Thyroid Disorders: What Causes them?
What is the Thyroid gland?
The thyroid is a butterfly-shaped gland in your neck cloaked around your windpipe (trachea). It is also known as one of the endocrine glands that make hormones in the body. Those hormones are responsible for processing and controlling how your body performs different activities.
How do Thyroid disorders occur in our body?
The primary role of the thyroid is to produce hormones in the body that help your body perform different functions. In case, your thyroid gland starts creating too many hormones, or too few hormones, then you are likely to have a thyroid disorder.
There are multiple types of thyroid disorders and diseases however, the most common ones are hypothyroidism, hyperthyroidism, thyroiditis, and Hashimoto’s thyroiditis.
There can be several reasons for thyroid disorders; it is often inherited among families and passed down through many generations.
Types of Thyroid Disorders and Diseases:
There are several thyroid disorders and diseases, although these are the most common among people.
- Hypothyroidism: a condition when your thyroid gland does not produce sufficient thyroid hormones.
- Hyperthyroidism: a condition when your thyroid gland produces more thyroid hormones than your body actually needs.
- Goiter: When the affected person experiences the enlargement of the thyroid gland.
- Thyroid Nodules: When there are lumps in your thyroid gland.
- Thyroid cancer: When your Thyroid cells undergo genetic changes and it enables the growth of cells at an unusual pace. Eventually, the cells lose their ability to die and collective abnormal thyroid cells form a tumour.
- Thyroiditis: When your thyroid gland suffers from inflammation (swelling) and affects the release of thyroid hormone.
- Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis: It’s an autoimmune condition where the body’s cells become defensive against the thyroid and start damaging it. It’s a painless and inherited condition.
- Postpartum Thyroiditis: It happens when a woman’s thyroid gland becomes swollen or inflamed after childbirth. It’s a temporary condition that only affects only 5% to 8% of women.
- Iodine Deficiency: Iodine deficiency is quite common among people in the world. The thyroid gland utilizes Iodine to produce hormones in the body. If iodine deficiency increases severely in the body, then it may cause hypothyroidism. Mild deficiencies cause multifocal autonomous growth of the thyroid.
- Non-functioning thyroid gland: It’s a condition that rarely occurs in newborns when the thyroid gland doesn’t function properly from birth. Doctors must suggest a blood screening test to see if the thyroid gland of the newborn is working normally.
Diagnosis: How are Thyroid disorders diagnosed?
In order to diagnose thyroid disease, a complete medical analysis is followed by your health specialist in most cases. It usually involves a thyroid test, physical health check-up, and sometimes a biopsy is also done in critical cases. The treatment may vary for different thyroid disorders but it may include medicines, thyroid surgery, or radioiodine therapy.
Don’t stress out about your condition if you are experiencing any symptoms or suffering from any thyroid disease. Thyroid diseases are curable as well as preventable. In case you are looking for a consultation from an expert, then reach out to me via email at drnagwa.marketing@gmail.com or schedule an appointment through call +971-507541446