Six Steps To Reversing Hashimoto’s and Thyroid Disease

By Garland Glenn, DC, PScD

Many people are told that thyroid problems, including Hashimoto’s, are incurable and that they’ll have to take medications for the rest of their lives. This may not be true. The key to reversing thyroid conditions lies in uncovering the root cause of your thyroid issue. Correcting these problems requires an integrative approach. It involves more than simply taking a thyroid pill. Here are some strategies to help heal your thyroid.

Strategy 1 Eliminate the Causes of Thyroid Problems

Carefully consider things that may interfere with your thyroid function and eliminate them. Diet is the best place to begin. There are foods with a link to autoimmune disease of the thyroid. Gluten is one of them. Gluten sensitivity can cause many types of symptoms from migraines to fatigue to irritable bowel syndrome. If you’re are having a thyroid problem, you need to do a blood test to identify any reaction to gluten, found in wheat, rye and barley.

Strategy 2 Regular Exercise

Exercise stimulates thyroid gland secretion and increases tissue sensitivity to thyroid hormones throughout the body. Ideally, you will want to sweat and the exercise should be vigorous.

Strategy 3 Eat Foods That Provide Nutritional Support for Your Thyroid

Every step on your road to healing depends on proper nutrition. Choose foods that offer nutritional support for your thyroid.

Strategy 4 Use Supplements That Support Your Thyroid

Key nutrients for healthy thyroid function are selenium, iodine, zinc, vitamins A and D, and omega-3 fats.

Strategy 5 Have Your Thyroid Tested

To properly identify thyroid disease, you must run the correct test. A minimal panel includes TSH, Free T4, Free T3, rT3 and thyroid antibodies (TPO and TBG). Just checking TSH doesn’t give a full picture. This is an idea that began in the 1970’s and is inadequate in identifying the potential causes.

Strategy 6 Address Adrenal Function

The adrenal glands and the thyroid are like two sides of the same coin. They are so interrelated in their function that to ignore either assures a failure in resolving the underlying cause.

So what is the right treatment?

The answer is, it depends on the actual cause is. No two patients are the same and that is why a “one size fits all” approach is going to fail for many patients. In functional medicine we realize that no one treatment works for everyone. Each person is unique and has a different story to tell. Even in the toughest cases, you can heal your thyroid. It isn’t always easy. The bottom line is that you should never lose hope.