ASK Dr. Wiggy


We invite you to submit your health-related questions to Dr. Weston (Wiggy) Saunders at AskDrWiggy@NaturalTriad.com. Based on space, he will answer your questions here in the magazine or on WXII-12 News Mornings!


(Your name or any other identifying information will not be made public.)


Dear Dr. Wiggy, I am a 45 year old female that so far has been pretty healthy.


However, over the last couple of years I have not felt like myself. I have had increasing fatigue, weight gain, cold intolerance, thinning hair, dry skin, and digestive issues. I have been doing some research and I think that it has something to do with my thyroid. However, whenever I get checked by my doctor, my thyroid test is always normal. Am I on the right track or am I missing something here. Thank you – Leslie (Winston-Salem)


Dear Leslie, I’m sure your story hits home with a lot of other people read- ing this because patients come in feeling like this all the time. The symptoms that you are describing could be caused by a combination of conditions, but low thyroid definitely comes to mind first. You just need the right test and medical treatment to get you feeling back to normal again. Thyroid hormones are the primary regulators of the body’s


metabolism. The thyroid is a small butterfly shaped gland at the front of the neck. Imbalances can affect virtually every meta-


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bolic process in the body and have particular effects on mood and energy level. Thy- roid imbalances may elicit fatigue, weakness, weight gain, feeling slowed down, coldness, depression, consti- pation, dry skin, decreased memory and concentration, and muscle and joint pain. These symptoms are common and with easy access to medical information the self-diagnosis of hypothyroidism is increasing. So why have I been told that my thyroid is “normal”? This


is where it gets controversial. Most conventional doctors, when checking thyroid function, only focus on one test, the thyroid stimulating hormone or TSH. If TSH is normal, then your thyroid function is “normal” and that is the end of the discussion. How- ever, I would argue that the TSH isn’t the best test and that thyroid regulation is much more complex. It involves a very intricate system and a breakdown in any part of the process will result in the thyroid being inadequately utilized. Thyroid hormones are regulated by the HPT (hypothalamic-


pituitary-thyroid) axis. When the body needs more thyroid hor- mone the following steps occur: TRH is released from the hypo- thalamus, then goes to the pituitary gland and tells it to release TSH. TSH goes to the thyroid and triggers thyroid hormone production. Thyroid hormones are found in 3 main forms: T4, T3, and reverse T3 (rT3). T4 is released directly from the thyroid gland and it is converted peripherally into T3 and rT3. T3 is five times as potent as T4, and rT3 is completely inert.


Thyroid Metabolism At a Glance


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