Hypothyroidism Causes And Symptoms
Hypothyroidism causes and symptoms – Hypothyroidism occurs when your body doesn’t produce enough thyroid hormones. It releases hormones to help your body regulate and use energy. Hypothyroidism can also cause many other causes and include the number of symptoms. Let us discuss some more hypothyroidism causes and symptoms.
Thyroid stimulates the level of energy of all the organs and keeps your cells active and healthy. Moreover, from the digestive system to monitoring heart health, it takes care of every major thing perfectly.
Your body’s natural functions begin to slow down without the right amount of thyroid hormones. Also called underactive thyroid, hypothyroidism affects women more frequently than men. It can begin at any age or commonly in the ’60s. Let’s know more below about hypothyroidism causes and symptoms.
Risk factors
Hypothyroidism can develop at any point of age, to anyone. But this could be very dangerous:
- For women.
- Older than 60.
- A family history of thyroid disease.
- Do have an autoimmune disease, such as type 1 diabetes or celiac disease.
- Treated with radioactive iodine or anti-thyroid medications.
- Received radiation to your neck or upper chest.
- Delivered the baby recently or pregnant.
Symptoms
Depending on the severity of the hormone deficiency the symptoms of thyroid vary. These symptoms take time to come up.
Initially, you may notice the symptoms of hypothyroidism, such as fatigue and weight gain. You may also get more problems with it. Hypothyroidism signs and symptoms may include:
- Fatigue.
- Increased sensitivity to cold.
- Constipation.
- Dry skin.
- Weight gain.
- Puffy face.
- Hoarseness.
- Muscle weakness.
- Elevated blood cholesterol level.
- Muscle aches, tenderness, and stiffness.
- Pain, stiffness or swelling in your joints.
- Heavier than normal or irregular menstrual periods.
- Thinning hair.
- Slowed heart rate.
- Depression.
- Impaired memory.
- Enlarged thyroid gland (goiter).
Hypothyroidism and anxiety
While hypothyroidism has long been associated with depression, a recent study indicates it may be associated with anxiety, too. Researchers recently evaluated trusted Source 100 patients between the ages of 18 and 45 with a known history of hypothyroidism. Using an anxiety questionnaire, they found that nearly 60 percent of people with hypothyroidism met the criteria for some form of anxiety.
What causes hypothyroidism?
Common causes of hypothyroidism include: An autoimmune disease
Your immune system is designed to protect your body’s cells against invading bacteria and viruses. When unknown bacteria or viruses enter your body, your immune system responds by sending out fighter cells to destroy the foreign cells.
Hashimoto’s disease is an autoimmune condition and the most common cause of an underactive thyroid. This disease attacks your thyroid gland and causes chronic thyroid inflammation. The inflammation can reduce thyroid function. It’s common to find multiple family members with this same condition.
Facts and statistics about hypothyroidism
Hypothyroidism is a fairly common condition. About 4.6 percent of Americans ages 12 and over have hypothyroidism. That’s about 10 million people in the United States living with the condition.
The disease gets more common with age. People over age 60 experience it more frequently. Women are more likely to have an underactive thyroid.
One of the most common causes of an underactive thyroid gland is Hashimoto’s disease. It affects middle-aged women most commonly, but it can occur in men and children. This condition also runs in families. If a family member has been diagnosed with this disease, your risk for having it is higher.
Conclusion
The aforementioned are the hypothyroidism causes and symptoms, one can analyze the symptoms initially and get the treatment started for hypothyroidism. The on-time and regular treatment for hypothyroidism are extremely important to get the diseases cured. Go through the entire information mentioned above about the hypothyroidism causes and symptoms.
