Underactive thyroid could increase risk of type 2 diabetes
5th April 2016ByEditor
An underactive thyroid could indicate there is a greater risk of developing type 2 diabetes, research finds.
A study of 8,500 people in the Netherlands showed a low thyroid function boosted the risk of type 2 diabetes by 13 per cent.
The risk of developing type 2 diabetes for those who had an underactive thyroid and prediabetes was even higher at 40 per cent.
Thyroid hormones are essential for converting food into either energy or fat, but an underactive thyroid gland slows metabolism which can lead to weight gain.
Dr. Layal Chaker of Erasmus Medical Center in Rotterdam said: “We found it surprising that even people whose thyroid function was in the low-normal range had an increased risk of diabetes.
“Future studies should investigate whether screening for and treatment of subclinical hypothyroidism [mildly low thyroid function] is beneficial in subjects at risk of developing diabetes.”
The participants, whose average age was 65, had their blood sugar and thyroid function tested every few years.
A total of 1,100 people in the study developed prediabetes, which means they have slightly higher blood sugar levels, and 798 developed type 2 diabetes.
Dr. Chaker said that although the research did not indicate a cause and effect, the findings “suggest we should consider screening people with prediabetes for low thyroid function”.
The study results were presented on Sunday April 3 at ENDO2016, the annual meeting of the Endocrine Society.
Written by
Kacey12
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No surprises there then! Why is it that whenever a study shows that low thyroid levels have an effect on a person’s health, the conclusion of the study is that maybe thyroid levels should be checked regularly in these people and attention paid to the results, as it may be that low thyroid levels lead to this that and the other syndrome. Years later nothing has changed. I despair.
I have been told on more than one occasion that It’s very common to have more than one autoimmune condition ( I fact I am well aware of) and I have diabetes because I have hypothyroidism. The only problem is I do not have autoimmune thyroiditis my thyroid was destroyed by radiation in the early 1950s. I do have other autoimmune conditions but I get seriously annoyed when medical professionals come out with this trite comment and then say nothing coukd have prevented it.
I am pretty sure my type 2 diabetes was caused by my Hashi's being under medicated for many years before I was able to educate myself and fight my own corner with the medics.
I never fitted the general profile for becoming type 2 re lifestyle and diet.....I was always
active (swimming, cycling, walking) and always ate healthily (piscaterian for 20+ years) so I was shocked when I was diagnosed diabetic.
My mum was diagnosed type 2 at the age of 73 just before she passed away. Knowing what I know now, I can see that for decades she had undiagnosed hypothyroidism. Wish I had learned more sooner and might have been able to help her, where the medics failed.
That's interesting (and also very depressing). The article mentions that the risk is there, even if sub-clinical. And as we all know, far too many people these days are branded 'sub-clinical' and not treated, so they have potentially two conditions just waiting to get worse rather than being caught early and dealt with adequately. I really don't know why this has to be the situation, as it's not even that expensive compared to dealing with full-blown T2 diabetes which is a huge part of the NHS budget.
Was diagnosed myself 6 weeks ago. I have Hashimoto’s disease. Kept mentioning to GP that my blood sugars were rising everytime I was tested and I thought I was insulin resistant. He just said yes you will be because of your thyroid. What can I do? Not much you can do to prevent it. No help whatsoever! I had breast cancer and so the last two years have been taken up with chemo, surgery, radiation, Herceptin treatment (which caused heart problems) another surgery, and hormone blockers for the next eight years. Telephone appointment made me want to scream. She made me feel that it was all my fault and wasn’t interested in anything I had to say. Her advice was eat less, move more and watch portion sizes. I just wanted to scream! I’ve been asking for help from them for years! I was undiagnosed with thyroid issues for years! Still had symptoms when on Levo. Kept being denied T3. Eventually did private testing, found I was heterozygous for DIO2 gene. Eventually got T3 meds, which I pay for privately as I don’t want CCG to ever be able to stop it. I was feeling so much better in myself and had even managed to lose a bit of weight following a LCHF diet, which I have followed for years, when bam! Breast cancer diagnosed! I had thyroid eye disease too and had to have surgery to correct lid lag 5 days before I started chemo!
I blame everything on being undiagnosed and under medicated for so long!
Just trying to get to grips with managing yet another disease, with little to no help from the medical profession!
I feel for you. I also have Hashimoto's and my Hba1c is always high 30's/low 40's and bordering on pre-diabetes despite me doing lots of exercise and eating a healthy diet. When I was having trouble losing weight - and my GP wasn't helpful - I saw a nutritional therapist who said that with Hashimoto's, it is particularly important to avoid carbs as much as possible. This is not just the obvious ones, but also certain fruit, for example, which has high sugar - the best is berries. There are lots of online forums to help with this style of eating, known as LCHF = Low Carb High/Healthy Fat. This is a way which has helped me lose weight (along with getting a slight increase of my levo after seeing a different doctor at the practice) although my Hba1c is still relatively high. However, I think genetics play a significant part too.
Thanks for your reply. I’ve been doing low carb/healthy fat for years with not much success. I only ever eat berries and with full fat Greek yoghurt. I bought the book carbs/calories and was shocked as to how many carbs are in ordinary healthy foods. I’m limiting carbs to less than 20 grams per day and following intermittent fasting and I am very very slowly losing a little bit of weight. I’ve been reading Jason Fung, Eric Berg, Ken Berry and Pradip Jamnadas, who all advocate restricted eating and intermittent fasting to reverse type 2 diabetes.
In my case, hypothyroidism was not diagnosed for years. In the meantime, I developed diabetes type 2, and couldn't manage it with diet. I needed meds. There was plenty of hypothyroidism in my family, but not a single person with diabetes.
Guess what, Armour and T3 treatment meant I no longer needed diabetes meds, nor asthma meds. Even the expensive Maxepa for blood viscosity was not needed, either. Which makes a mockery of decisions made by CCG Devon as well as my surgery. Oh, and that by an endocrinologist who I have never spoken to, clearly does not know my past history, including gynaecological surgery.
And we pay their salary and contribute to their generous pension pot, whilst their decisions impact on our earning capacity!
I believe I was undiagnosed for nearly 15 years. No history of thyroid disease in my family but my mum had type 2 diagnosed in her late 70s. I have had very low levels of carbs all my life. My sister however, has eaten a very high carb diet all her life mainly because she had to go to a residential school and family used to give her biscuits and sweets because they felt sorry for her. This set off a lifelong habit. She has no sign of diabetes! I firmly believe the Hashimoto’s caused all my problems. I am on self-funded T3 on an NHS prescription because I’m worried that the CCG might remove it. It’s so wrong that the doctors can keep us all so unwell due to cost!
Strangely my blood sugar has got worse whilst on T3. Don’t want to mention it to GP as I feel really well on T3 apart from being unable to lose weight.
Oh no. I wonder whether it was the Armour that helped me. We are all so individual. Will probably need to try other natural thyroid source when the Armour runs out, so perhaps my blood sugar will rise again. Ready for the battle! x
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