Manage Your Risk Manage Thyrkid Risk Manage Your Energy-enhancing supplements Home Tobacco Control Diet Hormoanl Weight Physical Activity Skin Safety HPV Hepatitis. Donate Donate Donate Home Tyroid Money Honor Hormonal imbalance and thyroid health Ones Create Thyriid Legacy Endowments Caring Ahd Matching Gifts. Some medicines can interfere with thyroid hormone production and lead to hypothyroidism, including certain. Discover the five telltale signs of a hormone imbalance. If the pituitary does not produce enough TSH, you may not make adequate thyroid hormone. You can expand or narrow the list to include clinical studies from industry, universities, and individuals; however, the National Institutes of Health does not review these studies and cannot ensure they are safe. Cortisol can decrease active T3 levels while raising reverse T3.

Hormonal imbalance and thyroid health -

Hypothyroidism is treated with medicine that gives your body the thyroid hormone it needs to work normally. The most common medicines are man-made forms of the hormone that your thyroid makes.

You will likely need to take thyroid hormone pills for the rest of your life. When you take the pills as your doctor tells you to, the pills are very safe.

Hyperthyroidism, hy-pur-THY-roi-diz-uhm or overactive thyroid, causes your thyroid to make more thyroid hormone than your body needs. This speeds up many of your body's functions, like your metabolism and heart rate. The most common cause of hyperthyroidism is Graves' disease.

Graves' disease is a problem with the immune system. At first, you might not notice the signs or symptoms of hyperthyroidism.

Symptoms usually begin slowly. But, over time, a faster metabolism can cause symptoms such as:. Hyperthyroidism raises your risk for osteoporosis , a condition that causes weak bones that break easily.

In fact, hyperthyroidism might affect your bones before you have any of the other symptoms of the condition. This is especially true of women who have gone through menopause or who are already at high risk of osteoporosis.

Your doctor's choice of treatment will depend on your symptoms and the cause of your hyperthyroidism. Treatments include:. Thyroiditis thy-roi-DY-tiss is inflammation of the thyroid. It happens when the body's immune system makes antibodies that attack the thyroid.

Two common types of thyroiditis are Hashimoto's disease and postpartum thyroiditis. Women with postpartum thyroiditis may feel very tired and moody. Postpartum thyroiditis typically happens in two phases, though not everyone with the condition goes through both phases: 4. Your immune system may cause postpartum thyroiditis.

If you have an autoimmune disease, like type 1 diabetes , your risk is higher. Treatment for postpartum thyroiditis depends on the phase of the disease and what symptoms you have. For example, if you get symptoms of hyperthyroidism in the first phase, your treatment may include medicines to slow down the heart rate.

In most women who have postpartum thyroiditis, the thyroid returns to normal within 12 to 18 months after symptoms start. But if you have a history of postpartum thyroiditis, your risk is higher for developing permanent hypothyroidism within 5 to 10 years.

A goiter is an unusually enlarged thyroid gland. It may happen only for a short time and may go away on its own without treatment.

Or it could be a symptom of another thyroid disease that requires treatment. goiter is more common in women than in men and especially in women before menopause.

Usually, the only symptom of a goiter is a swelling in your neck. It may be large enough that you can see it or feel the lump with your hand.

A very large goiter can also cause a tight feeling in your throat, coughing, or problems swallowing or breathing. Your doctor will do tests to see if it is caused by another thyroid disease.

If you do need treatment, medicine should make the thyroid shrink back to near normal size. You may need surgery to take out part or most of the thyroid. A thyroid nodule NAHD-yool is a swelling in one section of the thyroid gland.

The nodule may be solid or filled with fluid or blood. You may have just one thyroid nodule or many. Thyroid nodules are common and affect four times as many women as men. Most thyroid nodules do not cause symptoms and are not cancerous. Sometimes, nodules grow so big that they cause problems with swallowing or breathing.

About one-third of nodules are found by the patient, another third by the doctor, and the other third through an imaging test of the neck. You can sometimes see or feel a thyroid nodule yourself.

Stand in front of a mirror and raise your chin slightly. Look for a bump on either side of your windpipe below your Adam's apple. If the bump moves up and down when you swallow, it may be a thyroid nodule. Ask your doctor to look at it. Most people with thyroid cancer have a thyroid nodule that does not cause any symptoms.

If you do have symptoms, you may have swelling or a lump in your neck. The lump may cause problems swallowing. Some people get a hoarse voice. To tell if the lump or nodule is cancerous, your doctor will order certain tests.

Most thyroid nodules are not cancerous. For more information about thyroid cancer, visit the National Cancer Institute's thyroid cancer page. About three times as many women get thyroid cancer as men.

The number of women with thyroid cancer is also going up. By , the number of women with thyroid cancer is expected to double, from 34, women to more than 70, women. The main treatment for thyroid cancer is surgery to take out the whole thyroid gland or as much of it as can be safely removed.

Surgery alone can cure thyroid cancer if the cancer is small and has not yet spread to lymph nodes. Your doctor may also use radioiodine therapy after surgery. Radioiodine therapy destroys any thyroid cancer cells that were not removed during surgery or that have spread to other parts of the body.

Your doctor may also talk with you about other treatments for thyroid cancer. Learn more about thyroid cancer treatments at the National Cancer Institute. It can be hard to tell if you have a thyroid disease. The symptoms are the same as many other health problems.

Your doctor may start by asking about your health history and if any of your family members has had thyroid disease. Your doctor may also give you a physical exam and check your neck for thyroid nodules.

High levels of radioiodine mean that your thyroid makes too much of the thyroid hormone. Low levels mean that your thyroid does not make enough thyroid hormone.

Ultrasound may also be helpful in finding thyroid cancer, although by itself it cannot be used to diagnose thyroid cancer. Both hyperthyroidism and hypothyroidism can make it harder for you to get pregnant. This is because problems with the thyroid hormone can upset the balance of the hormones that cause ovulation.

Hypothyroidism can also cause your body to make more prolactin, the hormone that tells your body to make breastmilk. Too much prolactin can prevent ovulation. Thyroid problems can also affect the menstrual cycle. Your periods may be heavier or irregular, or you may not have any periods at all for several months or longer called amenorrhea.

Pregnancy-related hormones raise the level of thyroid hormones in the blood. Thyroid hormones are necessary for the baby's brain development while in the womb. It can be harder to diagnose thyroid problems during pregnancy because of the change in hormone levels that normally happen during pregnancy.

But it is especially important to check for problems before getting pregnant and during pregnancy. Uncontrolled hyperthyroidism and hypothyroidism can cause problems for both mother and baby. Hyperthyroidism that is not treated with medicine during pregnancy can cause: 4. Hypothyroidism that is not treated with medicine during pregnancy can cause: 4.

For more information about thyroid diseases, call the OWH Helpline at or contact the following organizations:. A federal government website managed by the Office on Women's Health in the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health at the U. Department of Health and Human Services.

ET closed on federal holidays. Breadcrumb Home A-Z health topics Thyroid disease. Thyroid disease. Thyroid disease Your thyroid produces thyroid hormone, which controls many activities in your body, including how fast you burn calories and how fast your heart beats.

What is the thyroid? How do thyroid problems affect women? Your thyroid helps control your menstrual cycle. Too much or too little thyroid hormone can make your periods very light, heavy, or irregular.

Thyroid disease also can cause your periods to stop for several months or longer, a condition called amenorrhea. If your body's immune system causes thyroid disease, other glands, including your ovaries, may be involved. This can lead to early menopause before age Problems getting pregnant.

When thyroid disease affects the menstrual cycle, it also affects ovulation. This can make it harder for you to get pregnant. Problems during pregnancy. Thyroid problems during pregnancy can cause health problems for the mother and the baby.

Are some women more at risk for thyroid disease? You may want to talk to your doctor about getting tested if you: Had a thyroid problem in the past Had surgery or radiotherapy affecting the thyroid gland Have a condition such as goiter , anemia , or type 1 diabetes Screening for thyroid disease is not recommended for most women.

What kinds of thyroid disease affect women? These thyroid diseases affect more women than men: Disorders that cause hypothyroidism Disorders that cause hyperthyroidism Thyroiditis , especially postpartum thyroiditis goiter Thyroid nodules Thyroid cancer.

What is hypothyroidism? Hypothyroidism also can be caused by: Hyperthyroidism treatment radioiodine Radiation treatment of certain cancers Thyroid removal.

What are the signs and symptoms of hypothyroidism? Later, you may develop other signs and symptoms of a slowed-down metabolism, including: Feeling cold when other people do not Constipation Muscle weakness Weight gain, even though you are not eating more food Joint or muscle pain Feeling sad or depressed Feeling very tired Pale, dry skin Dry, thinning hair Slow heart rate Less sweating than usual A puffy face A hoarse voice More than usual menstrual bleeding You also may have high LDL or "bad" cholesterol, which can raise your risk for heart disease.

How is hypothyroidism treated? What is hyperthyroidism? What are the signs and symptoms of hyperthyroidism? But, over time, a faster metabolism can cause symptoms such as: Weight loss, even if you eat the same or more food most but not all people lose weight Eating more than usual Rapid or irregular heartbeat or pounding of your heart Feeling nervous or anxious Feeling irritable Trouble sleeping Trembling in your hands and fingers Increased sweating Feeling hot when other people do not Muscle weakness Diarrhea or more bowel movements than normal Fewer and lighter menstrual periods than normal Changes in your eyes that can include bulging of the eyes, redness, or irritation Hyperthyroidism raises your risk for osteoporosis , a condition that causes weak bones that break easily.

How is hyperthyroidism treated? Treatments include: Medicine. Antithyroid medicines block your thyroid from making new thyroid hormone. These drugs do not cause lasting damage to the thyroid.

Beta-blockers block the effects of thyroid hormone on your body. These medicines can be helpful in slowing your heart rate and treating other symptoms until one of the other forms of treatment can take effect.

Beta-blockers do not reduce the amount of thyroid hormones that are made. This treatment kills the thyroid cells that make thyroid hormones. Often, this causes permanent hypothyroidism. Thyroid surgery removes most or all of the thyroid. This may cause permanent hypothyroidism.

You should see a GP and ask to be tested for an underactive thyroid if you have symptoms including:. The only accurate way of finding out whether you have a thyroid problem is to have a thyroid function test , where a sample of blood is tested to measure your hormone levels.

Read more about testing for an underactive thyroid. Both men and women can have an underactive thyroid, although it's more common in women.

Children can also develop an underactive thyroid and some babies are born with it. All babies born in the UK are screened for congenital hypothyroidism using a blood spot test when the baby is about 5 days old.

Treatment for an underactive thyroid involves taking daily hormone replacement tablets, called levothyroxine , to raise your thyroxine levels. You'll initially have regular blood tests until the correct dose of levothyroxine is reached.

This can take a little while to get right. Once you're taking the correct dose, you'll usually have a blood test once a year to monitor your hormone levels. You'll usually need treatment for the rest of your life.

However, with proper treatment, you should be able to lead a normal, healthy life. If an underactive thyroid is not treated, it can lead to complications, including heart disease , goitre , pregnancy problems and a life-threatening condition called myxoedema coma although this is very rare.

The thyroid gland is a small butterfly-shaped gland in the neck, just in front of the windpipe trachea. One of its main functions is to produce hormones that help regulate the body's metabolism the process that turns food into energy.

These hormones are called triiodothyronine T3 and thyroxine T4. Many of the body's functions slow down when the thyroid does not produce enough of these hormones.

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