all things cellular- including neurotransmitters and cell walls. It also has the highest S-ORAC score (anti-oxidant measurement) of any product compared in a recent study—30 times higher than the next leading brand in fact!

• Mind Wise: great source of Omega Fatty acids. Tastes great and kids will take willingly

• Omegagize: pill form

 







A small step for change.

Consider these suggestions and determine to make one small step forward on your health journey. Incorporate a healthy fat into your diet each day:

• Do a Ningxia Red challenge—try it as suggested for 30 days.

• Try YL’s Omegagize.

• Add a Tablespoon of organic flaxseed oil to your breakfast cereal, oatmeal, pancakes, etc.

• Go in with a group of friends or food co-op to get a grass fed beef half or whole from a local farmer. You’d be surprised at the cost savings if you can buy and store 6 months or more of what you need at a time. You also get a healthier product and stimulate your local economy.

•          Find a local farmer that sells grass fed raw milk and patronize them.  http://www.realmilk.com/real-milk-finder/
   
• Make your own salad dressings with organic olive or coconut oils (essential oils are great for infusing salad dressings.

• Buy nuts in bulk. Look at what’s local for you. Around us walnut and pecan season is just around the corner. 

• Think about getting some backyard chickens. It doesn’t take many to feed a family great fat, and you know exactly what they’re eating. 

• Go to the Pacific Northwest on vacation and bring back Salmon.  Fishing is a great example of productive exercise that is good for the body and soul.

Next time we’ll tackle another Endocrine puzzle: the Thyroid.

Please feel free to contact me with any suggestions on topics, projects, or whatever! If you have a specific question about your health journey please contact me. I’ll do my best to answer, and may add it to the discussion here (keeping anonymity of course)—chances are someone else has the same concern.  We also welcome other suggestions on local healthy fats.

Thankful today for health, freedom, and purpose.
To your health-
Clint and Joy