Hashimoto’s (Hashi’s) is an autoimmune disease that is a common cause of hypothyroidism. With this disease, your immune system attacks your thyroid with antibodies. The autoantibodies are targeted against one or more components on the thyroid. The thyroid becomes damaged and, in some cases, is completely destroyed and can’t make enough thyroid hormones. Thyroid nodules and lumps are very common in Hashimotos. Unfortunately, most of us are not diagnosed right away, and spend years deteriorating and being misdiagnosed by doctors looking only at our symptoms, not what is causing the symptoms. Hashimotos is the most common thyroid disease and seems to affect women more than men.
There are some who test negative for antibodies, but still have symptoms. An ultrasound can detect if there are physical changes to the thyroid, indicating Hashimoto’s.
Another form of Hashimoto’s is called Seronegative Hashimoto’s; the only way to test for this is by Fine Needle Biopsy (FNA). In the biopsy they are looking for Hurthle cells, large granulated cells that are consistent with Hashimotos.
My doctor says I have some antibodies, but I do not have Hashimoto’s?
Everybody has some antibodies, because they are a part of the immune system and used in the removal of dead cells. If the antibodies are slowly getting higher though, it would be a good idea to begin actively trying to lower them.
What symptoms may tell me I should test for Hashimoto’s?
- Tired after doing very little
- Severe exhaustion
- Severe mood swings (the thyroid hormones overproduce and underproduce in Hashimoto’s, causing Manic Depressive symptoms – sometimes we are misdiagnosed with Manic Depression/Bi-Polar Disorder).
- Mania
- Depression
- Anxiety
- Feeling cold
- Weight gain, with no change in diet
- Not being hungry (and gaining weight!)
- Hair loss
- Dry hair
- Dry skin
- Constipation
- A lowered voice (due to swelling in the thyroid)
- Tightness in the throat
- Nodules or lumps on the thyroid
- Inflammation
- Body pains (often we are diagnosed with Fibromyalgia)
- Puffiness in face
- Difficulty getting pregnant
- Irregular or very heavy periods
- Slow heart rate
It is very important to find out if you have Hashimoto’s as soon as possible!
As the Hashimoto’s disease progresses, the thyroid begins to over then underproduce thyroid hormones; with that, your moods follow – very high to very low. Many have been misdiagnosed with Manic depression/Bi-Polar Disorder in this stage of the disease.
If you are on medication for your thyroid already at this point, it becomes a virtual nightmare to be able to dose the medication based on labs that are swinging from high to low monthly, and sometimes even weekly or daily. You will need to find a doctor who is willing to dose to symptoms vs labs in this case. There are ways to stop the attack on your thyroid, by lowering antibodies.
With Autoimmune diseases, once you have one, you are prone to developing others; this is yet another reason to lower antibodies to remission when possible.
So often doctors state: You have Hashimoto’s, we will just wait for the thyroid to be killed off and you will then take one pill a day and be fine! Well, wait a minute there Doctor?! WHY would I wait for my thyroid to be completely destroyed if I can lower antibodies and STOP the attack on my thyroid?!
Antibodies can be lowered with the following:
Natural Desiccated Thyroid (NDT): Antibodies tend to raise when beginning NDT; as you get closer to optimal, you will see them begin to drop. Refer to our page on NDT. (If you are NOT hypothyroid this is not the option for you) http://www.tawki.info/NDT
Selenium, in the form of L-Selenomethionine: Many take 200 mcg a day, split dose 100 mcg AM and 100 mcg PM with your thyroid meds. This needs to be tested before taking it, as too much selenium causes selenium toxicity and there is no antidote. Selenium should not be taken at the same time as vitamin C. Selenium is known to best lower TPO antibodies.
NAC (n-acetyl cysteine): some have success taking 900 mg 2 times per day with Vitamin C (500 mg per every 600 mg of NAC) to prevent kidney stones.
LDN (Low Dose Naltrexone), a prescription compounded medication: It modulates the immune system and works with the endorphins in one’s body. This is known to best lower TgAb antibodies and takes about 6-9 months to see them lowered.
Here is a good external site about LDN https://www.ldnresearchtrust.org/
Iodine can lower antibodies if you are deficient in Iodine. You would need to test Iodine with an Iodine Loading test. It is very important to take the companion nutrients for a few months before beginning Iodine to prevent a detox reaction:
Magnesium – 400-1,200 mg per day
Vitamin B2 (Riboflavin) – 100 mg per day
Vitamin B3 (Niacin) – 500 mg No Flush Niacin inositol hexanicotinate form, 1 to 2 times per day
Selenium – 200-400 mcg per day (this MUST be tested before taking)
Vitamin C – 3,000-10,000 mg per day
Unrefined Celtic Sea salt – ½ teaspoon or more per day
You may order your own Iodine Loading test here testing services, iodine levels, (hakalalabs.com)
With an autoimmune disease like Hashimotos, should I do anything special for my gut?
If you have not already identified food sensitivities, it would be a good idea to do so, as eating any foods you have a sensitivity for will promote inflammation, and therefore will aggravate the Autoimmune aspect of the disease. You will also want to address Leaky Gut/Permeable gut lining not only so you can add foods back in, but to prevent proteins from escaping the gut lining and causing more autoimmune diseases. Remember earlier it was mentioned if you have one autoimmune disease you are likely to get more? This is why!
Pregnancy can trigger Hashimotos antibodies to activate:
Pregnancy itself causes immense stress on the body, and also increases the activity in the immune system; this can either worsen an autoimmune attack in Hashimoto’s, or trigger the genes to activate, causing Hashimoto’s (this can happen for Graves’ too).
The sooner you can begin lowering antibodies the better! It takes longer to lower antibodies in those who have had Hashimoto’s a long time, but it CAN still be done!
Medical studies:
Both Hashimotos and Graves disease can have high levels of TPO antibodies.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1475665?dopt=Abstract
Additional helpful links: