Q. If I have thinning eyebrows as a symptom, how do I know if I have a thyroid problem? -Kay
You mentioned at the LOL Savings Summit that if you had lost the outer edges of your eye brows that it might be an indication of a thyroid problem, how can I find out more & correct? -Kay
Hi Kay,
Thinning of hair, fingernail thinning and breakage, and loss of eyebrows are just some of the many physical signs that correlate with low thyroid function.
Evaluating this is quite easy and can be done with a simple blood test. You want to measure your TSH, freeT3, freeT4, TPO (peroxidase antibody) and antithyroglobulin antibody.
As simple as it is to evaluate your true thyroid function, most physicians won’t order this full panel which would be covered by your insurance. They instead will limit their evaluation to TSH as the only marker. There is no way you can adequately evaluate the thyroid function of anyone over the age of 40 with this limited view.
It would also be advisable to look at cortisol and DHEA if there are issues of fatigue, stress or sleep disorder.
Did you know that a low functioning thyroid is a contributing factor in 60% of all heart attacks? Thyroid function effects your entire body from brain, to heart, to energy and even sex drive.
I would encourage you to discuss this with your family doctor and explain you physical symptoms in complete detail so that he/she can fully appreciate your needs.
If you happen to be without a primary care doctor then I would be happy to help you explore this issue. Call my office and ask for Mary Maxwell and she can schedule you for a complete evaluation of your health concerns. The number is 924-5300 or direct to Mary at 366-2122.
Take care,
Dr. Gary Huber
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Hello Dr. Huber,
Signs and symptoms of hypothyroidism; are they without significance if the TSH is 2.9 (despite that 2 years ago it was 0.9)? I have been and am experiencing extreme weight gain (from 160 lbs to current weight of 214lbs) exercise 30-45 minutes 5 days a week, eat a healthy diet, feel fatigued, peeling of nails, hair loss esp to outer area of my eyebrown, constipation, bloating with any food consumption, sleep disturbance…ect, and this has been active with noted gradual worsening for the past 4 years. Oh, i also have a goiter but am told that based on the size of the nodules, no tx is required.
I have become so frustrated with being told…”you are pre menapause”…and one physician even said, “yes you are subclinical, but what would other physician’s think if I treated you with a TSH of 2.9?)..
Can you offer me any guidance?
Thank you for your time,
Tonya
Wow Tonya,
You threw a giant softball at me in a big looping arc and then ask me if I can hit it with a 2×4. You are hypothyroid and I don’t care what the other doctors think about my statement. I went into medicine to treat patients and help them find their health, not to impress other doctors. I see patients like you every week. Let me ask you a simple question, has any doctor measured your free T4 or free T3 or your thyroid antibodies? If not, then you have not had a “complete” thyroid evaluation and we can’t say whether you have hypothyroid disease until we do a complete exam. Someone told you that you have nodules but did they explore “why” you have nodules? We can’t always know for sure why nodules exist but if there are antibodies to your thyroid then we need to uncover why there is autoimmune disease involving your thyroid and begin to reverse it. Yes, it can be treated. All of the symptoms you have are abnormal and MUST be addressed. The root cause needs to be discovered. It is often related to undiagnosed food allergies or heavy metal toxicity and these things are often ignored.
The medical literature teaches doctors that thyroid function declines in our 40′s so if you are in fact perimenopausal then simply checking a TSH is just not good enough. Now that doctor you mentioned has to concern himself with what I think of him.
Call my office (513-924-5300) and take a shot at feeling good. There are ALWAYS reasons for feeling the way you do.
Sincerely,
Dr. Gary Huber