Welcome to part III of The Thyroid: Beyond the Immune System! Last week’s post introduced the function and mechanism of TSH, T3 and T4, and the roles they play in thyroid health. This week’s post brings us into the heart of the series. The thyroid can affect and be affected by many different systems in the body, including the liver, the GI tract and hormonal functions.
Click Here to read part I.
Click Here to read part II.
Click Here to read part IV
What if the thyroid gland works fine, but the message is not being sent from the brain?
This can be called secondary hypothyroid as opposed to primary hypothyroid. Primary hypothyroid is when the brain and pituitary gland are sending the message, but the thyroid just can’t get the job done, so TSH goes up, and T4 remains low.
Secondary hypothyroid is when the pituitary gland does not send the message loud and clear that the body needs to make more thyroid hormone. This will result in low TSH, and thus, T4 remains low. This can be caused by disease of the pituitary, but it can also occur without disease. It is now known that excess cortisol, due to the body perceiving stress or danger for an extended period of time, can cause this problem. The cortisol will inhibit the signals from the hypothalamus to the pituitary and suppress TSH output.
These pathways can also be impacted by drugs that alter dopamine and serotonin levels. These include drugs that impact anxiety, depression, attention deficit, hyperactivity, etc. Millions of people are taking these medications daily.
Inflammation and immune functions can alter thyroid hormone function.
Sometimes the body treats immune reactions as if they are chronic infections, such as food sensitivities. Autoimmune diseases have increased, in many cases, over 400 percent in just two or three decades.
“Immune disorders have great potential to disrupt thyroid physiology and promote concomitant dysfunction in cellular metabolism.”
“Thyroid hormones are classified as immune system modulators, and thyroid function and metabolism should be considered in cases of immune challenges.”
–Dr. Datis Kharrazian, Mastering the Thyroid course manual, page 25
Chronic illness related to any autoimmune disease, chronic bacterial, viral, or microbial infections can include:
- Epstein barr virus
- Cytomegalovirus
- Herpes simplex virus
- Lyme disease
- Hepatitis, yeast and parasitic infections
- Failed root canals
- Gum disease
The immune system, like the nervous system, has an advanced communication system using chemicals called cytokines. These cytokines have the ability to shut down certain bodily processes, such as thyroid hormone physiology. In the short term during a crisis like the flu, this can be a wise and healthy response. However, immune responses that are chronic result in long-term suppression of important hormones like thyroid hormone and cause chronic inflammation.
The immune system can act at many different points of the thyroid hormone story – the receptors, the enzymes, the conversion, etc.
What else can go wrong?
Liver:
Liver health and/or function can be compromised. The enzymes that are responsible for the conversion of T4 to T3 are located in the liver.
Think of the liver as a bridge going from the inside of your body to the outside. The cars on that bridge are toxins and byproducts of our own normal metabolism that need to be removed from the body. The bridge has six lanes of detoxification for the cars to travel on. Each lane has a name: glutathione conjugation, methylation, acetylation, glucuronidation, sulfation, and amino acid conjugation. If one or more of those lanes are shut down for any reason, traffic will build up, and toxicity will increase inside the liver and the body. Sometimes, there are just excessive toxins, and even though all lanes are working, traffic can still build up. If liver function is compromised, it will interfere with the conversion of T4 to T3.
Liver detoxification pathways can be compromised due to impairment of the pathways by enzyme deficiencies as we see with common genetic disorders of methylation (for more information on MTHFR defects, read my blog post on this topic). Methylation is one of the major pathways of detoxification that occur in the liver. If there is a defect in that pathway, it’s like one of the major lanes on the bridge shutting down, resulting in a bottle neck and more traffic and toxins building up in the body.
Liver function can be taxed by medications, drugs such as alcohol (beer belly is actually called ascites, a condition where backed up liver function is actually visible), blood sugar dysregulation, systemic inflammation, and hormone imbalances, among other causes.
Digestion:
Conversion from T4 to T3 in the digestive system requires a healthy environment and requires the presence of healthy bacteria. The importance of healthy bacteria cannot be over-emphasized, and the role bacteria play in thyroid health is just one of their many functions. Merely taking a supplement of probiotics, although a very good idea in many cases, cannot be the only consideration. If abnormal bacteria populations are present, we call this dysbiosis. We have to ask why and not just address the symptom by providing more healthy bacteria through eating yogurt or taking probiotics.
The GI tract can be a central source of conversion problems and at the same time be responsible for taxing the liver due to excessive inflammation caused by an unhealthy GI environment. (Please see the posts on GI function on this site for more GI-specific information.) The digestive system has enzyme activity that is directly responsible for thyroid hormone conversion processes.
Bacteria in the small intestines, where they don’t belong, can release a toxin called lipopolysaccharide that can cause a cascade of immune events that alter thyroid hormone function as described above.
Signs and symptoms of GI dysfunction and inflammation that would contribute to poor thyroid hormone conversion and general thyroid hormone physiology include:
- Acid reflux
- Gas and bloating
- Constipation
- Alternating constipation and diarrhea
- Excessively loose stool
- History of inflammatory bowel disease
- Irritable bowel syndrome
- Gallbladder removal or disease
Hormone Health:
A basic principle in physiology and in my practice is the fact that all hormones affect all hormones. We have hormones for stress that can be released when we sense physical or emotional danger, and stress hormones can be released when we have excessive inflammation due to an infection, allergy, or food sensitivity. We have hormones that regulate our blood sugar and appetite and hormones that are related to our sexual health, such as testosterone, progesterone, and estrogen. Vitamin D is technically a hormone and not a vitamin. Melatonin is a hormone produced in our brain that regulates circadian rhythm cycles.
If all hormones affect all hormones, then all of those mentioned above can impact thyroid hormone function. Books could be written on this subject, so I am going to scratch the surface with some common causes of how hormones can directly impact thyroid hormone health.
The use of birth control pills or any form of contraception that influences sex hormones, such as progesterone and estrogen, can cause the excessive production of the protein that transports the T3 (and T4, for that matter) hormone to where it needs to go. This usually results in the inability of the T3 hormone to get out of the cab, as we discussed above. The decreased ability to get off the transport protein will result in a normal total T3 (protein-bound) count and an abnormally low free T3 number, resulting in not enough active hormone entering the cells.
Next week will summarize potential problem areas for the thyroid and guide you through taking charge of your own thyroid health. Stay tuned!
Thanks for reading!
Have you or a loved one ever experienced any of these thyroid complications? Please share your stories and thoughts below!
Thank you for this. I feel that past use of medication (though several years ago) has affected my thyroid and hormones. What is your suggested path for healing with this reason being the culprit? Thank you
Medication use can definitely alter how thyroid hormones travel and go through the chain of events that leads to healthy cell function. Medications can also impact the cofactors for normal thyroid hormone physiology. Getting off of medications if possible is the 1st step to normalizing function, and identifying what part of the process has been impacted is the next step. Then supporting that process is the next step after that. Sorry to be so general, but without more information its difficult to advise.
Hello.This article was extremely motivating, especially because I was browsing for thoughts on this subject last Saturday.
Often, a serious roadblock to eating healthy is being too busy to cook.
On the opposite hand, if you’re not against a bit of an effort to slim down, there are a selection of ideal weight loss
choices which are much more favourable to shedding pounds and therefore are far safer.
The idea of herbal weight-loss is claimed to originate in ancient India in the event the Aryans discovered
the ability of herbs to cure diseases.
Hi, I do think this is a great web site. I stumbledupon it 😉 I may return yet again since I book-marked it.
Money and freedom is the best way to change, may you be rich and continue
to guide other people.
Thank you for every other fantastic article. The place else may anybody
get that kind of info in such an ideal manner of
writing? I’ve a presentation next week, and I am on the look
for such info.
Always have a healthy snack with you to work or whenever
you are out. Including snacks as well as only one part of food, because at the end of the
week whenever you research your food diary, you
could be shocked at how much food you consumed. When you
reduce weight it happens through the body instead of in isolated
locations thus you need to understand that you need to lose
weight all over your body to acheive more visible and defined abs.
I almost never leave a response, but i did a few searching and wound up here
Your Place for Answers – The Thyroid: Beyond the Immune System, part
III. And I do have some questions for you if you tend not to
mind. Is it simply me or does it look like a few of these comments look
like coming from brain dead individuals? 😛 And, if you are writing at additional sites,
I would like to keep up with anything fresh you have to post.
Could you make a list of the complete urls of all your social sites like your Facebook page, twitter feed,
or linkedin profile?
It’s hard to come by knowledgeable people in this particular topic, however, you seem like you know what you’re talking about!
Thanks
You can certainly see your expertise within the article you write.
The arena hopes for more passionate writers like you who are not afraid to mention how they believe.
At all times follow your heart.
This won’t HURT your results just like the above methods-but it will not help
them either. Drink a lot of water all day- 6-8 portions of water might
help detoxify your system. In simple terms after lunch avoid breads, cereals, rice, pasta,
potatoes and corn and complete on proteins and vegetables.
Very good information. Lucky me I came across your website by chance (stumbleupon).
I have book marked it for later!
I go to see daily a few sites and websites
to read posts, except this website presents feature based
content.
This is really interesting, You’re a very skilled blogger. I have joined your
feed and look ahead to searching for extra of your great post.
Also, I have shared your site in my social networks
I’m so happy to read this. This is the kind of manual that needs to be given and not the accidental misinformation that is at the other blogs. Appreciate your sharing this best doc.
I simply want to mention I am very new to blogging and site-building and actually liked this website. Most likely I’m going to bookmark your blog . You surely have really good writings. Thanks for sharing your website.
What’s up, I check your blog regularly. Your writing
style is awesome, keep doing what you’re doing!
My spouse and I absolutely love your blog and find almost all of your post’s to be just
what I’m looking for. Do you offer guest writers to write content in your
case? I wouldn’t mind writing a post or elaborating on a
number of the subjects you write with regards to here.
Again, awesome blog!
Superb, what a webpage it is! This blog gives useful information to us, keep it up.
Hello! I simply would like to offer you a huge thumbs up for the great info you’ve got right here
on this post. I will be coming back to your web site for more soon.
Wow that was unusual. I just wrote an extremely long comment but after
I clicked submit my comment didn’t appear. Grrrr…
well I’m not writing all that over again. Anyhow, just wanted to say wonderful blog!
I like the helpful information you provide in your articles.
I’ll bookmark your weblog and check again here regularly.
I’m quite sure I’ll learn lots of new stuff right here!
Best of luck for the next!
I like reading through an article that can make people
think. Also, thank you for allowing me to comment!
This info is worth everyone’s attention. How can I find out more?
Excellent way of describing, and pleasant article to take data on the topic of my presentation subject, which i am going to present in institution of higher education.
Hello there! This article could not be written any better!
Looking at this post reminds me of my previous roommate!
He continually kept talking about this. I most certainly will send this information to him.
Fairly certain he’ll have a very good read.
Thank you for sharing!
I am truly pleased to glance at this web site posts which
consists of lots of helpful information, thanks for providing
these statistics.
Greetings! I’ve been reading your blog for a while now and finally got
the bravery to go ahead and give you a shout out from Houston Tx!
Just wanted to mention keep up the excellent job!
Terrific post but I was wondering if you could write a litte more on this topic?
I’d be very grateful if you could elaborate a little bit more.
Bless you!