Why Thyroid is not a Gland you can Ignore?

Thyroid is a gland present in front of the neck. It weighs around 20 to 60 grams and has two lobes resting around the wind pipe.

With much resemblance to a bow, it produces, stores and releases two types of thyroid hormones.

Hormones: chemical messengers which controls several functions of the body.

Any alteration in the levels of thyroid hormones can lead to the development of various conditions

What are thyroid hormones?

There are the two hormones namely Thyroxine or T4 and Triiodothyronine or T3 which is released by thyroid gland, whenever the needs arises.

Thyroid gland releases these hormones when its levels are low in the body and it stops releasing during high levels.

Why are these hormones so important?

These hormones are required for body’s metabolism (i.e. Conversion of oxygen and calories into energy).

Every cell in our body is dependent on these hormones for their metabolism.

Thyroid hormones regulate important functions of your body like- Breathing & Heart rate, Body weight, Menstrual cycles, Cholesterol levels, Body temperature and many more.

What happens when your thyroid is under active?

This condition is also often referred as hypothyroidism.

In this thyroid gland is unable to produce enough thyroid hormones resulting in low levels of T4 and T3. This can leads to Tiredness, Weight gain, Constipation, Depression, Irregular periods or heavy periods Being sensitive to cold.

If left untreated, this condition can cause heart problems, infertility and obesity. In pregnant women, it can affect the mental development of the baby. Extremely low levels of thyroid hormones can cause Myxedema leading to the drop in body temperature and even coma.

Then, what about over active thyroid?

This condition is referred as hyperthyroidism.

In this, thyroid gland produces excessive thyroid hormones resulting in high levels of T4 and T3

This can leads to Nervousness / anxiety, Weight loss, Mood swings, Difficulty sleeping, Fast heart rate, Sensitivity to heat.
When this condition is left untreated, it can leads to heart problems, brittle bones, eye problems, red swollen skin and thyroid storm.
Thyroid storm is an medical emergency in which heart beat, blood pressure and body temperature is increased abnormally to dangerous levels.

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