Weight Loss and Thyroid Disorder

Many people fight a long battle against being overweight, from early adulthood, or pregnancy, or even starting in childhood. Sometimes people are surprised to see a pattern of weight gain begin to level off, and then they say ‘it is happening because of thyroid problem and I can’t help! It’s frustrating.’ Now, imagine the trauma of those people who experience unexplained weight loss while having a good appetite. They are often called as skinny and teased by several other names by friends, relatives and peers in social groups.

We don’t hesitate to blame our thyroid gland for increased weight; we should also understand that reverse can happen! While hypothyroidism symptoms make you look fatter and put on extra kgs to your existing count, hyperthyroidism symptoms could be the reason for your weight loss. This happens because the body burns up extra food without using it for anything but for producing heat. Such thyroid problems were faced by Natasha. She was diagnosed with an over-active thyroid she hadn't really noticed until a friend of her commented on how much weight she had lost. She had been trying to lose weight, but hadn't realised how much she'd lost.

So, with other symptoms of thyroid she'd been ignoring - sweating, the shakes, constantly on the toilet, feeling sick, she went to the doctors and discovered she had a very overactive thyroid. Before resorting to a doctor for thyroid treatment, she left the job, constantly felt tired, drained and exhausted. She had depression also. Those were the worst days of her life.

Meanwhile, she was told about homeopathy thyroid treatment by her ex-colleague. She thought to give a try to homeopathy treatment for treating thyroid problems. Now, Natasha believes that it was the best decision she has made!

Generally, thyroid problems are treated through HRT (Hormone Replacement Therapy) by conventional school of medicine. At least 1% of people taking conventional medicine have reported side-effects of the same. Minor side-effects include symptoms like abdominal cramps, diarrhoea, headache, heat intolerance, sleep difficulties, sweating and weight loss. Major side-effects include symptoms like confusion, dizziness, fast or irregular heartbeat, feeling faint, mood swings, muscle weakness, nervousness, psychosis, restlessness, tremors, chest pain, shortness of breath, pain in shoulders, neck and jaw which require immediate medical attention.

Whereas, thyroid treatment in homeopathy helps to produce thyroid hormone naturally by stimulating the immune system and helps in better functioning of the thyroid gland. Homoeopathic remedies work by stimulating the body’s own healing capacity by encouraging the body to reactivate hormone secretions. Plus, homeopathy is free from any side-effects.

Stress causes hormonal disturbances in the body like thyroid problems and is very effectively treated with homeopathy. Homoeopathy is a mind-body medicine. Homoeopathy treats not only the physical complaints, but also targets the mind and gently restores mind-body equilibrium- thus it treats the patient as a whole.

Above all the advantages, homeopathic medicines can be taken with conventional medicines also, under the guidance of a professional homeopath or doctor. Slowly and steadily when the thyroid hormones come to normalcy the conventional medicine can be tapered off and the person can continue with homoeopathy to avoid recurrence.

Self-Help

• Regular exercise and a high fibre diet often help in maintaining thyroid function and preventing constipation.
• Have regular check-ups and pay attention to your symptoms. Report changes, if any, to your doctor.
• Supplemental vitamin/ mineral combinations should be taken under supervision.
• Caffeinated drinks and dairy products should be avoided.
• Drink adequate water to prevent dryness of skin and hair.
• Consume fruits, dry fruits, vegetables, beans and legumes in adequate amounts which will help combat nutritional deficiency and is required food for hair.