I've just read an article here: experiencelife.com/article/... which says "Over time, thyroid medication effectively shuts down the thyroid gland, causing it to slow or halt production altogether, creating a lifelong dependence on supplemental hormones."
Is this generally accepted?
There is truth in this statement but it's a bit misleading. If your thyroid packs in there's no alternative to replacing the hormone.
If you still have some thyroid function as you take more thyroid hormone the TSH (which stimulates the thyroid) reduces and so thyroid output also declines. When on large doses of thyroid hormone which suppress the TSH there is little or no secretion from the thyroid. Supplementing with thyroid hormone also causes the thyroid to get smaller. However, these effects are reversible. If your thyroid has some function left it will recover that function when you cease taking thyroid hormone.
There is no way to restore a failed thyroid. There are a few deficiencies such as iodine or selenium that produce a reversible thyroid failure but no amount of 'nutrition' will restore a damaged thyroid.
I'd not heard it before but am still fairly new to all this. I wondered if it was referring to Hashimoto's but it wasn't stated at that point.
What do you mean by thyroid failure as opposed to damaged thyroid. I mean I can see a difference just need clarification.
If thyroid tissue is damaged by e.g. Hashimoto's then that loss of function cannot be restored. If the thyroid is failing because the patient's iodine level is too low to make thyroid hormone then thyroid function will be restored when the iodine deficiency is corrected.
So should we be tested for iodine deficiency?
I think perhaps if there are suspicions of hypothroidism or planning pregnancy. Mild iodine deficiency is quite common in the UK, see btf-thyroid.org/projects/io... and the link to ukiodine.org/ . I don't agree with a lot of the stuff from the BTF but they are doing a very good job on this issue. Beware that too much iodine is harmful to the thyroid.
Thanks for the info. I have read that about too much iodine. But think I'll go back to iodised salt at least. Being vegetarian I don't eat the foods that contain the most iodine - I keep a very good eye on nutrients (I include seeds in my diet, including hemp which are said to be a complete protein as is quinoa)
No that is not generally accepted. In Europe 80 to 90% of hypothyroidism is caused by an autoimmune disease, hashimoto’s, which is where the body produces antibodies that attack the thyroid and destroy it over time. As the thyroid is attacked it is unable to produce enough hormone so you need to take additional to fill the gap. It is more complicated than that, in that levothyroxine is a prohormone, an inactive storage hormone which the body has to convert to the active form. This step requires an enzyme and is mediated by other factors. Loads to learn.
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