{"id":2546,"date":"2008-06-22T13:31:54","date_gmt":"2008-06-22T18:31:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/wholehealthchicago.com\/?p=2546"},"modified":"2021-10-17T04:43:39","modified_gmt":"2021-10-17T09:43:39","slug":"your-brain-is-low-thyroid-a-factor","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wholehealthchicago.com\/blog\/2008\/06\/22\/your-brain-is-low-thyroid-a-factor","title":{"rendered":"Your Brain: Is Low Thyroid a Factor?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Click here <\/a>for the original post.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We continue this month with our series on why your brain might not be functioning the way you feel it should.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hypothyroidism, or an underfunctioning thyroid gland (commonly called low thyroid), is often overlooked by doctors as a cause of poor memory. It\u2019s neglected because many physicians rely solely on a not-very-good blood test to confirm or reject a diagnosis of low thyroid.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The test is called TSH, for thyroid-stimulating hormone. Understand that a blood test result of high TSH=low thyroid function.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For years it\u2019s been gospel that the magic TSH number was 5. Any TSH result higher than 5 merited treatment, otherwise not. Unfortunately, the vast majority of physicians waited until their patients\u2019 TSH surpassed 5 before starting treatment. This can translate into years of a woman feeling crummy due to low thyroid: fatigued, sluggish, and mentally slow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yet many physicians, myself included, estimate that almost 25% of women entering menopause show clinical signs of underactive thyroid. Fortunately, more and more endocrinologists now treat any TSH above 3 with thyroid replacement. Some regard a result of even 2.5 or higher as worth watching.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I use the TSH blood test along with basal body temperature testing<\/a>, which you do yourself, to determine if a woman needs thyroid replacement. If either is abnormal, I write a prescription for Armour thyroid.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Back to the mental changes of low thyroid: the best way to describe them is \u201cfuzzy.\u201d You might have trouble remembering simple things, concentrating, or performing easy tasks like adding a column of figures. The changes can be remarkably subtle, like needing to have a joke explained or being accused of repeating yourself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Conversely, the two most common words I hear from patients who are a few weeks into thyroid replacement are \u201csharper\u201d and \u201cwarmer.\u201d Their mental function has improved and they\u2019ve stopped feeling cold all the time, one of the hallmark symptoms of underactive thyroid.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Be well,
David Edelberg, MD<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

We continue this month with our series on why your brain might not be functioning the way you feel it should.<\/p>\n

Hypothyroidism, or an underfunctioning thyroid gland (commonly called low thyroid), is often overlooked by doctors as a cause of poor memory. It\u2019s neglected because many physicians rely solely on a not-very-good blood test to confirm or reject a diagnosis of low thyroid.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2087,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[204,2,3,62,246,20],"tags":[559,429,513],"class_list":["post-2546","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-b","category-blog","category-knowledge-base","category-t","category-thyroid-adrenal-sex-hormone-issues","category-y","tag-hypothyrodism","tag-thyroid","tag-your-brain"],"yoast_head":"\r\nYour Brain: Is Low Thyroid a Factor?<\/title>\r\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The test is called TSH, for thyroid-stimulating hormone. 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