Is An Underactive Thyroid To Blame For Your Mysterious Symptoms?

The thyroid tends to be an underappreciated organ, but despite being a small gland it has massive implications for your health. While thyroid disease can occur in various forms, one of the most common is called Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, an autoimmune disease where the body attacks the thyroid gland and diminishes its ability to create precious hormones—ones that impact every cell of the body. Hashimoto’s is the leading cause of hypothyroidism (an underactive thyroid) in the US and roughly 14 million people in the US are struggling with this diagnosis, with women at much higher risk, being 7 to 8 times more likely than men to get it.

In this mini-episode, Dr. Hyman is joined by Dr. Elizabeth Boham to review patient cases in which thyroid issues were treated.

Elizabeth Boham is a physician and nutritionist who practices functional medicine at The UltraWellness Center in Lenox, MA. Through her practice and lecturing, she has helped thousands of people achieve their goals of optimum health and wellness. She witnesses the power of nutrition every day in her practice and is committed to training other physicians to utilize nutrition in healing. Dr. Boham has contributed to many articles and wrote the latest chapter on Obesity for the Rankel Textbook of Family Medicine. She is part of the faculty of the Institute for Functional Medicine and has been featured on the Dr. Oz show and in a variety of publications and media including Huffington Post, The Chalkboard Magazine, and Experience Life. Her DVD Breast Wellness: Tools to Prevent and Heal from Breast Cancer explores the functional medicine approach to keeping your breasts and whole body well.

In this episode, Dr. Hyman and Dr. Boham discuss:

Symptoms of hypothyroidism which can include sluggishness in the morning, poor concentration and memory, low-grade depression, dry skin, hoarse voice, thinning hair, coarse hair, being very sensitive to cold and having cold hands and feet, low body temperature, muscle pain, weakness or cramps, low sex drive, fluid retention, high cholesterol.

Evaluating thyroid health by testing thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) levels as well as free T3, free T4, thyroid antibodies, reverse T3 testing, and DIO2 gene testing.

Looking for associated problems such as gluten intolerance, food allergies, and heavy metals, as well as deficiencies of vitamin D, selenium, vitamin A, zinc, and omega-3 fats.

Choosing foods that offer nutritional support for your thyroid, such as
Eggs, sunflower seeds, whole grains, and brazil nuts. Just 1-2 brazil nuts a day can give your body all of the selenium it needs.
Seafood and sea vegetables (such as nori, seaweed, and iodized salt) which are rich in iodine.
Zinc-rich foods such as oysters, beef, poultry, beans, nuts, and seeds.

Avoiding raw cruciferous vegetables and GMO soy. Instead, steam or cook cruciferous vegetables and eat non-GMO, whole food soy.

Implementing lifestyle practices to support thyroid health such as reducing stress.

Using supplements and medication to support thyroid health.

Additional resources:

“6-Steps to Heal Your Thyroid”

[susancorso]

Great information! I find my endocrinologist visits frustrating and
anytime I press for tests for vitamin deficiencies vitamin D selenium omega-3, iodine etc. she refuses. I also ask her about diet especially the elimination of gluten and I always get pushback! very frustrating! We all have to be our own health advocates!

[suzannebornemann]

Thank you so much for this discussion. I’m 72 years old and have had Hashimoto’s for 40 years and have been on Synthroid all the time.
I have been eating gluten free for 6 years, eat fish and vegetables, have been on a Keto diet for 2 years and Intermittent fasting OMAD, and try to swim a mile a day. Now I started a low carb diet under 24 gm a day. I cut out all added sugar for over 3 years now.
I have had 3 total joint replacements last year, & one hip total replacements and both of my knees with total robotic replacement in June 2023 and September 2023, resuming my daily swimming now. I plan to have my left hip replaced in Spring /Summer 2024. There was a wait period after each surgery of 8 weeks when I was not allowed to go into pool water until my surgical wound was totally healed. So I was not swimming then and I gained back weight and belly fat, very quickly
I’m still losing my eyebrows, lack of energy, dry thin hair. Difficult to lose weight despite my diet.
I take Selenium, Zinc. Vitamin D, Omega 3 supplements, Pro Biotics amongst others.
Synthroid does not work.
My goal is wellness and once my joints are replaced, I hope to increase my exercise even more.
I have been following Dr. Hyman’s podcast and am so grateful for his advice and knowledge of the recent advances in Functional Medicine. . I used to live in NC and even though I went to specialists Endocrinologists at Duke Hospital Clinic. No one ever did anything except look at my TSH and T4 values and keep me on Synthroid 137mcg.
Back in MA now, and I have an app either a thyroid specialist in Weymouth, MA. In May 2024. Which is covered by my Medicare. I am interested I. The Ultra Wellness Center now .

[barbarachandler]

I feel like your talking about me! Very low energy, hair thin, brittle, nearly gone. Dry skin, I seem to be on the verge of crying, weight gain, I’m working on my gut health, D & B vitamins, I feel like I have a big face with not good color. At some point I might have been hit by a truck, nobody’s told me! You both have given me a place to start, thank you!

[anoniem]

Great content. Why doctors are not focused on the underlying cause and why they are not focused on preventing severe desease is just beyong comprehension. It almost seems criminal.

[lynetteprice]

Endos have 2 tests (TSH and T4) and one solution to thyroid problems (levothyroxine). After all the years in med school, they only have 2 tests and one medicine?? My endo refused to give me a T3, RT3 test. Even an estrogen test was out of the question. I hear this same scenario over and over. Many endocrinologists have failed us and leaves so many suffering.

[oddlilbird]

I just want to point out that I noticed that Dr. Hyman was WAY better at not interrupting and when he did want to add to what she was saying, he asked first. Bravo, Dr. Hyman! As always, great information and a brilliant “guest”.
✌🏼 and 🤍.

[seanbarrett]

I was dealing with acid reflux for the past month. Was prescribed meds, and did my best to avoid taking the omeprazole and I wanted to solve the problem and not mask it. I was getting ahead of it and then it came back, constant saliva filling in my mouth. I gave up and started taking the omeprazole....then my throat started becoming sore and was losing my voice. Started feeling fatigue, dizziness, cannot get enough sleep and have been constipated for close to a week. My doctor found my symptoms hard to believe and suggested my issue was purely due to stress. I walked out of the office annoyed and just felt i wasn't getting any help. He issued a lab test for Thyroid function and vitamin deficiency. Sure enough my TSH was .25 and he called me immediately the next day. Prescribed me 2 medications and has a set me up an appointment with a endocrinologist. Im glad i have been pointed in the right direction and not just waved off "you are just suffering from anxiety". This has been very informative and I am glad I watched this. Thank you for sharing your knowledge.

[lisatom]

We need more functional medicine doctors to solve medical problems.

[chompnormski]

I think the problem is all of the round up crop dusted on wheat 3 days before they harvest it, not the gluten itself. Also corn, soybean and other beans.

[karenc.]

I live in a northern community in Canada, have a low income, and no access to functional medicine doctors, or even homeopathic/naturopathic doctors, as the cost of these services is prohibitive. Thank-you for the information and I am going to share it with my nurse-practitioner and see what she thinks.

[pelipequi]

I am one of those patients....take both hormones for years. I make reverse t3 like crazy. Thank you for educating patients!!

[adelabrent]

FUNCTIONAL MEDICINE IS THE MEDICINE OF THE FUTURE. IT SHOULD BE THE MEDICINE OF TODAY. SO MANY GPS THAT ARE RESISTANT. WE NEED URGENT CHANGES IN OUR MEDICAL SYSTEMS AND WE NEED TO TAKE ACTION.

[martemacdougall]

I finally decided to find a Naturopath to investigate the "WHY" of symptoms.. Everything now moving in the right direction for optimum health and well-being. I have saved a lot of your podcasts and wonderful knowledge within them. Thank you SO MUCH!!!!👏

[fatilns]

I’m a 32yo woman with type 1 diabetes (27yrs) and thalassemia, Gastroparesis and according to myself I have an intolerance for milk and gluten even though my test results came back normal for milk/gluten allergies 🥴🤷🏼‍♀️.. got diagnosed with hypothyroid yearssss ago but was never put on meds, until today. Started levothyroxine today at 0, 100mg a day before breakfast.
I went and bought some ashwaganda and rhodiola, cod-liver-oil, selenium&zinc, vitamin D etc to maybe help with the tiredness and stress that I have because of feeling all the symptoms that come with hypothyroidism😓😓 I just hope I don’t have hashimoto’s..
best of luck to everyone dealing with this and other conditions!
Greetings from The Netherlands 🇳🇱

[lindamcginn]

After developing parathyroid disease two years ago my functional medicine friend helped me get well. Gf, df, sugar low diet, deep root meditation, walking and Fabulous 50's youtube exercises and I'm healthy again!

[forknowledge]

The problem is our healthcare system doesn't work making preventative or even diagnostic care affordable. I'm not sure I will ever have healthcare again job or no job with the way things are looking. Even with a job insurance is too expensive and not worth it.

[michelleproctor]

So true it’s hard to find a primary care that will listen it’s so hard to get the help you need and want so desperately

[conniejlarsen]

It is important to have your antibodies checked by a regular Dr or Endo for a full picture, however...
I have found it is worthless to have a regular Dr check your antibodies because they don't know how to read it or what to do with it...just
so totally

[JM-corf]

Mark should let his guests finish a full paragraph. You can tell the guests are trying to rush through because they know the story might get cut off.

[pepper]

I'll give you fifty to one that at some time in the past they've been put on a medication that has messed up their thyroid regulation and it can't funtion properly anymore. It happened to me, and it took a doctor twenty five years to decide to check my thyroid (at last) to find out why my weight was so high. I knew the cause but doctors weren't listening to me. Twenty five years of being fifty kg overweight is a long time to wait.