Your thyroid is the primary dictator of your metabolism and any malfunction or disease affecting your thyroid will cause you to have problems in metabolism leading to a drastic change in your weight – you may either gain weight, lose weight, or may find that losing weight is harder than usual.
Hyperthyroidism, or an overactive thyroid, is a condition where your thyroid gland is producing too much of the hormone thyroxine. Hyperthyroidism accelerates your body’s metabolism causing sudden weight loss, an irregular or rapid heartbeat, sweating, nervousness, and irritability.
Several treatment options are available if you have hyperthyroidism. Doctors use anti-thyroid medications and sometimes a radioactive iodine to slow the overproduction of the hormones. Most people respond well to the treatment once hyperthyroidism is diagnosed.
Hyperthyroidism can include any of these symptoms:
- Sudden weight loss, even with no changes in your eating habits
- Rapid or irregular heartbeat
- Appetite increase
- Nervousness, even anxiety or anxiety attacks
- Tremors, usually in your hands and fingers
- Irritability
- Sweating
- Unexplained changes in menstrual patterns
- Sensitivity to heat
- An enlarged thyroid gland which appears as a swelling at the base of your neck
- Fatigue
- Difficulty sleeping
Hypothyroidism, or an underactive thyroid, is the condition where your thyroid gland under produces the related hormones.
Hypothyroidism is more common in women over 50. Hypothyroidism upsets the balance of chemical reactions in your body. There will rarely be symptoms in the early stages, but over time if left untreated can cause a number of health problems, including obesity, joint pain, and heart disease.
Hypothyroidism is usually treated with a prescription for a synthetic thyroid hormone.
The signs and symptoms of hypothyroidism vary depending on the severity of the hormone deficiency and tend to develop slowly, often over a period of years.
At first, you may barely notice the main symptoms such as fatigue and sluggishness or you may assume they are a part of getting older. But as your metabolism continues to slow, the symptoms may start.
Some of them include:
- Fatigue
- Sensitivity to cold
- Pale, dry skin
- Puffy face
- Voice is hoarse
- Blood cholesterol level is elevated
- Weight gain - sometimes rapid
- Aching muscles
- Painful joints
- Muscle weakness
- Hair and fingernails are brittle
- Depression
If hypothyroidism is not treated, the symptoms will become more severe. Advanced hypothyroidism is relatively rare, but if it does occur can be life threatening. The primary symptoms of advanced hypothyroidism is shallow breathing, decreased body temperature, and low blood pressure.
