Facts About Hypothyroid Weight Loss Condition

By Dr. Kevin Dobrzynski


People suffering from hypothyroidism often find losing weight a common battle. If you have been trying to lose weight but failed, your thyroid is to be blamed.

It's estimated that 27 million Americans have a thyroid condition and many more go undiagnosed. The most common form of thyroid disease is hypothyroidism, which is a low thyroid or hypothyroid. This condition is not only affecting Americans but also anyone living in an industrialized country.

Weight loss is a losing battle for anyone with this thyroid condition. This is because your metabolism slows down and not even a low-calorie diet can help. In fact, you may even depress your metabolic rate further by causing long-term damage to it.

This is the real issue

People with this disorder often go undiagnosed or even misdiagnosed. You may experience all the symptoms of the disease but your physician may not recognize the problem.

One of the reasons why the diagnosis of hypothyroidism is often missed is due to it's many symptoms. Hypothyroidism affects every system of the human body.

The other reason why this condition goes undiagnosed is that blood testing is often inconclusive. The main blood test used to diagnose hypothyroidism, called the TSH test, can miss cases of hypothyroidism up to 80% of the time.

If you suspect that you are suffering from a thyroid issue, you must do something about it right now!

The best way to start is by monitoring your symptoms. Get a journal and mark your symptoms on a scale of 0= not applicable 1= mild 2= not severe 3= severe, and make sure you keep this going for at least one week. It is recommended that you date all the entries and keep the journal for up to one month.

Next, perform an at-home basal body temperature test. One of the telltale signs of a low metabolism is a depressed body temperature.

To do this test, you must put a thermometer by your bedside at night. First thing in the morning when you wake up, place the thermometer immediately under your armpit without moving or rising. Any movement may affect the test's accuracy.

You must test your body temperature for the next three days. If you are a woman and menstruating, carry out this test on the 2nd and 3rd day of your cycle. You should know that if you are currently suffering from infections, the test may give inaccurate results.

Normal readings should be between 97.8 to 98.2. If the reading is below this point, you have a thyroid disorder. Your weight loss battle will continue until your body temperature and metabolism rate become normal again.

Show your journal and body temperature readings to an endocrinologist. This type of doctor is a specialist in thyroid conditions and will be able to help you get better.

Hypothyroid and weight loss struggles go hand-in-hand. If you're convinced that you have a problem, yet your doctor disagrees, or your lab tests don't support your suspicion, don't give up. Try another doctor and keep looking until you find one that will listen to you. You are your own best doctor and you know your body better than anyone.




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