I’m going to try something new for the next few weeks and try to simplify a lot of medical information that we talk about.

(You must give me feedback if this is a bore – as I’d prefer you like what you’re reading :). If you know all this, please let me know too, so we focus our research on something else!)

Today, I want to give you a 101 explanation on how we check thyroid hormones.

We’ve been talking about how they are tested and why you need to look further.
But I really thought if we get into the gist of thyroid function and how the hormones work – and – how they connect to your cells AND organs, it could help you start to understand the current testing and most importantly, what you can do about it!

I also really want to explain what we mean when we say “sluggish” thyroid.
It doesn’t mean your TSH is just a little on the low side.
It could mean that your full thyroid hormone function is sluggish…

Whilst a diagnosis can be a relief, symptoms can persist like low energy, weight gain, breathlessness – even on medication… I want to explain WHY.

Part 1: The 101 of Thyroid Hormones

The thyroid hormones have receptor sites for T3 and T4 hormones on every cell in the body.

There are two different kinds

• of T3 (Free T3 and T3, aka Bound T3), and
• of T4 (Free T4 and T4, aka Bound T4).

Free T3 and Free T4 get in the cells and do the majority of the metabolic job.

The Current Way Mainstream Medicine looks at TSH, Free T4 and Free T3

The ratio between TSH and Free T4 tells the doctors if their is a hypo or hyper thyroid problem.

• T4, aka thyroxine, is what keeps the TSH “signal” from the thyroid within normal functioning ranges for the thyroid to do “it’s job”.
• Because T4 is converted into T3, conventional medicine believes free T4 is the more important hormone to measure. Any changes show up in T4 first.
• TSH is what the pituitary gland uses to tell the thyroid gland to release T3 and T4. It is used to keep the T3 and T4 hormones at their optimal levels. This is why it’s the key hormone used in conventional medicine for diagnosing and medication patients with thyroid conditions.
• If the levels of thyroid hormones are too low, TSH levels will increase, which will stimulate the thyroid gland to produce more. If the levels of thyroid hormones are too high, TSH levels will decrease.

For example with hypothyroidism, the medical reasoning is to address T4 and TSH, and to medicate using thyroxine, T4.

But, this is where we start to ask bigger questions.

Providing T4, is helping signal the thyroid to do the acceptable amount of Thyroid Stimulation (TSH), we find we are not addressing big things:

1. If T4 is optimally converting to T3.
2. if Free T3 is getting fully into the cell to do [100% of it’s] metabolic functions. And
3. We are not identifying if there is an autoimmune thyroid condition, like Hashimoto’s and/or Graves

[BRAND NEW WEBCAST]

Hashimotos VS Hypothyroidism, plus BONUS Discussion on Hyperthyroid

> CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE FULL PRESENTATION.

[Note: Doctors are testing the Free T3 to address a thyroid disorder. Like if the protein that binds the Free T3 to the cell is not in the right proportions. This, with other factors, can indicate a thyroid disorder, or an issue with the pituitary gland.]

What does each of the thyroid hormones actually do?

1. T3 is The “Do-er” (Free T3 & T3)
   is the ACTIVE thyroid hormone. It regulates the functions. Like metabolic rate, digestion, skin elasticity, menstrual cycles, brain development, to name a few.
2. T4 aka Thyroxine is The “Delivery Driver” for T3 (Free T4 & T4)
   It regulates thyroid hormone levels and is converted into T3. T4 makes up about 80% of the total hormones produced by the thyroid gland.
3. TSH is The “Signaller” to T4 & T3 to do it’s job.
   TSH is released from the pituitary gland to the thyroid gland telling the thyroid gland to stimulate the production of T4 and T3 in the body.
4. Reverse T3 is Balancer of metabolism & energy.
   It is produced by the body as a byproduct of the conversion T4 to T3. rT3 is structurally similar to T3 but has a different function. It plays a role in regulating the metabolism and energy balance of the body.
5. Thyroid Peroxidase (TPO) Ab* – autoimmune thyroid marker.
   TPO is an enzyme that plays a key role in the production of thyroid hormones, and the presence of TPO antibodies in the blood indicates that the body’s immune system is attacking and damaging the thyroid gland
6. Thyroglobulin Antibody* – autoimmune thyroid marker.
   are antibodies that target thyroglobulin, a protein that is involved in the production and storage of thyroid hormones. The presence of thyroglobulin antibodies in the blood can indicate that the body’s immune system is attacking and damaging the thyroid gland, which can result in decreased production of thyroid hormones. Thyroglobulin antibodies are often elevated in individuals with Hashimoto’s thyroiditis and can also be elevated in individuals with Graves disease.
7. Thyroid Release Hormone (TRH) is the Starting Point.
   TRH is released by the hypothalamus gland to tell the pituitary gland to release the TSH (which gets the T4 and T3 in motion in the blood stream). Normally, TRH is looked checked IF there is a problem pointing to something like Graves – or an issue with the pituitary gland itself to detect how the TRH is doing it’s job.

Part 2: What causes symptoms, but doesn’t show on blood work

Challenge 1: T4 Conversion to T3 & Reverse T3 – Most Common & Important to know

This is the most common challenge women face when they experience:

• normal blood work, but don’t feel right
• are taking medication, but still feel tired
• fatigue, weight loss resistance, and low motivation

The body needs more T3 than the thyroid can produce on its own, so enzymes in the liver and GI tract convert T4 into T3.

In the image to the right, I’ve tried to make an easy visual of the journey of T3, the “action” thyroid hormone.

There are two really important things to see:

1. Only 3% to 20% of T3 is coming from the thyroid gland.
2. 80% to 97% of T3 is delivered from the conversion of T4 to T3.

You can see in the diagram that T4 comes from the thyroid gland into the blood stream.

Challenge 2: Free T3 & Free T4 are received into the Cell

There are receptor cites on all of our cells for Free T3 and Free T4. (as seen in the image above)
Free T3 and Free T4 exist only in the cells. (T4 and T3 are bound by protein in the blood stream.)

This Free T3 is responsible for the way that we feel…
But as you can see there is quite a bit that happens BEFORE the Free T3 gets to the cell.

When we work with patients, we start with the symptoms, which tells us what is happening in the cell and work our way back to the thyroid and pituitary glands if we need to.

Can you see why are we always looking at the thyroid now?

Thyroid Hormones are responsible for:

• Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR)
• Heart rate
• Body weight
• Muscle strength and control
• Central and peripheral nervous systems
• Bone maintenance
• Fat digestion and lipid levels in the blood (increased cholesterol, LDL and/or triglycerides can be indicative of a sluggish thyroid)
• Menstrual cycles
• Mood
• Breathing rate/rhythm
• Moisture in the skin
• Brain development

So we check thyroid function because it often plays a part in many of our patient’s symptoms (even gut issues).

There is one more big piece around iron and ferritin that plays a BIG role in thyroid function.

But I don’t want to overload you today. I’ll share in my next email (hopefully this week)…

I’ve shared quite a bit about Hashimoto’s and Graves and autoimmune thyroid antiboidies two weeks ago, so I’m not going to go too deep on that today.
(Though you are welcome to watch the full training we did on that here if you want to learn more here: https://naturalhormonebalance.co/free-training-hashimotos-hypothyroism/)

Thyroid hormones are such a massive component to women’s health.

More women are diagnosed with thyroid conditions then men.
Women tend to get told to ‘accept’ symptoms, but there could be other causation factors that need to be addressed, rather than acceptance.

I hope this was a helpful explanation and simple enough to digest to see where the gaps may be in your body, if you aren’t feeling quite as vivacious or slim as you used to!

If you’d like to see how we could help you or prefer to just jump on the phone, we offer a free introductory consultation where we can talk through what’s happening with you and how we can help you. You can organise a time for that here:

I look forward to connecting with you again soon!

Have a lovely Sunday.

Warmly,
Tiaan