How many people in the world are Hypothyroid?...

[Tony63]

....and are they all going through the same struggles as the people on this site? Or is there a percentage of them who just get on OK with their medication and lead a relatively normal life? I just wonder if the forums are populated by the unfortunate few who don't react well to medication and struggle to maintain a balance. I imagine the number of people who are Hypothyroid must be in the millions compared to a few thousand online helping and being helped. Or are the rest even more ill?

[helvella Administrator]

Over a million in England.

Numbers here growing by around 500 a month at present. So in around 167 years they will all have joined up.

[alison_3]

That is a very good question. I am very happy with my medication and with my GP. Reading some on here I am very rare and that is heartbreaking that people are suffering

[Nanaedake]

I read that one in twenty people have a thyroid condition in western countries. That might be an underestimation if not everyone is diagnosed.

[PR4NOW]

The simple answer is we don't really know. In allopathic medicine the estimates are based on the TSH test which gets it wrong more than it get is right. Any number is just a guesstimate. PR

[Hidden]

However, in answer to the other part of your question - yes, these types of site tend to be populated by the few who are struggling.

x

[Marz]

....from my own personal experience I think most of us just keep going with the feeling of being under par. We blame so many other things in our lives....and just get on with it. We just don't want to bother the doctor with what we feel is something that may just go away if we ignore it ! Hence I wasn't diagnosed until 2005 when I was 59 - and only because an observant GP here in Crete decided the tests and a scan were appropriate.

I think it's interesting that there are more women than men with thyroid problems. Maybe women are more in touch with their bodies due to the monthly cycles and hormones in general and recognise big changes. Also having babies takes some women into the many realms of doctors and the overcoming of the white coat syndrome !

Looking around an ex-pat population of mostly more mature people I can see lots of evidence of men with thyroid issues.....in adition to ladies.

I read somewhere once that there are over 200 million people in the world with a thyroid illness and another 200 million or so undiagnosed ! Also in the States when they lowered the threshold of the TSH from 5.5 to 3.5 it enabled another million or so people to be treated.

....and still doctors lack the skills to diagnose and treat appropriately............

Also I think many people find their health through taking one step at a time and taking responsibility for their treatment. Learning from other people on sites such as this are invaluable too. My hubby jogs along nicely on his T4 - me - well my journey is more involved , but positive.

[Hidden in reply to Marz]

No, certainly not JUST that - it's Oestrogen. Men have lower levels generally and it takes longer to have a significant effect on thyroid issues. Higher Oestrogen levels in women tends to accelerate things. (Relates to thyroid binding globulin, plenty of info online) Rapidly changing hormones mean it often become apparent with pregnancy too.

As men get older, Oestrogen levels tend to rise in proportion to declining other hormones, like progesterone & testosterone so it's only then that hypothyroid issues come forward.

In my own family, the women are all diagnosed by the time they are 40 or so, the men tend to be 60 or 70+ and by that time it has usually played havoc, having probably been at levels much of the rest of the world consider hypothyroid (TSH of 3 or 3.5+/who knows what T3 and T4 levels have been!) for 20 or more years

[Marz]

....of course it is not JUST that ! I did not mean to give that impression. I think any one of us on this forum are aware of the many layers of thyroid issues. Of course it would take pages to list all of them.

Am so glad the many women in your family have received a diagnosis and can continue their journey to wellness. Are they all oestrogen dominant ? Sad the guys had to wait longer.

Thank you for your post.

[Elaines]

I have been asking myself this question since I was diagnosed nearly 3 months ago.

I also wonder whether numbers of people diagnosed are increasing say like diabetes numbers. Is it diet, lifestyle??

Are there more persons diagnosed per head of population where the blood limits are lower?

Sorry, I'm not answering your question, but adding more

[Tony63]

Thank you everyone for your replies and comments.