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The Importance of Getting Regular Health Tests
Reproduced from original article:
https://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2025/08/16/importance-of-getting-regular-health-tests.aspx
Analysis by Dr. Joseph Mercola August 16, 2025
Story at-a-glance
- Regular lab testing provides precise, actionable insights that enable early detection of possible diseases to improve long-term health outcomes
- Iron overload testing is crucial since excess iron is more common than deficiency; check serum ferritin levels and GGT enzyme levels for accuracy
- Hormone testing reveals metabolic health by measuring cortisol for stress levels, testosterone for mortality risk, and insulin resistance through HOMA-IR calculations
- Comprehensive biomarker monitoring includes vitamin D levels, complete thyroid panel beyond thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), and NAD+ testing for cellular function
- Biannual gut microbiome testing provides insights into bacterial balance, enabling smarter dietary decisions
When was the last time you had a thorough assessment of your health? Guessing about the current state of your health can lead to risky assumptions and dangerous oversights. Without concrete information, symptoms are likely to be misinterpreted or dismissed, allowing underlying issues to progress unnoticed. On the other hand, too much intake of a specific nutrient will also lead to health issues.
Lab testing removes uncertainty by providing precise, actionable insights into your health. By leveraging data-driven results, you gain clarity about your body’s true state, enabling you to select the optimal strategy to boost your health and proactively address concerns. The following are the tests I recommend that you take to keep you updated on what’s happening inside your body.
How to Test for Iron
One good reason why I recommend taking regular tests is to catch an unsuspecting health problem affecting many people — iron overload. In fact, it’s more widespread than iron deficiency. In addition, I’ve also written a paper about the duality of iron as a toxin and a nutrient, which will be published in the future. The recommendations I mention below stem from the findings of that specific research.
• How iron is normally tested — Checking for excess iron is straightforward and starts with a basic serum ferritin test, which shows how much iron your body has stored. This test reveals if your iron storage has reached higher-than-normal levels.
For context, transferrin refers to a protein produced in your liver that transports (hence the “transfer” in the name) iron molecules it binds to, transporting it to tissues. One example is your bone marrow, which requires iron to create new blood cells.1
• Transferrin saturation (TSAT) — While a serum ferritin test is a cornerstone test, it shows an incomplete picture. It works best alongside a TSAT test.
TSAT levels — calculated as serum iron divided by total iron-binding capacity (TIBC) then multiplied by 100 — shows the current amount of transferrin protein that’s bound to iron. Thus, it shows you the current iron levels you have available for erythropoiesis, commonly known as red blood cell production.
• Results to watch out for — When it comes to serum ferritin levels, I believe that the ideal range is between 30 and 100 ng/mL (nanograms per milliliter). This is sufficient for hemoglobin synthesis and avoids iron accumulation that can lead to oxidative stress in your body.
As for TSAT, my research indicates that the ideal range is between 25% and 35%. If regular tests show a range above 35%, you likely have iron overload. At 35% to 40%, iron that isn’t bound by transferrin protein — also known as toxic non-transferrin-bound iron (NTBI) — will damage your vital organs.2 In fact, TSAT ranges between 45% and 55% are linked to a 60% to 67% increase in all-cause mortality.
•Ideal ranges — To summarize, healthy results should show TSAT levels between 25% and 35%, alongside serum ferritin levels between 30 and 100 ng/mL.
Now, if your combined results show TSAT levels below 20% and serum ferritin levels below 15 micrograms per liter (µg/L), you likely have depleted iron reserves. Conversely, TSAT levels above 45% and ferritin levels above 100 ng/mL indicate excess iron. Taken altogether, serum ferritin not only serve as diagnostic markers — they also function as risk predictors.
• Other tests that detect iron — A comprehensive assessment usually includes an iron panel, complete blood count (CBC), gamma-glutamyl transferase (GGT), and a metabolic panel to fully understand your body’s iron status and overall health.
A healthy ferritin level is between 20 and 40 ng/mL. If results show that you’re below 20 ng/mL, you’re deficient in iron, which isn’t what you also want to happen. Conversely, you want your ferritin below 100 ng/mL, which is the maximum cut off.
• GGT test — This refers to the enzyme mainly produced by the liver, and is responsible for breaking down medications and toxins. When too much iron builds up in your body, it can harm your liver cells, causing GGT levels to rise significantly in your bloodstream.
What’s great about this test is that it also gives you insights on your excess free iron, as well as your risk for sudden death, insulin resistance, and cardiometabolic disease. Once you have your results, refer to the table below to know where you stand:
| Ideal GGT Level, units per liter (U/L) | Average level, above which your risk for chronic disease increases significantly | “Normal” GGT Level | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Men | Less than 16 U/L | 25 U/L | Up to 70 U/L |
| Women | Less than 9 U/L | 18 U/L | Up to 45 U/L |
Fine-Tuning Your Lifestyle for Longevity
Testing for possible nutrient deficiencies (or overload) is just one aspect of the big picture. You also need to test for other biomarkers, such as your hormones (testosterone, cortisol, and insulin) to detect your current stress levels. Doing so will lead to better metabolic health management.
• How cortisol is measured — Cortisol is produced by your adrenal glands, and it can be detected via your blood, urine, or saliva. Once samples are provided, be sure to follow your doctor’s instructions to generate the most accurate results possible.3
According to the Cleveland Clinic, cortisol in the blood, urine, or saliva are at their highest during the early morning and then decline afterward — midnight is the lowest point.4
• What your cortisol levels tell you about your health — In addition to measuring your stress levels, cortisol tests help rule out other conditions. For example, Addison’s disease occurs when your body isn’t producing enough cortisol. Conversely, Cushing’s syndrome is marked by high cortisol levels. Tumors are also marked by elevated cortisol.5
Finding out your current cortisol levels is important for overall health. It drastically accelerates aging and even contributes to muscle degradation over time. Lastly, it contributes to inflammation and a weakened immune system.
• The importance of testosterone — In a previous article, I cited research showing the link between sex hormones and mortality risk in men. Basically, if your testosterone levels drop by 213 ng/dL (nanograms per deciliter), you have a higher risk of all-cause mortality. In addition, testosterone levels below 153 ng/dL were associated with increased cardiovascular mortality risk.
• Ideal testosterone range — To find out your current levels, you’ll need to have your blood tested. That said, what’s a healthy range? In this article, I mentioned 300 to 1,000 ng/dL as a baseline.
• Testing for insulin resistance — In addition to cortisol, another crucial test that I recommend you take is measuring your insulin resistance. This is essential because results will serve as warning signs for your metabolic health. That said, insulin resistance is measured via the Homeostatic Model Assessment of Insulin Resistance (HOMA-IR) test. It calculates how your fasting glucose and insulin levels interact, and finds out how your body uses insulin.
• Interpreting HOMA-IR results — Below is a breakdown on how the HOMA-IR test is calculated. A score below 1 means you are currently insulin-sensitive and functioning well. Anything above that means that you currently have insulin resistance.
HOMA-IR = (Fasting Glucose x Fasting Insulin) / 405, where
◦ Fasting glucose is measured in mg/dL
◦ Fasting insulin is measured in μIU/mL (microinternational units per milliliter)
◦ 405 is a constant that normalizes the values
If you’re using mmol/L for glucose instead of mg/dL, the formula changes slightly:
HOMA-IR = (Fasting Glucose x Fasting Insulin) / 22.5, where
◦ Fasting glucose is measured in mmol/L (millimoles per liter)
◦ Fasting insulin is measured in μIU/mL, and
◦ 22.5 is the normalizing factor for this unit of measurement
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Testing for Other Important Biomarkers
So far, I’ve covered the importance of having your iron, cortisol, insulin resistance, and testosterone levels tested. While they may seem like a lot, there’s still a few more tests that need to be done.
• Monitor your vitamin D — This nutrient is a crucial contributor to optimal health, and I’ve espoused its importance for many years now. Considering this, a simple blood test is all you need to know your current levels.
My recommended range is between 60 ng/mL and 80 ng/mL, and the cutoff for sufficiency is around 40 ng/mL. Once you’ve confirmed your level, you’ll know how much sun exposure or supplementation (if needed) is necessary for you to reach the ideal range. Then, retest in the next three to four months to make sure you’ve hit your goals.
• Don’t forget your thyroid hormones — Your endocrine system is a complex network of glands and organs that regulate hormone production. Among the many hormones produced in your body, the ones produced in the thyroid are perhaps the most important because they help regulate metabolism and are found in nearly every physiological process within you.
• Understanding thyroid antibodies — Examples include thyroglobulin antibodies (TgAb) and thyroid peroxidase antibodies (TPOAb). Results will give you deeper insight into whether autoimmune processes are attacking your thyroid gland. Pairing these antibody results with symptoms helps you make meaningful connections and clarifies what’s really going on with your body, particularly if you’re dealing with an autoimmune condition.
• Traditional thyroid assessments aren’t effective anymore — Testing for thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) alone often misses underlying issues. That’s because TSH levels fluctuate significantly and you’ll even appear relatively normal even when you’re actually experiencing severe symptoms.
For instance, individuals with Hashimoto’s thyroiditis might have completely normal hormone levels yet feel persistently unwell. Similarly, basal body temperature is also an unreliable indicator of thyroid health, as it can be influenced by multiple factors unrelated to thyroid function.
• How to test thyroid function — A full thyroid assessment should show the following results:
◦Low TSH
◦T3 levels in the upper range
◦rT3 levels in the lower range
◦Moderate T4 levels
However, note that even “normal” results will not guarantee that your thyroid is functioning properly. For deeper insight, test for rT3 and cholesterol. Small amounts of rT3 are normal and act as a buffer against thyroid overactivity. On the other end, elevated rT3 is problematic because it competes with T3, reducing your metabolic rate. Elevated cholesterol levels also usually signal suboptimal thyroid function.
Importance of NAD+ Testing
Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+) is an important molecule in your body. It plays a role in converting food to energy, as well as maintaining DNA integrity and proper cell function.
• A new test will come out soon — I’m excited to announce the upcoming Mitochondrial Wellness Test Kit, which will provide a snapshot of your latest mitochondrial function. While helpful, certain specialized tests will be needed to understand the nuances of your health.
• Current NAD+ testing is unsatisfactory — NAD+ rapidly deteriorates once it’s outside your cells, making accurate measurement tricky. Because of this fragility, samples require immediate handling and specialized techniques to avoid losing accuracy.
Typically, precise NAD+ measurement demands blood samples to be drawn and analyzed swiftly within the same specialized research facility — something not possible at most regular clinics. Transporting samples between labs also compromises results significantly due to degradation. However, these challenges haven’t stopped our mission to deliver valuable health insights.
• NAD+ testing standards will rise — My team and I have developed an innovative approach that bypasses the complexity of direct NAD+ measurement. Instead, our method evaluates your NAD+ status indirectly by examining the redox balance among these essential markers — acetoacetate and betahydroxybutyrate, lactate and pyruvate, and the oxidized and reduced forms of glutathione.
• The test will be affordable — I’m proud to share that this cutting-edge NAD+ test is inexpensive, giving more people access to their current cellular health. More announcements will be made once this product is available.
Assessing Your Gut Health
Another crucial aspect of your health that needs to be tested regularly is your gut function. As you know, certain gut strains are beneficial, while others aren’t. Thus, figuring out which bacteria are dominating your gut will give you an insight to what’s happening.
• Gut Microbiome Wellness Test Kit — Just like the Mitochondrial Wellness Test Kit, my team and I will be releasing the Gut Microbiome Wellness Test Kit. It’s uniquely crafted to help you gain insights into your gut bacteria’s profile. It will seamlessly pair with the upcoming Mercola Health Coach app, providing you with a seamless end-to-end journey — from collecting your sample to interpreting your results.
To paint a picture of this process, you’ll need to send over a fecal sample. Afterward, you’ll be provided with a detailed breakdown of key bacterial species, allowing you to make smarter dietary and lifestyle decisions. To encourage broad access among the public, we’re also giving it an affordable price tag.
• Frequency of gut microbiome testing — One major reason why we’ve made this test affordable is to encourage repeat testing, ideally twice a year. This is needed to see whether your situation has improved or worsened, and you cannot know what your status is if a single test already requires a significant amount of cash.
Tips on Addressing Nutritional and Hormonal Deficiencies
The reason why I recommend you get yourself screened is to help save you time and money. For example, if one vitamin is already at an optimal range, you can focus your effort on others that need more attention. That said, I recommend going through the following articles. They contain helpful strategies to help you maintain optimal health after you’ve completed your tests:
- Everything You Need to Know About Vitamin D for Your Health
- High Iron Levels Threaten Bone Health and Increase Fracture Risk
- How Low Testosterone Affects Men’s Health
- Blocking Cortisol Extends Lifespan by Improving Mitochondrial Function
- Key Nutrients to Support Optimal Thyroid Health
- The Crucial Role of NAD+ in Optimal Health
- Unlocking the Secrets of Gut Health
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) About Regular Health Screenings
Q: Why is guessing about your health risky?
A: Guessing or relying on symptoms alone can result in serious health issues going undetected, delaying necessary treatments and reducing your chances of successful recovery. Accurate lab testing removes uncertainty, providing clear insights into your health status.
Q: What tests are essential for assessing iron overload?
A: Begin with a serum ferritin test, which reveals how much iron your body stores. For a comprehensive view, consider an iron panel, Complete Blood Count (CBC), gamma-glutamyl transferase (GGT), and a metabolic panel to fully evaluate your iron levels and overall health risks.
Q: Why is it important to monitor cortisol and testosterone levels?
A: Cortisol levels reflect stress and inflammation, significantly influencing aging, muscle health, and immune function. Testosterone is linked directly to mortality risk, cardiovascular health, and overall vitality. Regularly testing these hormones helps detect and manage imbalances early, protecting your long-term health.
Q: How can you accurately assess your thyroid health?
A: Traditional testing methods, like TSH levels or basal body temperature alone, often fail to identify underlying thyroid conditions such as Hashimoto’s thyroiditis. Testing thyroid antibodies (TgAb and TPOAb), along with a comprehensive panel (TSH, T3, T4, reverse T3, cholesterol), provides a clearer picture and helps target autoimmune-related thyroid issues.
Q: How do NAD+ and gut microbiome tests contribute to overall wellness?
A: Measuring NAD+ indirectly through redox balance markers provides critical insights into mitochondrial and cellular health, influencing energy and metabolic functions. Gut microbiome testing identifies beneficial and harmful bacterial strains, guiding informed dietary and lifestyle adjustments. Both tests are designed to be affordable, accessible, and offer actionable results for improving overall wellness.
PFAS ‘Universe’ Mapped — Nearly 15,000 Chemicals, Scant Human Data
Reproduced from original article:
https://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2025/08/10/pfas-forever-chemicals-exposure.aspx
Analysis by Dr. Joseph Mercola August 10, 2025
Story at-a-glance
- Nearly 15,000 PFAS chemicals have been identified, but less than 2% have any safety data, leaving you exposed daily to toxins that haven’t been tested or regulated
- DuPont’s use of PFOA, also known as C8, in Teflon production led to widespread water and air contamination, with blood levels in workers and residents reaching hundreds of times above safe limits
- PFAS chemicals don’t break down and stay in your body for years, binding to proteins and accumulating in organs like your liver and brain, which increases your long-term health risks
- Major sources of exposure include contaminated drinking water, food packaging, nonstick cookware, waterproof clothing, and stain-resistant furniture, making daily contact nearly unavoidable without intervention
- You can lower your toxic burden by filtering your water, avoiding PFAS-treated products, donating blood or plasma, supporting liver detox with sulfur-rich foods, improving mitochondrial health, and pushing for regulatory change
You’ve been exposed to toxic chemicals that your doctor hasn’t ever mentioned, and they’re likely in your blood right now. You didn’t choose this, but industry did. Over the last century, companies have quietly released thousands of synthetic compounds into the environment, embedding them in everyday items like packaging, cookware, and clothing. These substances were designed to last forever — and that’s exactly what they’re doing inside your body.
Even low levels of these chemicals are now being linked to serious health problems, including hormone disruption, immune suppression, and cancer. Yet almost none of them have ever been tested for safety in humans.
And while the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has begun regulating a few of the oldest and most well-known types, the vast majority remain completely unmonitored, with no warnings, no restrictions, and no accountability. This article traces how one chemical invention spiraled into a global contamination crisis — and what you can do to protect yourself.
A Kitchen Coating Triggered One of the Worst Toxic Disasters in US History
The documentary How One Company Secretly Poisoned the Planet traces the shocking history of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) back to a single lab accident.1 In 1938, a chemist at DuPont named Roy Plunkett accidentally created a slippery white powder — polytetrafluoroethylene — later branded as Teflon.
It seemed miraculous: it resisted heat, water, acid, and almost every chemical. That same indestructibility made it valuable to the military and industry. But manufacturing it required a separate chemical called PFOA (also known as C8), which would later be linked to widespread human health harm.
• Factory workers and residents living near DuPont’s plant were exposed to extremely toxic water and air — DuPont began producing Teflon at its Washington Works plant in Parkersburg, West Virginia, using C8 to polymerize the material. Instead of safely disposing of the waste, the company dumped thousands of pounds of C8 into the Ohio River, local landfills, and the air. The company’s own internal records from the 1960s showed that C8 caused organ damage and cancer in lab animals.
Still, they kept quiet and continued production. One local farmer, Earl Tennant, lost dozens of cattle that developed tumors, blackened teeth, and skin lesions. His creek had white foam pouring out from a DuPont discharge pipe. When Tennant sued, DuPont settled privately and did not admit fault.
• DuPont workers had blood levels of C8 more than 1,000 times higher than the U.S. average — According to the film, when 3M — the original supplier of C8 — found PFOA in the blood of the general U.S. population in the 1970s, they approached DuPont. DuPont tested its workers and discovered astronomically high levels.
Some employees already showed signs of liver dysfunction, and pregnant employees had birth defects in their children. Despite the alarming data, DuPont calculated its own “safe” limit for PFOA in water: one part per billion (ppb).
• Exposure spread far beyond the plant, with drinking water contamination reaching tens of thousands of residents — DuPont’s internal tests found 1,600 ppb of C8 in landfill water near Tennant’s farm — 1,600 times higher than their own safety threshold.
Yet they told no one. In a later class-action lawsuit covering 70,000 residents, an independent scientific panel found a “probable link” between C8 and six human diseases, including thyroid disease, ulcerative colitis, pregnancy-induced high blood pressure, and both testicular and kidney cancers. These health problems were observed at average blood concentrations of just 28 parts per billion.
• PFAS is extremely difficult to remove from your body once it builds up — C8 mimics fatty acids in the body, which means it binds to proteins in your blood and travels to organs like your liver, kidneys, and even your brain. Because your body doesn’t have a natural way to break carbon-fluorine bonds, these chemicals take years to leave your system.
That long retention time increases the chance of cumulative harm, even from small exposures. Researchers found that firefighters who donated blood regularly reduced their PFAS levels by up to 30% within a year. But the documentary stressed that placing the burden on individuals to filter or detox is backward. The real solution is stopping production and holding manufacturers accountable.
• The biggest risks were from packaging, food, and local water — Most people assume they’re exposed through nonstick cookware. While this is one route of exposure, another major risk is environmental — through contaminated water, processed food packaging, stain-resistant furniture, and firefighting foams.
Microwave popcorn bags, in particular, leach PFAS directly into the food during heating. Even small concentrations in water — just a few parts per trillion — build up in your bloodstream over time and push your levels into the danger zone.
Thousands of Toxic Chemicals, but Almost No Safety Data
A systematic evidence map published in Environmental Health Perspectives noted that about 14,735 individual PFAS substances are currently known to exist.2 Despite their widespread use, only 214 of those compounds have any published toxicology data. This means over 98% of PFAS have never been assessed for their health risks. For the average person, that translates into daily exposure to chemicals that regulatory agencies haven’t even begun to study or monitor.
• Toxicology studies focused heavily on just a few legacy chemicals, leaving major gaps — Of all the PFAS with published data, nearly every study focused on a handful of well-known substances like PFOA, PFOS, PFHxS, and PFNA.
These four chemicals dominate the scientific literature because they’ve been in use longest and were involved in lawsuits. But that leaves newer, so-called “replacement” PFAS like GenX and ADONA largely unstudied, even though early evidence suggests they’re just as harmful, or worse.
• The study authors warned that these gaps are regulatory blind spots — Just six PFAS are currently regulated under the EPA’s 2024 national drinking water standard. That leaves nearly 15,000 chemicals essentially unregulated in food, water, air, and consumer products. This patchwork regulation is fundamentally inadequate. Without broad-spectrum testing and proactive bans, industries simply substitute one PFAS for another without ever proving that the replacement is safe.
• PFAS manufacturers are exploiting the lack of data to delay regulations — Because most PFAS don’t have safety profiles, manufacturers claim there’s “no evidence of harm” — even though there’s also no evidence of safety.
This tactic, sometimes called the “regulatory data gap,” allows companies to shift public pressure off themselves and onto regulators who are already overwhelmed. For consumers, this means you’re likely using products daily that contain untested PFAS, and there’s no law requiring disclosure or warning.
• Scientists called for urgent reform to close the data gap and protect public health — The paper recommended expanding the use of high-throughput toxicity screening, which uses automated tools to test large numbers of chemicals quickly. It also called for predictive modeling to estimate toxicity based on chemical structure and prioritized testing based on likelihood of human exposure.
Without these tools, regulatory agencies are left playing catch-up with industries that are constantly developing new PFAS faster than they’re assessed. In the meantime, the public continues to be exposed, unknowingly and without protection.
Save This Article for Later – Get the PDF Now
How to Protect Yourself and Reduce Your Body Burden
You’re not helpless in this. While the contamination began with industry, there are still smart steps you can take right now to reduce your exposure, support your body’s detox systems, and push for real change. You’ll need to take action on two fronts: what comes into your body and how well your body handles it once it’s there.
If you’ve already been exposed, and nearly everyone has, your focus should be on stopping the source and helping your system eliminate what’s already built up. These five steps are a powerful place to start.
1. Filter your drinking water with a system that removes PFAS — If you’re not sure whether your area has contaminated water, check your local water utility’s report or test your water with a PFAS-specific kit. If PFAS is detected, choose a high-quality water filtration system designed to remove it. This is an effective step to help limit daily exposure.
2. Stop bringing new PFAS into your home — That means cutting out nonstick cookware, stain-resistant carpets and furniture, waterproofed clothing (like Gore-Tex), and fast food packaging. Look for PFAS-free or fluorine-free labels. If you’re a parent, especially watch out for school uniforms and outdoor gear treated with water- and stain-proof chemicals. These are common sources of childhood exposure.
3. Donate blood or plasma to lower your PFAS levels — If you meet donation criteria, this is one of the most effective ways to remove PFAS from your body. Several studies have shown that regular blood or plasma donations help clear compounds like PFOS and PFHxS, which otherwise take years to leave your system. This isn’t just a nice thing to do — it’s an active form of self-defense.
4. Support your liver and kidneys — your body’s natural detox system — You don’t need a trendy cleanse or expensive detox powder. What you need is consistent support for your detoxification organs. Eat sulfur-rich foods like garlic, onions, and cruciferous vegetables to fuel glutathione production, your body’s master detox compound.
Hydrate with filtered water, avoid alcohol, and remove vegetable oils from your diet — they’re high in linoleic acid (LA) that impairs mitochondrial function and slows down toxin elimination.
5. Push back, because voluntary industry change won’t protect you — The reason you’ve been exposed isn’t personal. It’s policy. Industry exploited a regulatory gap, and now the burden falls on you. So, don’t stop at protecting your own home. Support state-level bans on PFAS in consumer products, demand full ingredient disclosure on packaging, and advocate for expanded testing and cleanup in contaminated communities.
Your voice matters more than you think. Each layer of exposure you remove lowers your lifetime toxic burden and gives your body a better shot at recovery. This isn’t just about avoiding illness. It’s about reclaiming control over what gets into your body — and what doesn’t.
FAQs About PFAS
Q: What are PFAS and why should I be concerned?
A: PFAS are manmade chemicals used in nonstick cookware, stain-resistant fabrics, food packaging, waterproof clothing, and industrial processes. They’re called “forever chemicals” because they don’t break down in the environment or your body. Even low levels of PFAS are linked to serious health problems, including cancer, liver damage, thyroid dysfunction, and immune suppression.
Q: How widespread is PFAS contamination?
A: It’s virtually everywhere. According to current estimates, more than 98% of Americans have PFAS in their blood. These chemicals contaminate water, air, soil, and food products. A single PFAS, PFOA, was found in water supplies near military bases, airports, and manufacturing plants at levels far exceeding safety guidelines.
Q: Why haven’t more of these chemicals been regulated or tested?
A: Nearly 15,000 PFAS compounds are known to exist, but only about 200 have been studied for toxicity. Just six are currently regulated in U.S. drinking water. Industry often replaces banned PFAS with new versions that haven’t been tested, creating a cycle of ongoing exposure with little accountability.
Q: How do I reduce my PFAS exposure at home?
A: Start by filtering your drinking water with a system designed to remove PFAS. Avoid products labeled stain-resistant or waterproof, skip fast food packaging and microwave popcorn bags, and switch to stainless steel cookware. These steps cut off major exposure sources.
Q: Can I remove PFAS from my body once I’ve been exposed?
A: PFAS are slow to leave your body, but you can accelerate the process by donating blood or plasma, which helps remove these compounds from your system. You should also support your detox pathways by eating sulfur-rich foods, staying hydrated with clean water, and eliminating vegetable oils that impair mitochondrial health.
Unraveling the Mysteries of Thyroid Health
Reproduced from original article:
https://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2025/03/23/unraveling-mysteries-thyroid-health.aspx
Analysis by Dr. Joseph Mercola March 23, 2025
STORY AT-A-GLANCE
- Thyroid health is intricately linked to iodine intake, genetics and overall metabolic balance, challenging the conventional “empty tank” model of treatment
- Autoimmune thyroid disease has a unique mechanism distinct from other autoimmune conditions, primarily driven by your body’s reaction to iodine
- Accurate thyroid testing requires adherence to specific guidelines, including timing, fasting, biotin avoidance, medication timing and consideration of the menstrual cycle
- Gut health, fatty liver and other hormonal imbalances, such as estrogen dominance, are closely intertwined with thyroid function
- A holistic approach, including dietary adjustments, lifestyle changes and careful consideration before relying on hormone therapies, is necessary for optimizing thyroid health
Dr. Alan Christianson is a leading expert in the field of thyroid disorders, and his insights on this topic are invaluable. In fact, his expertise is so insightful that I’ve invited him to be the lead consultant for our upcoming health coaching program. This program will offer comprehensive protocols and practical steps for various health concerns, with a strong emphasis on thyroid health. I want to ensure the information we provide is top-notch, so we’re taking our time to get it just right.
In my previous interview with Christianson, we explored information about excess iodine and thyroid health. These principles are fundamental and will remain relevant for years to come. Before speaking with him, I felt lost when it came to understanding thyroid issues. I knew the conventional approaches, both in conventional and alternative medicine, were missing something important.
They didn’t address the root causes of thyroid problems. It became clear to me that the solutions were much simpler than I had imagined.
I even applied Christianson’s advice to my own health. At the time of our first interview, I was taking a significant dose of thyroid medication, including desiccated thyroid and Cytomel. I was operating under the common misconception that my thyroid issues stemmed from low thyroid hormone production. I was relying on outdated lab tests like thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) and basal body temperature.
After understanding the true nature of thyroid autoimmunity, I was able to completely stop all thyroid medications within two weeks. My basal body temperatures are now completely normal 98.4 to 98.8. All my thyroid hormones are normal but my TSH is elevated, which is what you’d expect because my body is now producing its own thyroid hormone and that requires TSH to activate it. It should remain elevated for the next few months.
I’m incredibly grateful for Christianson’s expertise. So, let’s recap some of the key points from our latest discussion. Thyroid problems are incredibly common, and autoimmune thyroid disease is the most prevalent autoimmune condition.
Sadly, thyroid cancers are also on the rise. Conventional and even many natural approaches often assume the problem is simply a lack of thyroid hormone. However, this “empty tank” model doesn’t address the underlying cause. Christianson revealed that thyroid disease is closely linked to an individual’s genetic tolerance to iodine. By managing iodine intake within a safe range, many people actually reverse their thyroid issues.
The Unique Nature of Thyroid Autoimmunity
One of the biggest misconceptions I had before interviewing Christianson was that all autoimmune diseases have the same origin. This is simply not true.
• Thyroid autoimmunity is driven by a different mechanism — While many autoimmune conditions, like rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, and inflammatory bowel disease, are often linked to a leaky gut, thyroid autoimmunity has a different mechanism. In these other conditions, proteins leak through your damaged gut lining, triggering an immune response.
• The key difference lies in your body’s interaction with iodine — We need iodine for proper thyroid function, but our bodies are adapted to different levels of intake based on our ancestry. People with coastal ancestry generally tolerate higher amounts of iodine, while those with inland ancestry thrive on lower levels. Many people today, even those with inland ancestry, consume too much iodine.
This excess iodine matches the thyroid globulin and distorts the molecule to something your body is not typically expecting. This new protein structure then creates antibodies against it, causing your immune system to mistakenly attack the thyroid tissue.
• The good news is that this process requires an ongoing trigger — By reducing excessive iodine intake, you break this cycle. Your immune system then recognizes that the thyroid is not the enemy, and the autoimmune process often reverses. This reversal often happens surprisingly quickly, within a few months, unlike many other autoimmune conditions that take years to improve. In my own case, I saw significant improvement very rapidly.
While antibody levels are an indicator of thyroid autoimmunity and useful for screening, they don’t always tell the whole story. Some people with autoimmune thyroid disease never have measurable antibodies, while others with mildly elevated antibodies have no thyroid problems at all. Therefore, focusing solely on antibody levels isn’t always the most accurate approach.
The Thyroid-Gut Connection and Other Autoimmune Links
A fascinating connection exists between thyroid disease and certain gut issues. A condition known as thyrogastric syndrome, also called atrophic gastritis or autoimmune gastritis, is found in a significant percentage of people with autoimmune thyroid disease.
• It wreaks havoc on your stomach cells — This condition involves your immune system attacking your stomach’s parietal cells, which leads to poor absorption of important nutrients like iron, B12 and zinc.
• There’s a genetic link to autoimmunity — While this connection isn’t directly related to iodine intake, it suggests a broader genetic predisposition to autoimmunity. It seems that some genes are more specific to thyroid autoimmunity, while others are associated with a general increased risk of various autoimmune conditions. This could explain why people with thyroid disease are more likely to experience other autoimmune problems as well.
• Another common co-occurrence is fatty liver — This is now often referred to as metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD). Thyroid hormones play a role in regulating liver function, metabolism, body weight, and blood sugar. Therefore, hypothyroidism significantly contributes to the development of fatty liver.
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Understanding Fatty Liver and Metabolic Fuel
My understanding of fatty liver has evolved over time. I previously believed it was primarily caused by an excess of omega-6 fats like linoleic acid (LA). While these fats certainly play a role, Christianson offered a more nuanced explanation.
• Fatty liver is fundamentally a problem of fuel balance within your body — According to Christianson, various fuel molecules, including carbohydrates, fats (like LA), and even alcohol, are processed into acetyl-CoA. When your body exceeds its capacity to use these fuel molecules, it shifts into storage mode.
• Where the body stores this excess fuel varies from person to person — Some people store it primarily as subcutaneous fat, while others accumulate it in their liver. The liver has two main storage compartments: triglycerides and glycogen.
A healthy balance between these two is essential for proper liver function. In fatty liver, the proportion of triglycerides becomes excessively high, creating a vicious cycle that makes it difficult for the liver to reverse the process.
• This explanation helps to understand why alcohol also contributes to fatty liver — Alcohol, like excess fats and carbohydrates, is ultimately converted into acetyl-CoA. Therefore, both excessive consumption of certain fats and alcohol overload your liver’s capacity to process fuel, leading to fat accumulation. This also explains why some people are more susceptible to fatty liver than others.
The Role of Gut Bacteria and Short-Chain Fatty Acids
Our conversation also touched on the crucial role of gut bacteria and short-chain fatty acids, particularly butyrate. Butyrate is often touted as the primary fuel source for colonocytes, the cells lining your colon. However, recent research has revealed a more complex picture.
• Butyrate only makes up about 20% of the short-chain fatty acids produced by gut bacteria — The majority, around 60%, is acetate, a precursor to acetyl-CoA. Propionate makes up the remaining 20%. This raises the question of whether the focus on butyrate has been misplaced. It’s possible that the initial research on short-chain fatty acids created a bias toward butyrate, overlooking the important roles of acetate and propionate.
• Clinically, butyrate is often administered in ways that are ineffective — Oral butyrate is poorly absorbed, and while rectal administration is more effective locally, it doesn’t reach the entire colon.
• A novel, time-release delivery system that effectively delivers nutrients — I’ve developed a novel time-release delivery system that effectively delivers substances, including beneficial bacteria and short-chain fatty acids, directly to the colon. This technology allows us to bypass the stomach’s harsh acidic environment and the small intestine, ensuring targeted delivery to the colon where these substances have the greatest impact.
This new technology opens the door for new research into the optimal ratios of short-chain fatty acids. I plan to explore different combinations, including a formulation with the natural ratio of 60% acetate, 20% propionate and 20% butyrate, to see which approach is most effective.
The Thyroid-Estrogen Connection and the Importance of Prolactin
We also discussed the intricate relationship between thyroid hormones and estrogen. I’ve long believed that testing estrogen levels in the blood is misleading, as estrogen is primarily stored in tissues, not your bloodstream. This leads to inaccurate information and harmful treatment decisions, especially for post-menopausal women.
• Women are incorrectly treated for low estrogen — Christianson notes that women are often treated for low estrogen based on serum levels, even if they are not experiencing symptoms. This approach, based on flawed data, is unlikely to produce positive outcomes. The problem is often not low estrogen, but rather estrogen dominance, which is indicated by elevated prolactin levels.
• Taking exogenous thyroid hormones actually raises prolactin levels — Christianson says that this is due to a feedback loop between the hypothalamus, pituitary gland and thyroid. The same signal that tells your pituitary to produce thyroid hormone also stimulates prolactin production.
This explains why my own prolactin levels increased when I was taking thyroid medication. This information highlights the complexity of hormonal interactions within your body.
• Factors that influence prolactin levels — This led to a discussion of how various factors influence prolactin levels, including hormone replacement therapy, oral contraceptives, xenoestrogens and reactions to thyroid medications.
This highlights the importance of considering the context when interpreting prolactin results. My own experience with progesterone lowering my prolactin levels suggests a clear estrogen connection. The good news is that prolactin testing is relatively inexpensive and accessible, making it a valuable tool for monitoring hormonal balance.
• Further discussions on thyroid health and its implications on metabolic health — As our conversation continued, we further discussed the complexities of thyroid health, the connection between thyroid and other hormones and broader implications for metabolic health.
We also cover information about accurate thyroid testing. As Christianson explained, your body has intricate mechanisms for regulating hormone responses. It adjusts the number and activity of hormone receptors to maintain balance.
However, when you introduce external hormones, you disrupt these finely tuned systems. This is where the wisdom of nature comes into play. When do we support the body’s natural processes, and when do we intervene?
In cases of complete gland removal, like thyroidectomy, intervention is necessary. However, many people have abnormal lab results without a true inability to compensate. It’s important to distinguish between compensation and true dysfunction.
The Five Golden Rules for Accurate Thyroid Testing
Christianson shared five essential rules for accurate thyroid lab testing. These rules are key for obtaining consistent and reliable results but are often overlooked, leading to inconsistent and confusing lab results. Implementing these guidelines significantly improves the accuracy and reliability of thyroid testing.
1. Time of day — Thyroid hormone levels fluctuate throughout the day. The most consistent results are obtained between 6:00 a.m. and 9:00 a.m. Blood spot testing makes it easier to adhere to this timing.
2. Fasting — Fasting status significantly impacts thyroid hormone levels. It’s important to fast before testing.
3. Biotin — Supplemental biotin interfere with lab analyses. It’s recommended to avoid biotin supplements for three days before testing. Surprisingly, this effect is primarily seen with supplemental, not dietary, biotin.
4. Thyroid medications — If you take thyroid medication, take your lab tests before taking your medication that day. Testing shortly after taking medication will produce inaccurate results, especially for T3 and T4 levels.
5. Menstrual cycle — For menstruating women, thyroid hormone levels vary throughout the cycle. The most consistent results are obtained during days one to nine and 20 to 28 of the cycle. Testing during days 10 to 19 produces inconsistent results.
Rethinking Thyroid Screening and the Value of Clinical History
Our discussion then turned to the value of conventional thyroid testing, specifically TSH. I expressed my evolving view that TSH is not an effective screening tool. Christianson agreed, emphasizing the importance of considering treatment options.
• Synthetic hormones are not the only solution — In conventional medicine, the primary treatment for thyroid issues is synthetic thyroid medication. However, with the powerful influence of diet and lifestyle, other approaches are available.
• The importance of antibody testing — Christianson emphasized the value of antibody testing as a screening tool, as it’s more predictive of symptoms than TSH. While some individuals with overt hypothyroidism have negative antibodies, antibody testing still provides valuable information. It’s important to remember that normal antibody levels do not necessarily rule out thyroid disease.
This perspective aligns with the approach of clinicians like Broda Barnes, who effectively identified thyroid issues based on clinical history and symptoms, even before the advent of modern thyroid testing. It’s important to remember that while thyroid hormone levels are important, the correlation between those levels and symptoms is much looser than most people realize. In fact, many people with significantly abnormal thyroid hormone levels are surprisingly asymptomatic.
Dietary Considerations for Thyroid Health
We also discussed the importance of diet in thyroid health. I mentioned my red, green and yellow food system from my book, “Your Guide to Cellular Health,” and how it differs from Christianson’s approach in “The Thyroid Reset Diet.” While my system focuses on general metabolic health, Christianson’s is specifically designed for individuals with autoimmune thyroid disease.
• Nuts are not a health food — I expressed concern about some of the “green” foods in Christianson’s diet, such as seasoned nuts. While nuts can be healthy, they’re high in LA and are best consumed in moderation, especially for those with high levels of stored linoleic acid. I also noted that my own food system is not suitable for thyroid health due to the inclusion of high-iodine foods.
Christianson explained that his dietary recommendations are not intended as a universal diet for everyone but rather as a specific tool for a specific situation — autoimmune thyroid disease.
• Modern practices contaminate healthy food sources — He also acknowledged the contamination of otherwise healthy foods, such as raw milk, with iodine due to modern agricultural practices.
The dairy industry commonly uses iodine-based disinfectants to clean teats and equipment. Although a hot water rinse helps mitigate iodine residues, the pervasive use of iodine teat dips introduces an additional, often unnoticed source of iodine into dairy products.
Diabetes and Metabolic Health
We also discussed diabetes, another major endocrine issue. Christianson described diabetes as a problem of fuel partitioning, where excess fuel accumulates in the bloodstream. He cited research showing that even small amounts of fat accumulation in the pancreas significantly impacts diabetes development.
• Glucose as your body’s preferred fuel source — I shared my understanding, influenced by the work of Ray Peat, that glucose is the preferred fuel for most cells, although some cells, like colonocytes and heart cells, primarily use fatty acids.
I also emphasized the dangers of overly restrictive low-carb diets, which trigger the release of stress hormones like cortisol. Christianson agreed, explaining that your body requires glucose and will produce it through cortisol-mediated muscle breakdown if dietary intake is insufficient.
• The ideal daily glucose intake — We agreed that 200 to 250 grams is a reasonable range for most individuals. We also discussed the dangers of excessive cortisol production, whether from dietary restriction or emotional stress, and its impact on sleep and overall health.
• The parathyroid gland — This tiny gland, nestled near your thyroid, plays a role in maintaining calcium balance in your bloodstream. Christianson argues that even slightly elevated calcium levels, especially if recurring, warrant investigation, particularly if accompanied by symptoms like fatigue, anxiety, or joint pain.
He emphasizes that conventionally accepted reference ranges for calcium are overly broad. Further, conventional medicine is limited in addressing parathyroid issues. Surgery is typically the only offered solution and there’s a lack of focus on root causes.
• Hormone replacement therapy — Finally, we touched on hormone replacement therapy, with both of us expressing caution regarding long-term use. Christianson emphasized the importance of considering both the benefits and risks of any intervention, particularly when it involves manipulating hormone levels. He stressed the need for strong evidence of net benefit before recommending such interventions.
Prioritizing Outcomes and Minimizing Harm in Thyroid Health
This in-depth discussion with Christianson illuminates the complex web of factors influencing thyroid health. By understanding the unique nature of thyroid autoimmunity, the importance of accurate testing and the interconnectedness of various bodily systems, we move beyond simplistic solutions and embrace a more holistic and effective approach to thyroid care.
This conversation emphasizes the importance of informed decision-making, prioritizing long-term health outcomes and supporting your body’s innate capacity for healing. By focusing on supporting your body’s natural processes and minimizing harm, you achieve true and lasting improvements in health.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) About Thyroid Health
Q: How does iodine intake affect thyroid health?
A: Iodine plays a crucial role in thyroid function, but excessive intake triggers autoimmune thyroid disease, especially in individuals with lower genetic tolerance. Managing iodine within a safe range helps reverse thyroid issues.
Q: What are the key factors for accurate thyroid testing?
A: Accurate thyroid testing requires:
•Testing between 6:00 a.m. and 9:00 a.m.
•Fasting beforehand.
•Avoiding biotin supplements for three days.
•Taking tests before thyroid medication (if applicable).
•Timing tests with the menstrual cycle (days 1 to 9 or 20 to 28).
Q: How is thyroid autoimmunity different from other autoimmune diseases?
A: Unlike other autoimmune conditions linked to leaky gut, thyroid autoimmunity is primarily driven by an immune response to excessive iodine, which alters thyroid proteins and triggers an attack on thyroid tissue. Reducing iodine intake often reverses the condition.
Q: What is the connection between thyroid health and metabolism?
A: Thyroid function is closely linked to gut health, fatty liver, and metabolic balance. Hypothyroidism contributes to fatty liver disease, while excess fuel intake (from fats, carbs, or alcohol) overwhelms the liver’s storage capacity, leading to metabolic dysfunction.
Q: Why is a holistic approach essential for thyroid health?
A: A comprehensive approach, including dietary adjustments, lifestyle changes, and avoiding unnecessary hormone therapy, is key for optimizing thyroid function. Many thyroid conditions can be improved by addressing root causes rather than relying solely on medication.
Vitamin D Powers Your Immune Defense Against Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis
Reproduced from original article:
https://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2025/01/21/vitamin-d-hashimotos-thyroiditis.aspx
Analysis by Dr. Joseph Mercola January 21, 2025
STORY AT-A-GLANCE
- Vitamin D is crucial for immune system regulation and helps manage autoimmune conditions like Hashimoto’s thyroiditis by inhibiting proinflammatory cytokines and reducing thyroid peroxidase antibodies
- Having optimal vitamin D levels help improve thyroid function by decreasing TSH levels and increasing FT3 and FT4 levels, with active vitamin D (calcitriol) being more effective than other vitamin D supplements
- Low vitamin D levels are correlated with an increased risk of autoimmune thyroid diseases, acting as an immunomodulator to balance proinflammatory and anti-inflammatory cells
- Vitamin D has shown promise in reducing disease activity and improving treatment outcomes in autoimmune thyroid disorders by enhancing the innate immune response
- Despite some conflicting results, vitamin D’s potential in managing autoimmune diseases is promising, offering a noninvasive strategy to mitigate the impacts of conditions like Hashimoto’s disease
Hashimoto’s disease, also known as Hashimoto’s thyroiditis (HT), is an autoimmune disorder where your immune system attacks your thyroid gland, leading to decreased hormone production (hypothyroidism). This means your body struggles to regulate metabolism, causing a variety of symptoms, including persistent fatigue, unexplained weight gain, sensitivity to cold and depression.
Without proper treatment, it could progress to hypothyroidism, severely impacting your energy levels and overall health.
Research from the Journal of International Medical Research estimates the incidence of Hashimoto’s thyroiditis to be between 0.3 and 1.5 per 1,000 people each year. This autoimmune condition is significantly more common in women, being five to 10 times more prevalent than in men.1 Understanding these statistics highlights the growing concern and the need for effective management strategies.
One particular strategy I recommend is optimizing your vitamin D levels. Recent evidence published in the Journal of Clinical Pharmacy and Therapeutics indicates that vitamin D deficiency is linked to the development of Hashimoto’s thyroiditis and reduced thyroid function.2 Getting enough of this nutrient will help prevent and manage hypothyroidism, especially in individuals with Hashimoto’s disease.
Understanding Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis — Causes and Diagnosis
Hashimoto’s thyroiditis is primarily diagnosed through the detection of autoantibodies — antibodies that attach your body’s own tissues and organs — against thyroid proteins. These autoantibodies, specifically thyroid peroxidase (TPO) and thyroglobulin (Tg), are key indicators of the disease.
Beyond thyroid dysfunction, this autoimmune disorder could lead to complications such as heart disease, mental health disorders and infertility. Chronic inflammation from the disease also increases your risk of developing other autoimmune conditions.
The underlying causes of Hashimoto’s thyroiditis are multifaceted, involving a combination of genetic predisposition and environmental factors. Genetic factors include specific polymorphisms in the vitamin D receptor, which affects how the body processes vitamin D. Environmental triggers such as excessive iodine intake, selenium deficiency and viral infections also play significant roles.
Additionally, vitamin D deficiency has been identified as a contributing factor, as it impairs immune regulation and exacerbates autoimmune responses.
When these underlying causes converge, they lead to an autoimmune attack on the thyroid gland. The immune system mistakenly identifies thyroid proteins as foreign invaders, prompting the production of autoantibodies. This immune response results in chronic inflammation and gradual destruction of thyroid tissue, ultimately leading to hypothyroidism.
The thyroid’s inability to produce sufficient hormones disrupts the body’s metabolic processes, causing symptoms like fatigue, weight gain and depression.
Conventional treatments often focus on hormone replacement therapy, which could help manage symptoms but doesn’t address the root cause of the autoimmune response. However, this approach could lead to side effects such as weight gain, mood swings and bone density loss, making it less than ideal for long-term management.
Diagnosing Hashimoto’s thyroiditis can be challenging due to the variability of symptoms and their overlap with other conditions. Standard tests measure levels of thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) and thyroid hormones, but these do not always reflect the presence of autoantibodies. As a result, some patients receive a diagnosis only after significant thyroid damage has occurred, complicating treatment and management.
Moreover, the presence of autoantibodies doesn’t always correlate with clinical symptoms, leading to misdiagnosis or delayed diagnosis. This discrepancy results in patients experiencing symptoms without clear laboratory evidence of thyroid dysfunction, making it difficult for healthcare providers to initiate appropriate treatment.
New Insights Into Vitamin D’s Role in Managing Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis
A recent study published in the journal Life (Basel) explored the impact of vitamin D on the immune system, specifically focusing on individuals with Hashimoto’s thyroiditis. The research sought to determine whether maintaining optimal vitamin D levels could alleviate symptoms and reduce the autoimmune response associated with HT.3
The study included a diverse group of participants, encompassing both HT patients and a specific cohort of elderly individuals with an average age of 82. By monitoring these groups, the researchers aimed to assess the effectiveness of vitamin D supplementation in enhancing immune function and thyroid health.
Their findings demonstrated that sufficient vitamin D intake plays a pivotal role in supporting immune balance and significantly improves HT symptoms by lowering proinflammatory substances and autoantibody levels.4
One of the standout discoveries was the reduction of elevated thyroid peroxidase (TPO) antibodies by 20% following a few months of vitamin D supplementation. These antibodies are key indicators of HT activity, and their decrease signifies a meaningful improvement in the disease’s clinical presentation.5 This reduction underscores the potential of vitamin D to directly influence the autoimmune processes that drive HT.
Furthermore, the study revealed a clear link between vitamin D deficiency and increased thyroid autoimmunity across all age groups. Participants with lower vitamin D levels consistently showed higher levels of autoantibodies, indicating that maintaining adequate vitamin D is essential for managing HT effectively.6
Improvements in anti-TPO antibody levels were observed after just a few months of consistent vitamin D supplementation, with dosages ranging from 1,200 to 4,000 IU per day.7 Such findings are promising, as they offer a feasible and noninvasive strategy to mitigate the impacts of Hashimoto’s thyroiditis.
The most pronounced benefits were seen in female participants, who generally had lower vitamin D levels compared to males. This gender-specific response indicates that women with HT could particularly benefit from targeted vitamin D supplementation, addressing a critical need within this vulnerable group.8 Tailoring vitamin D intake based on individual needs could enhance the effectiveness of HT management strategies.
The biological mechanisms underlying these improvements are multifaceted. Vitamin D inhibits the secretion of proinflammatory cytokines, which are substances that promote inflammation and exacerbate autoimmune responses. By doing so, vitamin D helps shift the immune system from a proinflammatory state to a more balanced one, reducing the likelihood of overactive immune responses that contribute to HT.9
Additionally, vitamin D modulates the activity of various immune cells, including T cells, B cells and dendritic cells. This modulation is crucial for maintaining immune balance and preventing the immune system from mistakenly attacking the thyroid gland.
Vitamin D also restores the balance between Th17 cells, which promote inflammation, and regulatory T cells, which help control immune responses. This restoration further aids in reducing the pathological responses associated with HT.10
“This review highlights the importance of micronutrients in the immune system, particularly vitamin D. A correct and balanced diet provides the human body with molecules essential for energy and defense mechanisms, such as vitamin D. Vitamin D interacts directly with the epigenome by regulating transcription factors and remodeling chromatin, promoting important responses to adverse events.
Consequently, vitamin D has been called an ‘ally of the immune system.’ An adequate intake of vitamin D promotes responses to cardiovascular, bone, brain, inflammatory, and autoimmune diseases, including HT,” the researchers concluded.
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Vitamin D Boosts Your Thyroid Health
A similar study, published in the Medicine journal, combined data from 12 different studies, involving a total of 862 individuals diagnosed with HT, to get a clearer picture of vitamin D’s role in managing this condition and its effects on thyroid health.11
The participants in these studies were all patients diagnosed with Hashimoto’s thyroiditis. The researchers aimed to see if taking vitamin D supplements could reduce the levels of harmful antibodies and improve thyroid function. The findings were promising — vitamin D supplementation significantly lowered the levels of thyroid peroxidase antibodies (TPO-Ab) and thyroglobulin antibodies (TG-Ab), which are markers indicating how active the disease is.12
One of the standout results was that vitamin D not only decreased these antibody levels but also improved thyroid function overall. Specifically, the study found that vitamin D lowered the levels of thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) and increased the levels of free triiodothyronine (FT3) and free thyroxine (FT4). TSH is a hormone that tells your thyroid to produce more hormones, so lower TSH levels indicate that the thyroid is functioning better on its own.13
The rate of improvement was notable, with significant reductions in TPO-Ab and TG-Ab titers observed in patients who took vitamin D supplements. This means that the antibodies that were attacking the thyroid gland were decreased, which helps reduce the damage to the thyroid and allows it to function more effectively.14
Another important factor in this research is the type of vitamin D supplement used. The study highlighted that active vitamin D, known as calcitriol, was more effective in lowering antibody levels compared to vitamin D2 or D3 supplements. Calcitriol is the form of vitamin D that your body produces naturally, such as through sun exposure; taking it directly leads to quicker and more pronounced benefits.15
Another important factor was the duration of supplementation. Patients who took vitamin D for more than 12 weeks experienced more significant improvements in their thyroid function. This longer duration of treatment led to greater reductions in antibody levels and more substantial increases in FT3 and FT4 levels.16 Essentially, the longer patients maintained their vitamin D intake, the better their thyroid health improved.
Vitamin D Plays a Crucial Role in Autoimmune Thyroid Diseases
A recent review published in the Journal of Clinical Medicine also found that apart from Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, vitamin D influences other autoimmune thyroid diseases, including Graves’ disease and postpartum thyroiditis (PPT). The study findings revealed a significant correlation between vitamin D deficiency and the prevalence of these autoimmune thyroid diseases.17
One of the key discoveries was that individuals with lower vitamin D levels had a higher incidence of autoimmune thyroid conditions. Specifically, those in the lowest quartile of vitamin D had the highest levels of antithyroid peroxidase antibodies, which are indicators of thyroid dysfunction. This suggests that insufficient vitamin D contributes to the body’s immune system mistakenly attacking the thyroid gland.18
Furthermore, the study found that vitamin D acts as an immunomodulator, meaning it helps regulate the immune system’s response. By balancing proinflammatory and anti-inflammatory cells, vitamin D ensures that the immune system does not overreact and cause unnecessary damage to the thyroid. This balancing act is crucial in preventing the excessive immune response seen in autoimmune thyroid diseases.19
Vitamin D supplementation was shown to reduce disease activity in patients with autoimmune thyroid disorders. Participants who received vitamin D supplements experienced lower levels of thyroid antibodies, which are markers of disease activity. This reduction indicates that vitamin D helps mitigate the autoimmune attack on the thyroid, thereby improving thyroid function and reducing symptoms associated with these conditions.20
The biological mechanisms behind vitamin D’s effects involve its role in the immune system. Vitamin D enhances the innate immune response, which is the body’s first line of defense against infections. It also influences the adaptive immune response by regulating T and B cells, which are crucial for targeting specific threats. By modulating these immune cells, vitamin D helps maintain a balanced immune system, preventing it from overreacting and causing autoimmune reactions.21
Additionally, vitamin D downregulates the production of certain cytokines, which are proteins that signal inflammation in the body. High levels of proinflammatory cytokines are associated with increased inflammation and autoimmune activity. By reducing these cytokines, vitamin D helps decrease inflammation, thereby protecting the thyroid gland from being attacked by the immune system.22
Additional Recommendations to Prevent Hashimoto’s Disease
Addressing the root cause of Hashimoto’s thyroiditis involves a strategic approach to optimize your vitamin D levels and reduce factors that exacerbate the autoimmune response. Here are four additional strategies to help you manage and alleviate the symptoms of Hashimoto’s disease effectively:
•Optimize your vitamin D levels — Ensuring you have an adequate intake of vitamin D is crucial for improving the clinical picture and symptoms of Hashimoto’s. Aim to maintain your blood vitamin D levels between 60 and 80 ng/mL (150 to 200 nmol/L), with 40 ng/mL being the lower cutoff for sufficiency.
Although you could incorporate whole food sources rich in vitamin D, such as wild-caught Alaskan salmon, which supports thyroid health, the best way to optimize your vitamin D levels is to spend about 20 to 25 minutes under direct sunlight daily, preferably around solar noon when UVB rays are most effective.
This natural approach helps your body produce the active form of vitamin D (calcitriol) that has been found to be superior to other vitamin D supplements.
However, one important caveat — if you’re still consuming vegetable oils and ultraprocessed foods, it’s best to avoid harsh sunlight exposure, especially during or close to noon. Vegetable oils are loaded with linoleic acid (LA), which is the most pernicious ingredient in your diet, and stays in your skin; it oxidizes under intense sunlight and causes sunburn.
So, until you have eliminated seed oils from your diet for six months, I recommend only going out during early morning or late afternoon, when the sun’s rays are not as extreme.
If you live in an area where sun exposure is limited, consider taking high-quality vitamin D3 supplements to reach your optimal blood levels. I also recommend having your vitamin D levels tested regularly to make sure you’re meeting the optimal range.
• Reduce linoleic acid intake — High LA intake contributes to inflammation and worsen autoimmune conditions like Hashimoto’s thyroiditis. To mitigate this, I advise limiting your LA intake to 5 grams per day or less.
You should also choose healthy fats. Opt for tallow, ghee or grass fed butter instead of vegetable oils. These alternatives possess a more favorable fatty acid profile that supports metabolic health and reduces inflammation.
• Protect your skin — Ideally, you should only get intense sun exposure for around an hour. But if you plan to be in the sun for longer periods, use natural, mineral-based sunscreen. Gradually build your skin’s tolerance to sunlight to prevent burns and ensure safe exposure.
• Incorporate methylene blue — As an alternative to grounding, which is not recommended in North America unless performed in uncontaminated environments like the ocean, methylene blue supports cellular energy production and reduces reductive stress.
Methylene blue is the precursor molecule for hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine, and is a fascinating compound with a wide range of health benefits. Its most notable impact is on how cells produce energy. It primarily works by interacting with the mitochondrial electron transport chain, which plays a vital role in cellular energy generation.
Remember to use pharmaceutical-grade methylene blue in capsule or tablet form, and strictly as prescribed by a healthcare professional. Obtain it from a reputable compounding pharmacy to ensure purity and quality.
The average dose for most adults to reduce or eliminate reductive stress is between 3 and 5 milligrams once a day. Adhere to this dosage unless otherwise directed by your healthcare provider. For more information, I recommend reading my article, “Benefits and Side Effects of Methylene Blue — A Comprehensive Guide.”
Hashimoto’s thyroiditis is a whole-body issue that signals a systemic battle. Apart from having suboptimal vitamin D levels, there are other factors that impact your thyroid function and increase your risk of Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, including poor gut health, chronic stress, and exposure to environmental toxins. I recommend reading my article, “What You Need to Know About Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis,” for more information about this condition.
- 1 J Int Med Res, Aug 10, 2021, 49(8):e60675
- 2 J Clin Pharm Ther, Jun 15, 2023, 48(3):e13605
- 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 Life (Basel). 2024 Jun 17;14(6):771
- 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16 Medicine (Baltimore). 2023 Dec 29;102(52):e36759
- 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22 J Clin Med. 2023 Feb 11;12(4):1452
How Excess Iodine Is Undermining Thyroid Health and What to Do About It
Reproduced from original article:
https://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2025/01/12/excess-iodine-thyroid-health.aspx
Analysis by Dr. Joseph Mercola January 12, 2025
STORY AT-A-GLANCE
- While iodine fortification in salt was introduced in the 1920s to prevent goiters, this intervention led to a dramatic increase in thyroid disease
- Modern food production and industry has created widespread iodine overload through multiple sources: iodized animal feed, dairy cleaning practices, processed foods, personal care products and supplements
- High iodine intake has been linked to increased breast cancer risk, particularly in populations with overexpressed sodium iodide symporters, contrary to earlier beliefs about iodine’s protective effects
- Thyroid antibodies are more predictive of thyroid symptoms than T4 or TSH levels alone, and genetic variations significantly influence how individuals metabolize iodine across generations
- To reduce iodine exposure, limit processed foods, choose dairy and eggs from non-iodine-supplemented sources, review your personal care products and track your overall iodine intake
I recently interviewed Dr. Alan Christianson, widely regarded as a premier expert on thyroid issues, and Ashley Armstrong, a regenerative farmer and founder of Angel Acres. Our discussion explored the intricate relationship between iodine intake and thyroid health, uncovering a paradox that has significant implications for your health.
To understand the current iodine dilemma, we must rewind to the early 20th century. In the 1920s, iodine was added to table salt as a public health measure to prevent goiters — a swelling of the thyroid gland. Christianson explained that before iodine fortification, autoimmune thyroid disease was a rarity in medicine. However, within a decade of adding iodine to foods, rates among adult women skyrocketed, increasing up to 26-fold.
This historical intervention, intended to correct deficiencies, inadvertently set the stage for widespread thyroid issues. Armstrong emphasized the interconnectedness of iodine fortification across the food chain, including the mistaken belief that “if humans are deficient in iodine, then animals must be deficient too.”1 So, iodine was added not just to human salt but also to animal feed, resulting in significantly higher iodine levels in animal products and processed foods.
Iodine Overload Is a Modern Epidemic
Fast forward to today, and the narrative around iodine has taken a troubling turn. While there was once a legitimate concern about iodine deficiency, modern food production systems have transformed iodine into a stealthy toxin.
Armstrong highlighted, “The iodine content, which impacts thyroid health, has significantly increased in our food production system over the last 20 to 30 years.” This over-supplementation has led to an epidemic of thyroid dysfunction, including autoimmune thyroid disease, where your body attacks its own thyroid gland.
Christianson added, “Iodine accumulation is a really big problem that our nation is facing. It’s one of those government interventions — oops — that have unintended consequences.”2 The excessive iodine intake is pervasive, stemming from various sources beyond fortified salt, making it difficult for individuals to control their iodine levels.
Sources of Excess Iodine Beyond Table Salt
The underlying sources of modern iodine overload isn’t limited to fortified table salt. Christianson and Armstrong shed light on various sources contributing to excessive iodine intake:
1. Animal feed — Conventionally raised livestock are routinely supplemented with iodine, significantly increasing iodine levels in animal products. Armstrong emphasized that if animals are supplemented with iodine, the iodine levels in products like eggs increase five to 10-fold.
2. Dairy cleaning practices — The dairy industry commonly uses iodine-based disinfectants to clean teats and equipment. Although a hot water rinse helps mitigate iodine residues, the pervasive use of iodine teat dips introduces an additional, often unnoticed source of iodine into dairy products.
3. Processed foods — Iodine additives in processed grains and salt heavily fortify the food supply, making it challenging to control individual iodine intake if you consume processed foods. Christianson noted that many processed grains contain iodized dough conditioners. Even those that don’t explicitly list iodine often have significant levels when tested.
4. Personal care products — Iodine is prevalent in numerous personal care products, including some acne treatments, contributing to daily iodine exposure without consumers’ awareness. Armstrong pointed out, “Many common acne treatments contain a lot of iodine because of its antifungal and antimicrobial properties.”
5. Seafood and kelp supplements — While ocean-based seafood is a natural iodine source, fishmeal is also a common protein source for cattle feed, which increases iodine levels in eggs and dairy products.
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Balancing the Benefits and Risks of Thyroid Hormone Supplementation
The conversation naturally transitioned to thyroid hormone supplementation, a common treatment for hypothyroidism. Christianson provided an important perspective that taking thyroid hormones from outside your body, even in bioidentical forms, isn’t the same as your body producing them naturally. As a result, this often leads to long-term complications.
He distinguished between T4-only medications and combination therapies (T4 plus T3), noting that the latter often yield better patient outcomes. However, both forms present challenges, especially given the variability in iodine content of natural desiccated thyroid products. Armstrong raised concerns about historical and modern practices, including the fact that in the early 1900s, cattle weren’t supplemented with iodine, so their thyroids had low levels.
Today, livestock are overloaded with iodine, making natural desiccated thyroid supplements likely much higher in iodine than historical counterparts. Christianson explained the regulatory landscape, in that prescription forms of natural desiccated thyroid are standardized for iodine content, but over-the-counter versions often lack this quality control, leading to unpredictable iodine levels.
Unraveling the Connection Between Iodine and Breast Health
Our discussion also touched upon the role of iodine in breast tissue health. Christianson elaborated on studies linking high iodine intake to increased breast cancer risk, particularly in populations with overexpressed sodium iodide symporters in breast tissue. He explained that in pathologic breast tissue, the sodium iodide symporter is overexpressed, leading to heightened iodine uptake and cellular damage.
This overexpression correlates with higher breast cancer rates, debunking earlier theories that iodine supplementation might be protective. Therefore, recommendations that promote iodine supplementation as a protective measure against breast conditions are misguided.
Christianson clarified that while high-dose iodine temporarily reduces iodine uptake in fibroadenomatous breast disease, population studies indicate that higher iodine intake is associated with increased breast cancer risk. Thus, iodine is not a protective factor for breast tissue. He explains:
“In the case of breast cancers, there have been assays looking at Japanese women and contrasting their iodine excretion, their urinary iodine in groups with their overall breast cancer risk. And those in the highest quintiles and quartiles have proportionately higher risks for breast cancer. And there’s a linear relationship. So, the more they’re consuming, the greater their risks are.”
Exploring Thyroid Health from Antibodies and Autoimmunity to Epigenetics
Our conversation also focused on the role of thyroid antibodies in autoimmune thyroid disease. Christianson emphasized that thyroid antibodies, such as antithyroid peroxidase and antithyroglobulin, are more predictive of thyroid symptoms and risks than T4 or thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) levels alone.
Elevated thyroid antibodies indicate an autoimmune response, which is the primary driver of thyroid dysfunction today. Epigenetics are also involved, as early iodine exposure affects thyroid health across generations. Armstrong noted, imagine being born into a womb with higher iodine levels, then supplementing with iodine throughout life and consuming a high-iodine diet. This exposure leads to accumulated iodine generation over generation.
Christianson agreed, explaining that genetic variations significantly influence how individuals metabolize iodine. Those adapted to lower iodine environments are particularly susceptible to thyroid dysfunction when exposed to excess iodine. This epigenetic and genetic interplay complicates the iodine-thyroid relationship.
Further, basal body temperature is sometimes used as a metric for thyroid health, a practice championed by Dr. Broda Barnes. However, Christianson pointed out that the development of high-sensitive TSH assays and understanding of T3 metabolism shifted thyroid assessment away from basal body temperature. While it’s true that many overtly hypothyroid individuals have lower body temperatures, the relationship isn’t as linear or reliable as once thought. Christianson noted:3
“Since Barnes’ time, we’ve learned that the thyroid basal body temperature connections are very real, but they’re not as linear, they’re not as tight as one might think. So many who are overtly hypothyroid will have a lower basal body temperature.
And during hyperthyroid storm, people often elicit a febrile response, but there’s not a linear increase in basal body temperature as one moves further into hyperthyroidism. That wasn’t understood during Barnes’ time.”
Cellular Energy and Thyroid Function
Armstrong emphasized a holistic view of thyroid health, highlighting the multiple steps involved in cellular energy production:
“Metabolic health and cellular energy aren’t just about the thyroid gland. There are four different steps after the thyroid produces thyroid hormones — T4 is produced. Then there’s transporter proteins that have to take those thyroid hormones throughout the body.
That T4 must be converted to T3, cells must be able to accept that T3 and utilize it as the spark plug for energy production. So, there are a number of things that get in the way of cellular utilization of active thyroid hormone. Even if your thyroid is functioning well, using active thyroid hormone at various other parts of your body can be hindered.”
Christianson expanded on this, explaining that different body tissues have their own thyroid hormone ecosystem with different balances of thyronamines. This means that thyroid function at the cellular level is highly individualized and influenced by various factors like insulin levels, stress and nutrient intake.
Armstrong connected this to modern dietary practices, explaining that low-carb diets downregulate thyroid hormones, increasing reverse T3 and impairing cellular utilization of T3. High omega-6 polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) consumption and stress further complicate this picture, reducing your body’s ability to use thyroid hormones effectively.
Thyroid hormone metabolism is influenced by many factors, including insulin levels, nutrient availability and overall metabolic health. So, addressing thyroid issues requires a comprehensive approach that considers these interconnected systems.
In a personal revelation, I also discussed my use of photobiomodulation (previously known as low-level laser therapy) to support thyroid health during my transition off thyroid medication. Christianson acknowledged the benefits, explaining that photobiomodulation helps improve antioxidant status in your thyroid, which is necessary for processing iodine without cellular damage.
Practical Tips to Avoid Excess Iodine
The interplay between iodine intake and thyroid function is complex and often misunderstood. Excess iodine, a byproduct of historical fortification efforts and modern agricultural practices, poses a significant threat to thyroid health, contributing to autoimmune diseases and other dysfunctions.
By implementing strategic dietary changes, choosing high-quality food sources and staying informed about iodine’s role in your body, you reclaim your ability to reach optimal thyroid health.
Christianson wrote “The Thyroid Reset Diet,” emphasizing a low-iodine regimen for one to three months to detoxify your body. While Armstrong shared her concerns about maintaining nutritional balance during this phase, particularly regarding nutrients like choline, biotin and calcium, Christianson suggested that selecting high-quality eggs and dairy that are low in iodine helps meet these nutritional needs without introducing excess iodine.
Armstrong elaborated on practical strategies to reduce your iodine intake, including: “Don’t eat out as much, don’t eat food with an ingredient list, prioritize home-cooked meals … assess your supplements, stop iodine supplementation and evaluate your personal care products.” Here are additional practical strategies to avoid excess iodine and protect your thyroid health:
1. Limit processed foods — Processed grains and packaged foods often contain high levels of iodine due to salt iodization and iodine-based additives. Prioritize whole, unprocessed foods to better control iodine intake. Further, a balanced diet rich in the right carbohydrates — and free of processed foods — supports cellular energy production, which is necessary for thyroid health.
Excess PUFA intake, including linoleic acid in seed oils, is a major culprit, as PUFAs interfere with your cell’s ability to use active thyroid hormone.
2. Choose high-quality dairy and eggs — Source dairy and eggs from farmers who do not supplement livestock with iodine or use iodine-based disinfectants. Pasture-raised and organic options are more likely to have lower iodine levels.
Armstrong noted that eggs from pasture-raised chickens without iodine in their diet have as low as 5 micrograms per egg, compared to eggs from chickens supplemented with iodine, which have up to 100 micrograms per egg.
3. Assess personal care products, supplements and medications — Review all supplements and medications for iodine content. Avoid iodine-rich supplements unless medically necessary. Many personal care items, such as acne treatments, contain iodine. Opt for iodine-free alternatives to reduce iodine exposure.
4. Conduct an iodine inventory — Utilize tools like Christianson’s iodineinventory.com to track your iodine intake from all sources, including diet, supplements and personal care products.
5. Explore additional therapies — Consider therapies like photobiomodulation to support thyroid health in conjunction with dietary adjustments.
Fluoride Fallout: How Science Exposes Water Fluoridation’s Hidden Dangers (400 Studies Confirm Harm In 100 Conditions)
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Posted on: Sunday, November 10th 2024 at 6:15 am
This article is copyrighted by GreenMedInfo LLC, 2024
In a long-overdue reckoning, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and a growing chorus of non-establishment health experts are shedding light on the toxic metals in water fluoridation chemicals–calling for an end to a practice that poses significant, unavoidable health risks, particularly for vulnerable populations.
Quick Summary:
- Mounting Evidence of Harm: Hundreds of studies link fluoride exposure to adverse health effects, from cognitive decline and thyroid disruption to reproductive health impacts.
- Regulatory Gaps and Government Underwriting: Like the vaccine and nuclear industries, the government underwrites liability for fluoridation, ignoring the unmitigated risk to public health.
- Hydrofluorosilicic Acid’s Toxicity: The primary fluoridating agent, hydrofluorosilicic acid, contains harmful contaminants, including arsenic, aluminum, and lead, making “safe use” impossible.
- Pioneering Research by GreenMedInfo: GreenMedInfo.com has compiled a groundbreaking research database on fluoride’s health impacts, empowering global access to the extensive evidence of harm and sparking informed debates worldwide.
The Parallel Between Fluoridation, Vaccines, and Nuclear Industries: Unavoidable Risks with Government-Underwritten Liability
Water fluoridation, like certain vaccine components and nuclear energy, operates under an implicit understanding of being “unavoidably unsafe.” This designation, used by public health and regulatory bodies, implies that some level of harm is inevitable and thus underwritten by government liability protections. For example, the 1986 National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act grants liability protection to vaccine manufacturers, acknowledging the potential for adverse reactions while still promoting vaccine use. Similarly, the Price-Anderson Act for the nuclear industry limits liability for nuclear accidents, given the inherent risks associated with nuclear power.1
For fluoridation, these protections take the form of regulatory standards that, while setting some thresholds, do not account for the compounding, cumulative effects of the toxic metals found in fluoride additives like hydrofluorosilicic acid (HFS). Government oversight allows municipalities to add fluoride chemicals containing arsenic, lead, and other heavy metals into public drinking water, insulating local governments from liability for the potential health impacts. This lack of accountability reflects an assumption that the benefits of fluoridation outweigh its risks–a stance increasingly questioned by scientists, health advocates, and, most recently, Robert F. Kennedy Jr.2
Hydrofluorosilicic Acid: A Source of Unregulated Toxicity in Water Fluoridation
Hydrofluorosilicic acid (HFS), the most common fluoridating agent, is a byproduct of the phosphate fertilizer industry, not pharmaceutical-grade fluoride. HFS is often contaminated with a variety of toxic metals, including arsenic and lead, which cannot be consistently removed through water treatment. According to a 2016 study by Peterson et al., even low levels of HFS in water contribute an additional 0.078 µg/L of arsenic to drinking water–a cumulative exposure risk with broad implications for community health.3
Given the variable metal content in HFS, each batch introduces different levels of contaminants, leading to unpredictable toxicity for consumers. The dilution methods often relied upon by water treatment facilities cannot ensure that these toxic metals are consistently reduced to safe levels, posing a unique public health threat.4
The Evidence of Harm: Neurodevelopmental, Thyroid, and Reproductive Impacts of Fluoride
Neurodevelopmental Harm: IQ Reduction and Brain Health
Hundreds of studies now link fluoride exposure to neurodevelopmental impairments, particularly among children. Research has shown that fluoride crosses the blood-brain barrier, with evidence suggesting it contributes to reduced IQ levels, impaired memory, and behavioral changes. The National Toxicology Program recently reported that high levels of fluoride in drinking water are associated with lower IQ in children–a finding that supports RFK Jr.’s position against fluoridation.5
Thyroid Disruption and Endocrine Effects
Fluoride acts as an endocrine disruptor, affecting thyroid hormone production even at low levels. This disruption can lead to hypothyroidism, a condition characterized by symptoms such as fatigue, depression, and weight gain. As hypothyroidism rates have risen in the U.S. in parallel with widespread fluoridation, the need to reevaluate fluoride’s impact on the thyroid becomes more pressing.6
Reproductive Health Concerns
Emerging research has revealed concerning associations between fluoride exposure and reproductive health, particularly in men. Studies indicate fluoride’s potential to reduce testosterone levels, lower sperm quality, and impair fertility. In combination with heavy metals like arsenic and lead, which also affect reproductive organs, fluoride’s reproductive toxicity extends far beyond dental health, impacting hormonal balance and fertility in both men and women.7
A Global Perspective: Why Most of the World Has Abandoned Fluoridation
While the U.S. fluoridates over 70% of its water supply, almost all Western European countries have rejected this practice. Austria, Germany, France, and the Netherlands do not fluoridate their water, relying instead on fluoride’s topical applications, like toothpaste, to promote dental health. European studies, including a review by the European Commission, concluded that water fluoridation offers no substantial dental health advantage over topical fluoride use, a position supported by the fact that these nations report dental health outcomes comparable to, or better than, those of fluoridated regions like the United States.8
Ethics and Consent: Mass Medication Without Choice
Water fluoridation raises significant ethical concerns by bypassing individual choice and exposing entire populations to fluoride without consent. Unlike other fluoride applications, such as toothpaste, fluoridated water does not offer individuals a way to opt out. RFK Jr. and other advocates argue that this practice amounts to mass medication, especially given the variation in fluoride sensitivity among individuals. Vulnerable groups, including children, the elderly, and individuals with chronic health conditions, may face heightened risks without a practical way to avoid fluoride exposure, other than purchasing bottled water.9
This lack of choice in fluoridation contradicts the principles of informed medical consent, a fundamental aspect of modern healthcare ethics. Kennedy’s stance is clear: water fluoridation, while intended to promote public health, no longer aligns with ethical standards that prioritize individual autonomy and health freedom.
Recent Legal Developments: EPA Action and Court Rulings on Fluoridation Risks
RFK Jr.’s position is also bolstered by recent legal actions. A U.S. district court recently ordered the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to re-evaluate the risks associated with water fluoridation, citing findings that current levels pose an “unreasonable risk” to children’s health. This ruling underscores the need for regulatory bodies to re-assess the standards governing fluoride in water and take into account the cumulative effects of toxic contaminants.10
Local Reform Efforts: Dr. Joel Bohemier and the Growing Movement Against Fluoridation
Local initiatives across the U.S. reflect a shift in public opinion on fluoridation. Dr. Joel Bohemier, co-founder of Stand for Health Freedom and senior advisor to GreenMedInfo, successfully led a campaign to end fluoridation in Collier County, Florida. Bohemier’s efforts are part of a broader, science-driven movement to reduce fluoride exposure, as more communities question the practice and push for transparency and choice in public health policy.
Conclusion: The Case Against Fluoridation is Clear
RFK Jr.’s call to end water fluoridation signals a new era for public health, one that aligns with modern ethics and scientific evidence. GreenMedInfo.com has been pivotal in making this possible, providing a groundbreaking research database on fluoride’s health impacts that empowers advocates and researchers with extensive evidence of harm. With over 400 studies documenting fluoride’s adverse effects across over 100 conditions and with Western Europe’s successful non-fluoridation policies, the argument for fluoridation no longer holds water. Safer, individualized approaches to dental health, such as topical fluoride use, offer a practical alternative that respects informed choice. It is time for the U.S. to follow suit, embracing transparency, autonomy, and safety in its approach to public health.
Free Research PDF Download to Distribute Widely
Our goal at GreenMedInfo.com is to disseminate the Science of Natural Healing around the world as widely and freely as possible.
That’s why we are giving away our 200 page research PDF below — so you can help educate the still quite fluoridated masses as to why this archaic practice no longer has a place in a healthy life, community, and nation.
References
1. National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act, 42 U.S.C. §§ 300aa-1 to 300aa-34.
2. Price-Anderson Act, 42 U.S.C. § 2012.
3. Emily Peterson, Howard Shapiro, et al. “Arsenic from Community Water Fluoridation: Quantifying the Effect.” J Water Health 14, no. 2 (2016): 236-42.
4. Phyllis J. Mullenix. “A New Perspective on Metals and Other Contaminants in Fluoridation Chemicals.” Int J Occup Environ Health (2014).
5. National Toxicology Program. “Systematic Review of Fluoride and Neurodevelopmental Effects.”
6. Garcia, Ana L.H., et al. “Fluorosilicic Acid Induces DNA Damage and Oxidative Stress in Bone Marrow Mesenchymal Stem Cells.” Mutation Research – Genetic Toxicology and Environmental Mutagenesis 861-862 (2021): 503297.
7. GreenMedInfo. “Fluoride Toxicity.” Accessed November 3, 2024. https://greenmedinfo.
8. European Commission. “Fluoridation of Drinking Water: Review of the Evidence.” Accessed November 3, 2024. https://greenmedinfo.
9. Unite.Live. “Fluoride Debate and Dr. Joel Bohemier’s Campaign.” Accessed November 3, 2024. https://unite.live/
10. Food & Water Watch, Inc. v. EPA, U.S. District Court, Northern District of California (2024).
Thyroid Hormone Drives Curiosity and Exploratory Behavior, Study Finds
Reproduced from original article:
https://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2024/10/12/how-thyroid-hormone-impacts-brain.aspx
Analysis by Dr. Joseph Mercola October 12, 2024
STORY AT-A-GLANCE
- An August 2024 study published in the journal Cell examined how active thyroid hormone T3 impacts brain circuitry and drives exploratory behavior in animals
- T3 administration increased frontal cortex gene expression, energy expenditure, body temperature and overall activity in mice. It also induced cell-specific transcriptional programs in the cerebral cortex, remodeling neural circuits and affecting synapses
- These findings could refine treatments for thyroid-related mood disorders in humans and improve our understanding of how thyroid hormones influence mental health and behavioral regulation
- Various factors disrupt thyroid function, including stress, inadequate light exposure, elevated cortisol levels, exposure to endotoxins, high intake of polyunsaturated fats (PUFAs) and exposure to endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs)
- Excessive estrogen load is a major concern for thyroid health as it inhibits the conversion of T4 to T3. Transmucosal progesterone mixed with vitamin E can be used to counteract this
Survival in the animal kingdom depends on the ability to adapt to changing environments, whether it’s a bear hibernating to conserve energy or a snake rearranging its organs before fasting through the winter. These strategies involve more than just physical adaptations; they require a seamless coordination between the body’s internal functions and outward behaviors.1
At the heart of these changes are hormones, with the thyroid hormone standing out as a key regulator, influencing both your metabolism and brain function. A study published in August 2024 in the journal Cell2 has revealed new insights into how the thyroid hormone impacts our brain, shaping behaviors essential for navigating the world around us.
How Thyroid Hormone Modulates Metabolism and Exploratory Behavior
The featured study,3 led by researchers from Harvard Medical School, specifically examined the effects of the active form of thyroid hormone, triiodothyronine (T3), on brain circuitry and exploratory behavior, which is important in animals seeking food, mates or new territories.
They suggested that this complex interplay between physiology and behavior is not unique to animals — it also extends to humans. In fact, prior studies4,5,6 have demonstrated a link between thyroid dysfunction and psychiatric symptoms such as depression and mania, which could be seen as extremes of normal exploratory behavior.
“We hypothesized that T3 directly affects cortical brain areas, such as M2 (secondary motor cortex), that express THRs (thyroid hormone receptors),” the authors explained.7 To test this theory, the researchers conducted a series of experiments using mice as their model organism.
They administered T3 to adult mice and compared their responses with those of mice that received a placebo. Upon examining gene activity in the brain, they observed that T3 affected gene expression in the mice’s frontal cortex within one hour of treatment. It also increased their energy expenditure, body temperature and overall activity.
To see if higher levels of thyroid hormone boost exploratory behaviors, they placed mice in a box with both light and dark sections. Mice naturally prefer dark, sheltered areas and avoid light, but after being given T3 for three and a half days, male mice spent more time exploring the light area compared to those that did not receive T3.
The researchers also observed that the effect of T3 on light exploration increased with higher doses and was noticeable even at the lowest dose tested. This suggests that even small changes in thyroid hormone levels can influence behavior, which could be relevant for understanding how variations in thyroid function influence curiosity and exploratory behavior in humans.
Moreover, the study highlighted that T3’s effects are specific to its action in the brain rather than peripheral effects, emphasizing the importance of direct brain involvement in regulating exploratory behaviors. According to the authors, these insights could refine treatments for thyroid-related mood disorders and improve our understanding of how thyroid hormones influence mental health and behavioral regulation.
Thyroid Hormone Rewires Your Brain Circuits
The researchers also examined how T3 affects cortical circuits and synapses.8 Using a combination of genetic tools and advanced imaging techniques, they manipulated T3 levels in specific cell types within the mice’s brains and monitored the resulting changes in neural connections and gene expression patterns.
“We find that thyroid hormone … induces cell-type-specific transcriptional programs in adult cerebral cortex in a manner that, at least in glutamatergic projection neurons, is largely cell-autonomous and driven by local T3 levels. These programs are tailored to the function of each cell type.
For instance, glutamatergic projection neurons engage programs highly enriched for molecules involved in axonal remodeling, whereas transcriptional programs in both astrocytes and neurons are enriched for molecules involved in assembling and regulating synapses. In oligodendrocytes, T3 induced pathways related to their differentiation, maturation and myelination.”9
The authors noted that these transcriptional changes drive the remodeling of neural circuits, with T3 influencing the strength and formation of synapses, particularly in glutamatergic neurons. Their findings also highlight the broader implications of T3-induced changes in cortical circuits, particularly in mood disorders.
The researchers found that fluctuations in T3 levels influence the brain’s cortical circuits involved in behaviors like exploratory drive. This means that T3 can alter how these circuits function, which in turn impacts how individuals seek out new experiences or information. Understanding this relationship could provide insights into brain circuit functions that are disrupted in psychiatric conditions where exploratory behavior is affected. The researchers concluded:10
“Our studies reveal how the action of a single hormone can coordinate two seemingly disparate biological phenomena: exploratory drive and whole-body metabolic state.
We anticipate that the systematic characterization of the vast array of hormonally driven molecular programs in cerebral cortex will reveal a range of novel circuit plasticity mechanisms to tune complex behaviors to match the needs of the body and the demands of the environment.”
Save This Article for Later – Get the PDF Now
Is Your Thyroid Functioning Properly? Here’s How to Tell
Considering the significant role thyroid hormone plays in regulating metabolism and brain function, it’s important to make sure your thyroid is functioning properly. A simple way to evaluate your thyroid function is by measuring your body temperature in the morning. This method works because T3 levels are typically higher in the morning and decrease throughout the day.
High levels of T3 in the tissues are associated with a faster metabolism and, consequently, a higher body temperature and pulse rate. A morning temperature of around 98 degrees Fahrenheit indicates a healthy thyroid function. By midday, a temperature of around 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit and a pulse rate between 60 to 100 beats per minute indicate a healthy metabolic response.
If you’re having your doctor assess your thyroid function, a common test they might order is the TSH test, which measures the level of TSH in your blood. It’s important to note that while a low TSH level is generally desirable, it can sometimes be suppressed by cortisol and adrenaline. Even with normal lab results, abnormal body temperature and pulse readings can indicate subclinical hypothyroidism.
Checking your temperature and pulse after eating breakfast provides further insights into your thyroid function. Having a consistently low body temperature and pulse rate could mean that you have a sluggish metabolism. A drop in temperature after breakfast could also signal dependence on stress hormones, which are harmful to your health.
Your cholesterol levels also offer valuable information about your thyroid function. Elevated cholesterol (mid to high 200s) suggests an impaired thyroid-mediated conversion of cholesterol into steroid hormones. Conversely, unusually low cholesterol levels could indicate an underlying infection.
What Causes Poor Thyroid Function?
Various lifestyle and environmental factors contribute to low thyroid function, including stress, inadequate light exposure, elevated cortisol levels and exposure to endotoxins. In terms of diet, high-PUFA intake is a major culprit, as PUFAs like linoleic acid can interfere with your cell’s ability to use active thyroid hormone.
Excessive estrogen is also of particular concern, as estrogen inhibits the conversion of T4 to T3, and is one of the major contributors to cancer in my view. Unfortunately, EDCs have become ubiquitous in the environment.
One type of EDC is per- and polyfluoroalkyl chemicals (PFAS), also known as “forever chemicals.”11 These synthetic chemicals are widely used in various consumer products due to their water- and stain-resistant properties. This includes nonstick cookware, water-resistant clothing, food packaging materials and personal care products.
For practical tips on minimizing exposure to PFAS and other EDCs, I recommend you read “Exposure to PFAS and Your Risk for Thyroid Disease.” You can also find a detailed list of nutrients for optimal thyroid health, along with additional strategies to protect your endocrine function, in my article, “Key Nutrients to Support Optimal Thyroid Health.”
Progesterone and Carbs Support Thyroid Health
In my previous interview with Keith Littlewood, a U.K. clinician specializing in endocrine health, he highlighted that low-carb diets can disrupt thyroid function. To promote the conversion of T4 to T3, it’s important to eat a diet rich in whole, unprocessed or minimally processed foods and make sure you include enough protein and healthy, easily digested carbs that won’t cause intestinal irritation or endotoxin production.
Fixing your gut health is also important. According to Littlewood, “Digestion goes hand in hand with thyroid. It goes hand in hand with regulating thyroid, absorbing thyroid from the gut as well, and also how to regulate insulin as well. And if you can’t digest your nutrients, you are always going to have a problem with supporting the thyroid.”
Poor gut health is rooted in an energy deficiency in your gut that prevents proper function of the tight junctions. As the oxygen gradient in your gut increases, pathogenic bacteria thrive while beneficial bacteria die off. As a result, high-carb foods can worsen your gut health, causing gas and bloating, as the carbs feed both good and bad bacteria alike.
To fix this, you need to raise your energy production by slowly upping your carb intake. Start by incorporating fruit juice with pulp into your diet, as it offers easily digestible carbohydrates while the fiber slows sugar absorption and reduces blood sugar spikes. As your gut health improves, you can gradually add whole fruits. Once you’ve optimized your gut, you can start to incorporate more complex carbs and starches.
Additionally, to counteract the effects of EDCs, affect thyroid function by activating estrogen receptors, I recommend using transmucosal progesterone combined with vitamin E, as detailed below.
How to Use Progesterone
Before you consider using progesterone, it is important to understand that it is not a magic bullet, and that you get the most benefit by implementing a Bioenergetic diet approach that allows you to effectively burn glucose as your primary fuel without backing up electrons in your mitochondria that reduces your energy production. My new book, “Your Guide to Cellular Health: Unlocking the Science of Longevity and Joy” comes out very soon and covers this process in great detail.
Once you have dialed in your diet, an effective strategy that can help counteract estrogen excess is to take transmucosal progesterone (i.e., applied to your gums, not oral or transdermal), which is a natural estrogen antagonist. Progesterone is one of only four hormones I believe many adults can benefit from. (The other three are thyroid hormone T3, DHEA and pregnenolone.)
I do not recommend transdermal progesterone, as your skin expresses high levels of 5-alpha reductase enzyme, which causes a significant portion of the progesterone you’re taking to be irreversibly converted primarily into allopregnanolone and cannot be converted back into progesterone.
Ideal Way to Administer Progesterone
Please note that when progesterone is used transmucosally on your gums as I advise, the FDA believes that somehow converts it into a drug and prohibits any company from advising that on its label. This is why companies like Health Natura promotes their progesterone products as “topical.”
However, please understand that it is perfectly legal for any physician to recommend an off-label indication for a drug to their patient. In this case, progesterone is a natural hormone and not a drug and is very safe even in high doses. This is unlike synthetic progesterone called progestins that are used by drug companies, but frequently, and incorrectly, referred.
Dr. Ray Peat has done the seminal work in progesterone and probably was the world’s greatest expert on progesterone. He wrote his Ph.D. on estrogen in 1982 and spent most of his professional career documenting the need to counteract the dangers of excess estrogen with low LA diets and transmucosal progesterone supplementation.
He determined that most solvents do not dissolve progesterone well and discovered that vitamin E is the best solvent to optimally provide progesterone in your tissue. Vitamin E also protects you against damage from LA. You just need to be very careful about which vitamin E you use as most supplemental vitamin E on the market is worse than worthless and will cause you harm not benefit.
It is imperative to avoid using any synthetic vitamin E (alpha tocopherol acetate — the acetate indicates that it’s synthetic). Natural vitamin E will be labeled “d alpha tocopherol.” This is the pure D isomer, which is what your body can use.
There are also other vitamin E isomers, and you want the complete spectrum of tocopherols and tocotrienols, specifically the beta, gamma, and delta types, in the effective D isomer. As an example of an ideal vitamin E, you can look at the label on our vitamin E in our store. You can use any brand that has a similar label.
You can purchase pharmaceutical grade bioidentical progesterone as Progesterone Powder, Bioidentical Micronized Powder, 10 grams for about $40 on many online stores like Amazon. That is nearly a year’s supply, depending on the dose you choose.
However, you will need to purchase some small stainless steel measuring spoons as you will need a 1/64 tsp, which is 25 mg and a 1/32 tsp, which is 50 mg. A normal dose is typically 25-50 mg and is taken 30 minutes before bed, as it has an anti-cortisol function and will increase GABA levels for a good night’s sleep.
Unfortunately, this vendor frequently runs out of product, and if that’s the case, then you can use Simply Progesterone by Health Natura. It’s premixed with vitamin E and MCT oil. Again, while Health Natura states that its product is for “topical use only,” I recommend applying it transmucosally, by rubbing it on your gums.
If you are a menstruating woman, you should take the progesterone during the luteal phase or the last half of your cycle, which can be determined by starting 10 days after the first day of your period and stopping the progesterone when your period starts.
If you are a male or non-menstruating woman, you can take the progesterone every day for four to six months and then cycle off for one week. The best time of day to take progesterone is 30 minutes before bed as it has an anti-cortisol function and will increase GABA levels for a good night’s sleep.
This is what I have been personally doing for over a year with very good results. I am a physician so do not have any problems doing this. If you aren’t a physician, you should consult one before using this therapy, as transmucosal progesterone therapy requires a doctor’s prescription.
Carbohydrates: The Unexpected Ally in Your Fat Loss Journey
Reproduced from original article:
https://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2024/09/10/carbohydrates-fat-loss.aspx
Analysis by Ashley Armstrong September 10, 2024
STORY AT-A-GLANCE
- Carbohydrates are not inherently fattening and can be beneficial for fat loss when included in a calorie-controlled diet. Including carbs in a fat loss diet can improve long-term adherence and satisfaction, making sustainable weight loss more achievable
- Insulin spikes from carbohydrates do not directly cause fat gain; obesity and inactivity are the primary contributors to insulin resistance
- Including carbs in your diet helps preserve muscle mass during fat loss by reducing muscle protein breakdown and supporting exercise performance
- Low-carb diets can negatively impact hormones, decreasing testosterone and increasing cortisol in both males and females
- Carbohydrates play a role in maintaining progesterone levels, which is important for hormonal balance in both men and women. Adequate carbohydrate intake also supports thyroid function and metabolic health by maintaining T3 hormone levels during calorie deficits
Let’s start with a myth: carbohydrates are inherently fattening and should be removed from your diet if you want to lose weight. This is not true! Carbohydrates can and should be included in a healthy fat loss phase. So in this article let’s talk about why including carbs in your diet is BENEFICIAL for fat loss.
But What About Insulin?
When it comes to fat loss, carbohydrates are demonized in many diet camps likely because of the fear mongering around insulin and blood sugar.
The logic seems so clear and appealing: High carbs lead to insulin which leads to fat storage. Low carbs keep insulin low, which should get you effortlessly lean while you enjoy endless amounts of fat, right? No! Do carbs increase insulin levels? Yes, they do. Does increased insulin after meals lead to fat gain? No. Did you know that dietary protein spikes insulin?1 So following the above logic, does dietary protein cause fat gain? No!
Insulin isn’t the devil people want you to believe. Like every other hormone in your body, insulin has a specific purpose and isn’t always a bad thing. (For example — insulin plays a crucial role in promoting muscle growth and maintenance since it facilitates glucose and amino acid uptake into muscle cells, preventing muscle protein breakdown).2
Research demonstrates that obesity and inactivity are the biggest contributors to insulin resistance3,4,5,6 not carbs. In fact, high fat diets can negatively impact insulin sensitivity.7,8 Dietary fat is not a bad thing — but moderate fat and the inclusion of carbs can be beneficial for a number of reasons.
Let’s look at what happened in one study comparing low carb (5% cal) vs. moderate carb (40% cal) where calories were controlled and protein was matched (this is a huge problem in the research: many low carb diet studies don’t match protein intake between the groups leading to more variables.)
Subjects who ate the moderate carb diet reported significantly better mood and lost about the same amount of weight as those on a ketogenic low-carb diet — demonstrating that carb consumption does not inhibit weight loss.
The group who ate more carbs showed a small (though not statistically significant) tendency to lose more body fat as compared to those on a low carb diet (5.5 kg vs 3.4 kg in 6 weeks).
Can a low-carb diet work to help people lose weight? Of course it can. Is it because it is low in carbs? No. As a weight loss strategy, cutting carbs (while reducing the total number of calories) can work well for some people! But cutting carbs can come with costs:
- Reduced thyroid and metabolic function
- Decreased glycogen levels
- Increased muscle loss
- Hormonal imbalances
- More frequent binge eating episodes
So, let’s explore why carbs might actually be good for fat loss:
1. Metabolic health: The carb and thyroid connection — Carbohydrates play a vital role in supporting metabolic health. The liver requires glucose (derived from carbohydrates) to convert T4 to T3, a crucial thyroid hormone. T3 is a thyroid hormone that plays a significant role in regulating metabolism.
When T3 levels are low, the body’s metabolic processes tend to slow down, which means that fewer calories are burned at rest, making fat loss more challenging.
Research has shown that maintaining carbohydrate intake during a calorie deficit helps sustain T3 levels, which is essential for overall metabolic health.9 “During the low carbohydrate diet rT3 increased and T3 decreased but they remained unchanged during the carbohydrate-rich diet.”10
The research is clear that including more carbohydrates tends to increase T3 levels in the body, while low-carb diets tend to lower T3 levels.11,12
Image from: Chews Food WiselyLow Energy Availability (LEA) is a condition where the body doesn’t have enough energy to support normal physiological functions after accounting for the energy expended in exercise and daily activities. This can lead to various health problems, including hormonal imbalances, reduced bone density, and impaired immune function.
Studies indicate that adequate carbohydrate intake can help prevent LEA, even during a calorie deficit.13 By providing your body with a steady source of easily accessible energy, you minimize the risk of entering this low energy state, supporting overall health and well-being during your fat loss journey.
In conclusion, including carbs in your diet during a fat loss phase might help sustain T3 levels, potentially supporting metabolic rate and preventing some of the negative effects associated with low-calorie diets on thyroid function.
2. The glycogen factor: Beyond water weight — One of the primary advantages of including carbohydrates in your fat loss diet is their role in maintaining muscle glycogen stores. (Glycogen is stored carbohydrates that serve as a quick-release energy reserve.) Your body can store approximately 400 to 500 grams of glycogen in muscles and 80 to 120 grams in the liver.14
Interestingly, each gram of glycogen is stored with about three grams of water, which means that 500 to 600 grams of glycogen can account for 3 to 4 pounds of your body weight.
Image from: HeatrickThis glycogen-water relationship explains why people on low-carb diets often see rapid initial weight loss. As the body burns through stored glycogen (since you aren’t consuming carbs), the body releases the associated water, leading to a quick drop in scale weight.15 However, this is primarily water loss, not fat loss.
By maintaining carbohydrate intake, you ensure that your weight loss comes primarily from fat stores rather than this initial water weight.
If you stay in a calorie deficit on a keto diet for long enough, you will of course lose body fat as well. However, when you reintroduce carbs, you’ll likely regain some water weight back as your glycogen stores are replenished.
3. Reduce muscle protein breakdown — Researchers have found that low-carb diets can increase muscle protein breakdown, as measured by increased urinary nitrogen excretion.16
As we just discussed above, consuming carbs keeps your muscle glycogen levels full, which improves your gym performance and helps your recovery — increasing your chances of maintaining muscle mass during a calorie deficit.
When you lose weight, that includes some fat and muscle. But by including carbs, you reduce the amount of muscle you lose since you are reducing muscle protein breakdown! When you get enough carbs to meet your needs, you replenish muscle glycogen and create an anabolic (building-up) hormonal environment.
Conversely, when you don’t eat enough carbohydrate, muscle glycogen is depleted and a catabolic (breaking-down) hormonal environment is created,17 which means more protein breakdown and less protein synthesis. This means slower muscle growth — or even muscle loss.
Research shows that lowering carb intake can affect your muscle mass even if protein remains constant.18 Low carb diets likely increase muscle breakdown, because severely low carbs lowered insulin levels.
Another reason for the reduction in muscle protein breakdown is that carbs can help enhance your performance in the gym. The more you can push yourself in the gym with pushing close to muscular failure at heavier weights, the better mechanical tension and stimulus you can achieve, sending a message to the muscle: “please stick around!”
Carbs are also protein sparing, meaning they supply the body the glucose it needs for vital functions so that it doesn’t have to break down muscle tissue to produce those carbs. When you don’t consume carbs, your body will use some of your dietary protein to perform higher amounts of gluconeogenesis19 in order for your body to meet its baseline glucose needs.
Gluconeogenesis is primarily performed in the liver, so consuming carbs will support liver health since you are reducing one more thing the liver must do (amongst its list of 500 tasks) — more gluconeogenesis!
Carbohydrates play a crucial role in preserving muscle mass during a calorie deficit by maintaining glycogen stores. Plus, muscles that are full of glycogen look MUCH better aesthetically than muscles depleted of glycogen.
4. Negatively impacts hormones — Low carbohydrate diets have been shown to negatively impact hormones for both males and females, decreasing testosterone while increasing cortisol.20,21,22,23
When in a low carb state, your body activates stress hormones in order to make the carbs that your body requires for basic physiological functions.24
Most people nowadays are estrogen dominant due to xenoestrogens, phytoestrogens in certain foods, modern pollutants, birth control, and estrogen hormone replacement.25 For example — menopause and PCOS are not conditions of estrogen deficiency, instead it is excess estrogen.
Improving progesterone production helps balance hormones and reverse estrogen dominance. Well, low carb diets can negatively affect progesterone production. Dr. Katharina Dalton, a pioneer in hormonal balance and PMS, found that dietary changes could significantly influence hormonal levels and alleviate symptoms of PMS.
To properly restore the progesterone hormonal function and hormone balance, she had her patients eat carbs (primarily starches) at each meal.26 Dr. Dalton had two main reasons:
a. To avoid dips in blood sugar — “Progesterone receptors cannot transport or bind to, a molecule of progesterone if there has been a drop in blood sugar.”
b. To keep adrenaline as low as possible — “Progesterone receptors do not transport progesterone molecules into the nucleus of cells if adrenaline is present.”
We are bombarded with estrogenic substances in daily life, so progesterone is vital for truly everyone, including males! And carbs can help optimize progesterone production.
Female hormones are extremely sensitive to diet. For example, one study following 45 patients aged 12 to 19 on a ketogenic diet found menstrual dysfunction was the most common side effect (45% of female subjects) and 6 experienced amenorrhea.27
5. Improved diet adherence and satisfaction — Perhaps one of the most underappreciated benefits of including carbohydrates in a fat loss diet is improved adherence. Carbs contribute to greater food variety, making meals more enjoyable and satisfying. This increased satisfaction can make it easier to stick to your diet long-term, which is crucial for sustainable weight loss.
Finding a diet approach that you can remain consistent with that is not unnecessarily restrictive will help you avoid the never ending restrict-binge-restrict-binge cycle where you may lose 10 lbs, regain it, lose 10 lbs, regain it … that is not sustainable and is a sign what you are doing isn’t working!
This psychological factor is often overlooked but can be crucial in achieving and maintaining your fat loss goals. When you feel less restricted in your food choices, you’re more likely to adhere to your diet plan in the long run.
Conclusion: The Carbohydrate Balance
While creating a calorie deficit is necessary for fat loss, completely eliminating carbohydrates may not be the most effective or sustainable approach. The removal of carbs may help you initially lose weight (since you remove an entire food group, and thus a lot of calories). But, then what? How do you come out of that state? Can you maintain that day in and day out?
By including quality carbohydrates in your diet, you can support your fat loss goals while maintaining muscle mass, metabolic health, better hormones and diet satisfaction. While everyone’s metabolism will be slightly lowered when dieting (this is why you may stall after a while and have to make tweaks along the way), research shows that consuming carbs while eating in a caloric deficit leads to LESS of a metabolism reduction due to higher thyroid functioning.
It is important to point out, however, that even if carbs are included, CHRONICALLY eating lower calorie will eventually lead to a low-energy-availability state. Which is why it is important to have planned out fat loss phases, and not chronically under eat calories.
Remember, sustainable weight loss is about finding a balanced approach that works for you in the long term. So, before you jump on the no-carb bandwagon, consider the potential benefits of keeping carbs as part of your fat loss strategy. Your body — and your taste buds — might thank you for it.
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Transform Your Health — One Step at a Time
Ashley and her sister Sarah have put together a truly groundbreaking step-by-step course called “Rooted in Resilience.” They have compiled what clearly is the best application of Dr. Ray Peat’s work on Bioenergetic Medicine that I have ever seen.
It is so good that I am using the core of their program to teach the many Health Coaches that I am in the process of training for the new Mercola Health Clinics I am opening this fall. It took these women working nearly full-time on this project for a year to create it.
This has to be one of the absolute best values for health education I have ever seen. If you want to understand why you struggle with health problems and then have a clear program on how to reverse those challenges, then this is the course for you.
It is precisely the type of program I wish I would have had access to when I got out of medical school. I fumbled around for decades before I reached the conclusion they discuss in the course and share with you so you can restore your cellular energy production and recover your health.
| Select and eat the right foods to heal your metabolism and improve glucose utilization |
| Balance your hormones to help reduce anxiety, weight gain and sleep disturbances |
| Use reverse dieting to increase your calories without gaining weight and tanking your metabolism, all while improving your energy levels |
| Heal your gut for proper immune function, mood and weight management |
| Tweak your diet and lifestyle habits to improve your mindset and mental health |
| Crush your fitness goals with ease and get your life back on track |
| Master the most essential habits for health with bonus guides, including over 100 meal plans to take the stress out of meal time planning and shopping, and so much more! |
About the Author
Ashley Armstrong is the cofounder of Angel Acres Egg Co., which specializes in low-PUFA (polyunsaturated fat) eggs that are shipped to all 50 states (join waitlist here), and Nourish Cooperative, which ships low-PUFA pork, beef, cheese, A2 dairy and traditional sourdough to all 50 states. Waitlists will reopen shortly.
- 1 Physiol Rep. 2023 Jan; 11(2): e15577
- 2 Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab. Author manuscript; available in PMC 2010 Jan 12
- 3 Am J Med. 2006 May;119(5 Suppl 1):S10-6, doi: 10.1016/j.amjmed.2006.01.009
- 4 Free Radic Res. 2014 Jan;48(1):93-108, doi: 10.3109/10715762.2013.847528. Epub 2013 Oct 17
- 5 Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab. 2021 Dec 1;321(6):E766-E781, doi: 10.1152/ajpendo.00254.2020. Epub 2021 Nov 1
- 6 Clin Nutr. 2010 Jun;29(3):386-90, doi: 10.1016/j.clnu.2009.09.006. Epub 2009 Oct 28
- 7 Front Public Health. 2023 Mar 16:11:1115333
- 8 Eur J Nutr. 2017 Feb;56(1):431-443. doi: 10.1007/s00394-015-1108-6. Epub 2015 Nov 28
- 9 J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 1976 Jan;42(1):197-200. doi: 10.1210/jcem-42-1-197
- 10 Am J Clin Nutr. 1982 Jan;35(1):24-35. doi: 10.1093/ajcn/35.1.24
- 11 Nutrients. 2018 Jan; 10(1): 5
- 12 PLoS One. 2022; 17(6): e0269440
- 13 Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2022 Mar 1;54(3):377-387. doi: 10.1249/MSS.0000000000002819
- 14 Nutr Rev. 2018 Apr; 76(4): 243–259
- 15 Nutrients. 2022 Feb; 14(3): 423
- 16 J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2003 Aug;88(8):3801-5. doi: 10.1210/jc.2002-021087
- 17, 18 Journal of Applied Psychology, Volume 109, Issue 2, August 2010, Pages 431-438
- 19 The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, Volume 85, Issue 5, 1 May 2000, Pages 1963–1967, doi: 10.1210/jcem.85.5.6573
- 20 Eur J Appl Physiol Occup Physiol. 1993;66(4):304-8. doi: 10.1007/BF00237773
- 21 Eur J Appl Physiol. 2010 Apr;108(6):1125-31. doi: 10.1007/s00421-009-1220-5. Epub 2009 Dec 20
- 22 Life Sciences, 40(18):1761-8 40(18):1761-8, doi: 10.1016/0024-3205(87)90086-5
- 23 Eur Food Res Technol 242, 2001–2009 (2016). doi: 10.1007/s00217-016-2772-3
- 24 Jay Feldman Wellness, April 30, 2024
- 25 Ray Peat, Aging, estrogen, and progesterone
- 26 Shakespeare & Co., Once a Month: Understanding and Treating PMS (Paperback)
- 27 Epilepsia. 2003 Jun;44(6):847-51. doi: 10.1046/j.1528-1157.2003.57002.x
Vitamin D Deficiency Correlates with an Increased Risk of Thyroid Cancer
Reproduced from original article:
https://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2024/09/10/vitamin-d-deficiency-thyroid-cancer.aspx
Analysis by Dr. Joseph Mercola September 10, 2024
STORY AT-A-GLANCE
- Thyroid cancer incidence has tripled over the past decades, with an estimated 44,020 new cases in 2024. Vitamin D deficiency has been linked to increased thyroid cancer risk
- A recent meta-analysis found thyroid cancer patients had significantly lower vitamin D levels. Every 10 ng/ml increase in vitamin D levels decreased thyroid cancer risk by 6%
- Vitamin D influences hormonal balance beyond your thyroid, affecting adrenal and sex hormones. It impacts testosterone in men and estrogen and progesterone in women, influencing reproductive health
- Vitamin D deficiency is also associated with other hormone-related cancers, including ovarian, prostate and breast cancer. It demonstrates anticancer, antimetastatic and anti-tumorigenic effects
- Sunlight exposure is your best source of vitamin D. Optimal levels for cancer prevention range from 60 to 80 ng/mL
Your thyroid gland plays an important role in regulating your body’s most vital functions, including metabolism, energy production, growth and development. Located at the base of your neck, this small, butterfly-shaped organ produces hormones that influence nearly every cell, tissue and organ. Keeping it functioning properly is essential for overall health, as any disruption in its activity can lead to serious health issues, including thyroid cancer.
Thyroid cancer is now becoming an increasingly prevalent concern, with its incidence more than tripling in the United States over the past decades.1 The American Cancer Society estimates that in 2024 alone, about 44,020 new cases will be diagnosed, with women being three times more likely to develop the disease than men.2
One significant factor that has been implicated in the development of thyroid cancer is vitamin D deficiency. A comprehensive meta-analysis published June 18, 2024, in the journal Frontiers in Nutrition, examined the existing evidence surrounding this topic, highlighting the importance of maintaining optimal vitamin D levels as a potential protective strategy against thyroid cancer.
The Link Between Vitamin D and Thyroid Cancer
The featured meta-analysis analyzed data from 21 studies involving 2,434 patients with thyroid cancer and 7,398 controls. The researchers focused on two key forms of vitamin D — 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25 (OH)D), a marker of overall vitamin D status, and 1,25-hydroxyvitamin D (1,25 (OH)D), the active form of the vitamin.
“[A]ccumulating evidence has highlighted the potential anticancer action of vitamin D through its ability to hinder the proliferation, invasiveness and metastatic potential of malignant cells and promoting cell differentiation.
In light of those mechanisms above, it is widely believed that the deficiency of vitamin D may be closely associated with an increased susceptibility to various types of cancers. Also, the relationship between TC (thyroid cancer) and vitamin D levels has been a topic of debate.
Numerous clinical and experimental studies have suggested that individuals with TC tend to exhibit lower levels of vitamin D compared to both healthy individuals and those with benign thyroid nodules, while findings in some other studies have presented contrasting results. As a result, the association between vitamin D deficiency and the risk of TC has also remained inconclusive so far.”
The analysis found that patients with thyroid cancer had significantly lower levels of both 25 (OH)D and 1,25 (OH)D compared to healthy individuals and those with benign thyroid conditions. Specifically, 25 (OH)D levels were about 13% lower while 1,25 (OH)D levels were 10% lower in thyroid cancer patients. The study also indicated that vitamin D deficiency can increase the risk of thyroid cancer by 49%.
Moreover, their findings revealed an inverse linear association between vitamin D levels and thyroid cancer risk. The authors suggest that for every 10 ng/ml increase in vitamin D levels, your risk of getting thyroid cancer decreased by 6%. According to the authors:
“[A]lthough numerous negative results have been published, we still propose vitamin D deficiency as a potential risk factor for TC. Furthermore, robust clinical and preclinical evidence is needed for a large, well-executed and more inclusive systematic review with meta-analysis on this topic.”
How Vitamin D Influences Hormonal Balance
The influence of vitamin D on thyroid health is partly due to its role in maintaining hormonal balance and overall endocrine health. It regulates thyroid hormones through several key mechanisms. First, it binds to vitamin D receptors (VDRs) in various tissues, including the thyroid gland. This interaction helps modulate the expression of genes involved in the synthesis and metabolism of thyroid hormones.3
Vitamin D also has a direct effect on the enzymes type 1 and type 2 iodothyronine deiodinases (Dio1 and Dio2), which are responsible for converting inactive thyroid hormones (T4) into their active form (T3).4 It helps regulate thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) as well, which is secreted by the pituitary gland and is crucial for controlling thyroid hormone production.
According to the University of Rochester Medical Center,5 “TSH is also known to encourage the growth of the thyroid gland. It may also encourage the growth of some types of thyroid cancer cells.” Hence, maintaining normal TSH levels supports balanced thyroid hormone secretion and helps reduce thyroid cancer risk.
Additionally, vitamin D supports your immune system, helping reduce the risk for autoimmune conditions like Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, which can disrupt thyroid hormone levels.6 It also affects cellular growth and differentiation, including in thyroid cells. By promoting normal cell function and preventing abnormal growth, vitamin D helps maintain healthy thyroid tissue and hormone production.7
Aside from influencing thyroid hormones, vitamin D plays a role in the regulation of other hormones, including adrenal and sex hormones. In men, it impacts testosterone levels, and in women, it affects estrogen and progesterone, influencing fertility and reproductive health.8
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Vitamin D Plays a Role in Other Hormone-Related Cancers
Given the pivotal role of vitamin D in regulating your hormone systems, it’s no wonder that a deficiency has been linked to the development of other hormone-related cancers. For example, a 2024 study published in the International Immunopharmacology9 examined how vitamin D affects the progression of ovarian cancer, especially in relation to the enzyme CYP24A1, which is responsible for breaking this vitamin down.
The researchers found that vitamin D “promoted the polarization of macrophages towards the M1 phenotype while inhibiting M2 polarization, thus demonstrating anticancer potential.” To put it simply, vitamin D helps create more cancer-fighting immune cells in the tumor environment.
However, when CYP24A1 is overexpressed, it counteracts the beneficial effects of vitamin D by breaking it down more rapidly. These findings demonstrate the importance of maintaining optimal vitamin D levels and reducing CYP24A1 for reducing the risk of ovarian cancer.10
Another study published in The Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry11 found that vitamin D deficiency aggravates prostate cancer growth and metastasis by promoting epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT). This process enhances the cancer cells’ ability to invade surrounding tissues and spread to other parts of the body.
In terms of breast cancer, the leading cause of death in women globally, numerous studies have found that patients often have lower vitamin D levels compared to healthy controls.12,13 This similar trend was also observed in other types of cancer, including colorectal, bladder, multiple myeloma, kidney and squamous cell lung cancer.14,15
More About the Cancer-Fighting Effects of Vitamin D
A review published in The Journal of Steroid Biochemistry and Molecular Biology16 summarizes the different ways vitamin D targets cancer, including:
- Anticancer effects, referring to vitamin D’s ability to influence various stages of cancer development, including the initiation, growth and spread of cancer cells.
- Antimetastatic effects, which describe vitamin D’s capacity to inhibit cancer cells from spreading beyond the original tumor site. By preventing this spread, vitamin D can help enhance prognosis and survival rates.
- Anti-tumorigenic, meaning vitamin D helps inhibit the formation and growth of tumors. It achieves this through mechanisms such as triggering cancer cell death, interrupting cell cycle progression and blocking pathways that support tumor growth.
The authors highlighted vitamin D’s role against the following cancers:17
| Breast | Prostate | Bladder |
| Colon | Glioblastoma | Melanoma |
| Squamous cell carcinoma | Ovarian | Multiple myeloma |
| Osteosarcoma | Head and neck |
Sun Exposure Is the Best Way to Optimize Your Vitamin D Levels
The most natural and effective way to boost your vitamin D levels is through exposure to sunlight. On a typical sunny day, your body may produce up to 25,000 international units (IU) of vitamin D.18
Another reason why I strongly recommend getting your vitamin D from proper sun exposure, if possible, is that it provides benefits beyond vitamin D optimization, including increased longevity and production of melatonin, which may help protect against oxidative stress and cancer.19,20
Unfortunately, many people aren’t in the sun enough to optimize their vitamin D levels. If you’re unable to get adequate sun exposure each day, vitamin D supplementation may be necessary. However, the only way to determine how much sun exposure is enough and/or how much vitamin D3 you need to take is to measure your vitamin D level, ideally twice a year.
Once you’ve confirmed your vitamin D levels via testing, adjust your sun exposure and/or vitamin D3 supplementation accordingly. Then, remember to retest in three to four months to make sure you’ve reached your target level.
The Optimal Vitamin D Level for Cancer Prevention
Research has shown that once you reach a minimum serum vitamin D level of 40 ng/mL (100 nmol/L), your risk for cancer diminishes by 67%, compared to having a level of 20 ng/mL or less.21 However, I believe 40 ng/mL is only the cutoff for sufficiency.
For health and disease prevention, including cancer prevention, I recommend you aim for optimal levels between 60 ng/mL and 80 ng/mL. In Europe, the measurements you’re looking for are 150 to 200 nmol/L respectively.
It’s important to remember that calcium, vitamin D3, magnesium and vitamin K2 must be properly balanced for optimal overall health. Your best and safest bet is to simply eat more calcium-, magnesium- and vitamin K2-rich foods, along with sensible sun exposure.
However, if you find supplementation is necessary after a serum vitamin D test, also supplement with magnesium and vitamin K2 (MK-7) to ensure proper balance. You’ll also want to ensure you’re following an overall healthy lifestyle to reduce your cancer risk as much as possible. As researchers explained in Nutrients:22
“Vitamin D supplementation is not the magic pill that miraculously solves the cancer burden or that can replace a healthy lifestyle. It is necessary to foster a good environment and invigorate a healthy lifestyle, including a high-quality diet and physical activity. Both have been proven to confer health benefits in many diseases, including cancer, and are the best preventive measures available.”
- 1 JAMA. 2017 Apr 4; 317(13): 1338–1348
- 2 American Cancer Society, Key Statistics for Thyroid Cancer
- 3 Endotext [Internet]. Vitamin D: Production, Metabolism and Mechanisms of Action
- 4 Int J Mol Sci. 2023 Feb; 24(4): 3586
- 5 University of Rochester Medical Center, Thyroid Cancer: Hormone Therapy
- 6 Nutrients 2023, 15(14), 3174
- 7 J Mol Endocrinol. 2022 Apr 1; 68(3): 137–151
- 8 News Medical, The Role of Vitamin D in Hormonal Balance
- 9, 10 International Immunopharmacology. Volume 138, 10 September 2024, 112575
- 11 The Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry Volume 111, January 2023, 109177
- 12 Hematology/Oncology and Stem Cell Therapy. Volume 14, Issue 1, March 2021, Pages 16-26
- 13 JBMR Plus, Volume 5, Issue 12, 1 December 2021, e10582
- 14 Nutrients 2022, 14(7), 1448
- 15 Biochemical Pharmacology Volume 196, February 2022, 114735
- 16, 17 The Journal of Steroid Biochemistry and Molecular Biology July 2023, Volume 231, 106308
- 18 J Steroid Biochem Mol Biol. 2019 May;189:228-239. doi: 10.1016/j.jsbmb.2018.12.010. Epub 2019 Jan 4., Abstract
- 19 Youtube, The Joe Cohen Show, Episode 1, October 25, 2022, 4:00
- 20 Physiology February 5, 2020 DOI: 10.1152/physiol.00034.2019
- 21 PLOS ONE 2016; 11 (4): e0152441
- 22 Nutrients 2022, 14(21), 4512; doi: 10.3390/nu14214512
Unlocking the Secrets of Hormone Health and Vitality
Reproduced from original article:
https://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2024/08/18/endocrine-health.aspx
Analysis by Dr. Joseph Mercola August 18, 2024
STORY AT-A-GLANCE
- I recently interviewed U.K. clinician Keith Littlewood about endocrine health, revealing important details that may help you boost your well-being and vitality
- Littlewood, who splits his time between consulting with patients and completing a Ph.D. in endocrine research, bases his work on that of scientists like Ray Peat and has extensive clinical experience
- Littlewood believes estrogen dominance and estrogen excess are among the primary causes of thyroid disruption
- Littlewood recommends targeting your diet first to address your thyroid health, including getting enough protein, calories and healthy carbohydrates, and making sure you can utilize those carbohydrates
- Fixing thyroid problems involves a comprehensive approach that addresses what you’re eating — avoiding low-carb and low-calorie diets — your stress levels and your exposure to environmental pollutants, like endocrine-disrupting chemicals, along with exercise, such as walking
Endocrinology is a branch of medicine that focuses on the study of hormones and the glands and tissues that produce them. It addresses the intricate balance of hormones that regulate many of your body’s essential functions, and how to keep them in the proper equilibrium. I recently interviewed U.K. clinician Keith Littlewood on this topic, revealing important details that may help you boost your well-being and vitality.
Littlewood, who splits his time between consulting with patients and completing a Ph.D. in endocrine research, bases much of his work on Ray Peat and has extensive clinical experience on how to improve energy, metabolism, digestion, sleep, fertility and other key foundations of optimal health.
The Importance of Understanding Thyroid Physiology
One of Littlewood’s areas of focus is looking at how endocrine disruptors affect thyroid physiology at the molecular level and the super molecular level. Of the many hormones in your body, thyroid hormones are perhaps the most important, as they regulate your metabolism and are required for nearly every physiological process in your body. When your thyroid levels are unbalanced, it can spell serious trouble.
An imbalance can lead to significant health issues, including fibromyalgia, irritable bowel syndrome, eczema, gum disease and autoimmune disorders, just to name a few. This is because your thyroid impacts various parts of your body, making the symptoms of dysfunction diverse. Your hypothalamus secretes thyrotropin-releasing hormone (TRH) that triggers your pituitary gland to release thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) that then causes your thyroid to release T4.
Nearly 90% of your thyroid hormone is released in an inactive form of T4. Your liver then converts T4 to T3 with the help of an enzyme. Thyroid problems may exist, however, even when standard thyroid function tests show normal results. Littlewood says:
“TSH can be just a completely redundant test for multiple reasons … even abundance of T4 can be problematic and stimulate certain pathways. And that’s really why … T3 should be being looked at as opposed to TSH because stressed people have generally suppressed TSH values.
Chronic dieters can have suppressed TSH values. There are hormone-disrupting chemicals in the environment that can suppress how thyroid function is being modulated.
And I think that makes it even more complex when a clinician would just look at TSH and T4 and go, ‘Well, your blood tests are completely normal, let’s move on to something else or it’s in your head.’ This is a common theme that I’ve seen well over a decade now with clients who’ve had their blood tests and just because they looked at these two markers, they’re euthyroid [normal thyroid function] rather than potentially hypothyroid.
… just looking at TSH and T4 on its own, it can be very muddy water to look into. That’s why the relatively crude test of temperature and pulse can be pretty useful. But again, you want other markers as well. You want cholesterol, you might want to look at prolactin, other hormone levels, you might want to look at lactate, all of these other markers that could be useful in getting you to understand what thyroid is actually doing.”
While people with subclinical hypothyroidism will often have normal lab work, if your body temperature and pulse rate are off, that’s a tipoff that your thyroid is not functioning properly. Also, even if your TSH is low (which is what you want), it could be suppressed by cortisol and adrenaline. Checking your temperature and pulse after eating is one way to double-check that.
A cholesterol test can also be helpful. High cholesterol (mid- to high-200s) is often a sign that your thyroid is not converting cholesterol to steroid hormones. Conversely, low cholesterol can be a sign of infection.
The Primary Causes of Thyroid Disruption
While there are dozens of factors that may disrupt thyroid function, Littlewood believes estrogen dominance and estrogen excess are among the primary causes.
“I think if we look to the major kind of cohort who tend to suffer the most, it’s women … estrogen will suppress thyroid function and when there’s an estrogen dominance and estrogen excess, it will suppress how much thyroid hormone is being produced,” he says. “This kind of state will need supplementing with thyroid hormone because thyroid hormone will help increase estrogen metabolism.”
However, other factors, including diet and environmental pollution, also need to be addressed. “The diet becomes intricately involved with trying to resolve this. You can’t just throw thyroid hormones and expect that you’re going to, A, lose weight and B, resolve all those issues because if you don’t have enough energy in the tank, then you’re not going to be able to function at that point as well,” Littlewood says.
He mentions Brassica vegetables, such as cabbage, Brussels sprouts, broccoli and cauliflower, which contain thiocyanates that may suppress thyroid function in large quantities, as one example. However, he adds that environmental pollutants can also be damaging, particularly if you have a genetic predisposition for thyroid problems or your diet isn’t ideal. These factors can come together creating the “perfect storm” for disease:
“If you’ve got poor inheritable traits … your nutrition’s not in good order … you’re under lots of stress and you’re exposing yourself to certain endocrine disruptors … [via] food choices, certain pesticides, very polluted environments in the city, perhaps even wireless exposure … All of these things can create a perfect storm. So, it becomes almost like a clinical ecology exercise to start with.
What can you remove from your environment that might be damaging you? And that could be a thousand different things for a thousand different people. So that’s where it becomes quite useful to do your due diligence about what somebody needs. It’s a needs analysis to get people to where they want to be. There’s no point in just saying, ‘Hey, his thyroid hormone, everything’s going to work out right,’ because it never happens like that.”
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Get Your Diet Right First
Many lifestyle factors can contribute to low thyroid function, including stress, inadequate light exposure and exposures to endocrine-disrupting chemicals. In terms of diet, high polyunsaturated fat (PUFA) intake, including linoleic acid, is a major culprit, as PUFAs interfere with your cell’s ability to use active thyroid hormone.
With so many factors potentially affecting your endocrine health, where should you begin to get it all sorted out? Littlewood recommends targeting your diet first:
“One of the most common themes that I’ve found — and my practice is probably about 70% females overall — it’s getting enough protein in, it’s getting enough calories in, it’s getting enough carbohydrates in and making sure that you can utilize those carbohydrates quite well … what you should be able to do is utilize carbohydrates as a fuel, everybody should be able to do it.”
Low-carb diets can wreak havoc with your thyroid. For healthy thyroid function, you need to make sure T4 can be efficiently converted into T3.
To encourage the conversion of T4 to T3, eat a diet of whole, unprocessed or minimally processed foods and make sure you include enough protein and healthy, easily digested carbs that won’t cause intestinal irritation or endotoxin production, such as whole fruit. Littlewood explains that he often sees issues among his patients who have followed low-carb diets:
“This is something that I’ve seen with lots of females coming in who’ve gone keto, they’ve gone carnivore and they’re experiencing more disturbed menstrual cycles, increased hair loss. You can see that they’re progesterone deficient. You see that estrogen taking a hold, and this is where it becomes problematic and you start to see the sleep, the digestion, the mood, energy, all of these things that tend to go out of whack.
So, I would say that the diet is the base for everybody to get that right. A lot of people are unsure of some of the chemicals that are around, and they tend to become more aware of that as the process goes on.
So, I do think it’s getting the diet right first of all. I think it’s becoming aware of the things that could potentially disrupt thyroid, decrease progesterone, increase estrogen, and then you could start to look at that straight away. But it’s certainly something, I often work for at least a month or two, getting the diet right before you even consider entertaining them to think about thyroid hormone.”
Fixing your gut health is also important. “Digestion goes hand in hand with thyroid. It goes hand in hand with regulating thyroid, absorbing thyroid from the gut as well, and also how to regulate insulin as well. And if you can’t digest your nutrients, you are always going to have a problem with supporting the thyroid,” Littlewood says.
The Estrogen Connection
Many people believe that they are low in estrogen due to bloodwork, when they actually have high levels in their organs. This is because serum estrogen levels are not representative of estrogen that’s stored in tissues. Estrogen can be low in plasma, but high in tissues.1
Estrogen inhibits the conversion of T4 to T3, and is one of the major contributors to cancer in my view, but many clinicians assume serum levels are equivalent to tissue levels — and they’re not. So, many people get false low results when their estrogen levels are actually high.
“The highest amount of T3 is found intracellularly. It’s not in serum. So, if you apply that rationale to estradiol, for example, and maybe the other weaker estrogens like estrone and estriol, they are going to be in the tissues. Now, bear in mind, if you have any amount of adipose tissue, you are generating estrogen by default, and the amount of aromatase that’s being produced will convert testosterone and other hormones also to estrogen,” Littlewood explains.
A better option for gauging estrogen levels in fat and tissues is a prolactin blood test. Estrogen promotes the production of prolactin, which is a hormone produced by the pituitary gland:
“Prolactin can be very, very useful. I think keeping prolactin round about 10 milligrams per deciliter is the general idea. I think the average reference range is anywhere from 20 up to a couple of hundred … when you start to see prolactin that high, you start to infer that there’re going to be some problems probably related to high estrogen.
Sometimes you can actually look at someone and tell whether they’re estrogen dominant. You can certainly see it in guys drinking a lot of beer, a lot of phytoestrogens. You will tend to see a combination of weight gain that is promoted by high phytoestrogen exposure.
And in females, you can see that too. There are certainly estrogen-like traits with increased adiposity, certainly hormone dysregulation, which can go from dysregulated cycles to heavy clotting to dysmenorrhea, amenorrhea.
It can go both ways. And there are, again, the mixing or muddying of the water tends to be conflated by the increased estradiol will suppress thyroid hormone, will suppress progesterone … I think keeping prolactin as low as possible is great. And … progesterone will do that. It is predominantly a female hormone, but men do need it as well.”
How to Use Progesterone
Before you consider using progesterone it is important to understand that it is not a magic bullet and you get the most benefit by implementing a Bioenergetic diet approach that allows you to effectively burn glucose as your primary fuel without backing up electrons in your mitochondria that reduces your energy production. My new book, Cellular Health the Unified Theory of All Disease for Ultimate Longevity and Joy comes out very soon and covers this process in great detail.
Once you have dialed in your diet, an effective strategy that can help counteract estrogen excess is to take transmucosal progesterone (not oral or transdermal), which is a natural estrogen antagonist. Progesterone is one of only four hormones I believe many adults can benefit from. (The other three are thyroid hormone T3, DHEA and pregnenolone.)
I do not recommend transdermal progesterone, as your skin expresses high levels of 5-alpha reductase enzyme, which causes a significant portion of the progesterone you’re taking to be irreversibly converted primarily into allopregnanolone and cannot be converted back into progesterone.
Ideal Way to Administer Progesterone
Please note that when progesterone is used transmucosally on your gums as I advise, the FDA believes that somehow converts it into a drug and prohibits any company from advising that on its label.
However, please understand that it is perfectly legal for any physician to recommend an off-label indication for a drug to their patient. In this case progesterone is a natural hormone and not a drug and is very safe even in high doses. This is unlike synthetic progesterone called progestins that are used by drug companies, but frequently, and incorrectly referred.
Dr. Ray Peat has done the seminal work in progesterone and probably was the world’s greatest expert on progesterone. He wrote his Ph.D. on estrogen in 1982 and spent most of his professional career documenting the need to counteract the dangers of excess estrogen with low LA diets and transmucosal progesterone supplementation.
He determined that most solvents do not dissolve progesterone well and discovered that vitamin E is the best solvent to optimally provide progesterone in your tissue. Vitamin E also protects you against damage from LA. You just need to be very careful about which vitamin E you use as most supplemental vitamin E on the market is worse than worthless and will cause you harm not benefit.
It is imperative to avoid using any synthetic vitamin E (alpha tocopherol acetate — the acetate indicates that it’s synthetic). Natural vitamin E will be labeled “d alpha tocopherol.” This is the pure D isomer, which is what your body can use. There are also other vitamin E isomers, and you want the complete spectrum of tocopherols and tocotrienols, specifically the beta, gamma, and delta types, in the effective D isomer.
There are also other vitamin E isomers, and you want the complete spectrum of tocopherols and tocotrienols, specifically the beta, gamma, and delta types, in the effective D isomer. As an example of an ideal vitamin E you can look at the label on our vitamin E in our store. You can use any brand that has a similar label.
You can purchase pharmaceutical grade bioidentical progesterone as Progesterone Powder, Bioidentical Micronized Powder, 10 grams for about $40 on many online stores like Amazon. That is nearly a year’s supply, depending on the dose you choose. It is currently unavailable on Amazon and does not show up. Check back later.
However, you will need to purchase some small stainless steel measuring spoons as you will need a 1/64 tsp which is 25 mg and a 1/32 tsp which is 50 mg. A normal dose is typically 25-50 mg and is taken 30 minutes before bed as it has an anti-cortisol function and will increase GABA levels for a good night’s sleep.
If you are a menstruating woman, you should take the progesterone during the luteal phase or the last half of your cycle, which can be determined by starting 10 days after the first day of your period and stopping the progesterone when your period starts.
If you are a male or non-menstruating woman you can take the progesterone every day for four to six months and then cycle off for one week. The best time of day to take progesterone is 30 minutes before bed as it has an anti-cortisol function and will increase GABA levels for a good night’s sleep.
This is what I have personally doing for over a year with very good results. I am a physician so do not have any problems doing this. If you aren’t a physician you should consult one before using this therapy, as transmucosal progesterone therapy requires a doctor’s prescription.
A Comprehensive Approach Works Best
Littlewood emphasizes that fixing your thyroid problems isn’t as simple as taking thyroid hormones. You need to use a comprehensive approach that addresses what you’re eating — avoiding low-carb and low-calorie diets — your stress levels and your exposure to environmental pollutants, like endocrine-disrupting chemicals.
“You can throw light deficiency with that as well, inadequate vitamin D,” Littlewood says. “All of these things contribute to it.” Often, it’s the most fundamental, simple changes that make the biggest difference in your health. To that end, Littlewood also recommends regular exercise and movement, especially walking, to address endocrine issues and take your health to the next level:
“Very simple strategies can lead to some amazing results, and some of these things just get wrapped up in medical diagnosis, overtreatment, overdiagnosis, and I think this is still a huge problem. And like the ideas that we talked about, what are some of the things that Ray [Peat said that] have stuck with me? It’s understanding that you don’t need to go through this kind of overdiagnosis and overcomplication.
… exercise, I think, is key … I don’t think he [Peat] placed exercise as high up there as he might’ve done. But again, he talked about living a life that had a lot of contentment to it and doing things that were useful and interesting, rather than spending a life of overexercising and breathless exercise, which would lead to this hyperthyroid state anyway.
… the right amount of exercise, it’s not too much, certainly not too little, and that’s, again, something you tend to see — people who’ve been exercising five, six days a week push themselves into a hole. So yeah, adequate strength training, mobility training, moderate amount of cardiovascular exercise through regular walking I think is where most people need to be.”
If you want to learn more about Littlewood, you can find him via his websites, balancedbodymind.com and keithlittlewood.co.uk.