Today’s tip concerns your thyroid – and its relationship to heart disease.
Your thyroid gland is a small, butterfly-shaped gland that wraps around the front of your windpipe. It is your body’s “gas pedal,” controlling your rate of metabolism. The hormone secreted by your tiny thyroid gland speeds up and slows down the rate at which your body burns energy.
Unfortunately, either and underactive or overactive thyroid can, if left unchecked, result in heart failure.
Low thyroid (or hypothyroid) is the more common culprit in heart disease. One reason for this is that an underactive thyroid can elevate cholesterol – and high cholesterol is, of course, the driver of heart disease.
So if you have high cholesterol, make sure to ask your doctor to run a thyroid panel to see if your thyroid gland is working properly.
In addition to elevated cholesterol, other common symptoms of an underactive thyroid include:
- Fatigue
- Cold intolerance
- Weight gain
- Depression
- Dry skin or hair loss
- Constipation
These are just some of the symptoms to look out for, however only a doctor can accurately discern if your symptoms are from a thyroid problem.
I hope you’ve enjoyed today’s tip.
To Your Best Heart Health,
Chauncey W. Crandall IV, MD, FACC