what is the relationship between Thyroid and metabolism?

Metabolism is a word that the weight loss industry uses freely when pushing its various weight loss programs. What many of these programs do not tell you is how the endocrine system relates to our metabolism and how changes to that system can drastically affect our ability to lose or even gain weight.

At the center of the body's hormonal system is the thyroid, a small butterfly shaped gland that sits atop the adams apple. The thyroid and the hormones it releases control most of the body's metabolism. When the thyroid begins to malfunction or a disease affects its processes the metabolism of the body can become seriously affected. One of the biggest changes that can occur as a result of a thyroid problem is weight gain or weight loss. With a weight gain because of thyroid problems one can find it that much more difficult to lose that weight.

What many people who are trying to lose weight do not take into account is how well their metabolism is functioning with regards to their thyroid. The main problem is most weight loss experts and programs recommend cutting calories. For many people this does work, but for those with a malfunctioning thyroid cutting calories can do more damage then good.

There are two forms of thyroid disorders, hypothyroidism and hyperthyroidism. Both conditions can have profound affects on a person's metabolism.

Hypothyroidism occurs when the thyroid does not release adequate amounts of the hormones T3 and T4. When this happens the metabolism slows, causing fatigue, weakness and rapid weight gain. For people trying to lose weight an under-active thyroid can make attaining any sort of weight loss nearly impossible. Cutting calories will not help with weight loss when suffering from this condition. In fact, because of the already slowed metabolism the body will start hoarding what little calories it is getting, further exacerbating the fatigue and weakness associated with hypothyroidism.

Hyperthyroidism, on the other hand, occurs when the thyroid releases too much thyroid hormone. When this happens the person's metabolism raises drastically. While this may seem like a good thing for someone trying to lose weight the truth is that both forms of thyroid dysfunction are extremely dangerous and must be treated with thyroid hormone replacement therapy.

For those with normal thyroid function losing and gaining weight is a matter of calories in and calories out. But for those who are having difficulty losing weight despite trying all the normal routes making sure the thyroid is functioning properly may be the first step to restoring the body's hormonal balance.

The thyroid controls how quickly the body burns energy, makes proteins, and how sensitive the body should be to other hormones

Certain foods contain chemicals which block the production of thyroid hormone, particularly cabbage, broccoli, rutabaga, cauliflower, kale, Brussels sprouts, watercress, and peanuts.

Hypothyroidism (underactive thyroid): With too little hormone, you may experience fatigue, weight gain, memory and hair loss, depression, difficulty sleeping and swallowing, mood swings, enlarged thyroid gland (also known as goiter), dry skin, intolerance to cold, and/or high cholesterol levels.

Hyperthyroidism (overactive thyroid, including Graves' disease): with too much hormone, you may experience irritability, nervousness, muscle weakness, tremors, irregular menstrual periods, weight loss, sleep disturbances, goiter, vision problems, palpitations, heat intolerance, and/or impaired fertility.

Women are at much higher risk than men for thyroid disorders. Hypothyroidism is more common than hyperthyroidism, especially among older women.

It's basically the body's metabolic controller, which controls the body's speed and bodily functions.TSH (thyroid stimulated hormone) is released from the pituitary gland, which is in the brain.

If it secretes too little hormone (under-active thyroid or hypothyroidism) your metabolic rate will slow down and you will experience weight gain, feel more cold, have dry hair, feel sluggish and your heart rate will also decrease.

If you have an over-active thyroid gland (hyperthyroidism) it produces too much hormone, and your metabolic rate will be too fast, you will also experience symptoms like weight loss, anxiousness, being hot and your heart rate will increase.

No, both hyperthyroidism and hypothyroidism can be controlled with drug therapy. Nothing you eat or do otherwise will change it. Eating different foods will NOT effect your thyroid level.

Thyroid hormone regulates your metabolic rate.
If you have low thyroid hormone then your metabolism will be slow, you gain weight, your skin and hair can become greasy, you get cold easily and you are very tired.
If it is too high then you can get problems with the rhythm of your heart, lose weight, not feel the cold, feel anxious and get hair problems too.
Eating so much cabbage that you get ill is obviously a bad idea. If you want to lose weight for good you need to make permanent changes to your lifestyle such as eating more healthily and exercising more. There is no point in going on "a diet" if you go back to your old ways once the weight is off, you will just put the weight you lost back on and more

It has been appreciated for a very long time that there is a complex relationship between thyroid disease, body weight and metabolism. Thyroid hormone regulates metabolism in both animals and humans. Metabolism is determined by measuring the amount of oxygen used by the body over a specific amount of time. If the measurement is made at   re s t ,  it   is   known   as   th e   b a s a l  me t ab o l i c   rat e   ( BMR ) .    I n d e e d , measurement of the BMR was one of the earliest tests used to assess a patient’s thyroid status. Patients whose thyroid glands were not working were found to have low BMRs, and those with overactive thyroid glands h a d   h i g h   B M R s .  L a t e r   s t u d i e s   l i n ke d   t h e s e   o b s e r  v a t i o n s   w i t h measurements of thyroid hormone levels and showed that low thyroid hormone levels were associated with low BMRs and high thyroid hormone levels were associated with BMRs.  Most physicians no longer use BMR due to the complexity in doing the test and because the BMR is subject to many other influences other than the thyroid state

Thank you  all. Can I ask one more question, please. Release and function of TRH  and how this relate to negative feedback. Today is my first day of becoming a member at this forum and I am in love with it. Thanks once again.

It all relates again to the thyroid. Thyroid hormones are produced when the neurohormone thyrotropin-releasing hormone stimulates the secretion into the blood of thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) from the anterior pituitary gland. TSH in turn stimulates the follicle cells of the thyroid gland to begin the process of making thyroid hormones. Production of TRH and TSH is controlled by negative feedback actions of thyroid hormones on the hypothalamus and anterior pituitary.

During thyroid hormone synthesis, iodide—converted by the gut from dietary iodine—is transported from the extracellular fluid into the thyroid follicular cells. The iodide then enters the colloid, where it is oxidized and bonds to tyrosine side chains in thyroglobulin. When the thyroid follicle cells are stimulated by TSH, these tyrosines are enzymatically modified to form two active thyroid hormones, called thyroxine and triiodothyronine, which are cleaved from thyroglobulin and secreted from the cell. These molecules are unique among hormones in that they contain iodine molecules: four in the case of thyroxine, or T4, and three in triiodothyronine, or T3.

A major action of thyroid hormones in adult animals is to stimulate energy consumption by many different cell types. This occurs in large part by increasing the number and activity of the Na+/K+-ATPase pumps in plasma membranes. As these pumps hydrolyze ATP, cellular levels of ATP decrease. This decrease is compensated for by increasing the cell's metabolism of glucose. Whenever metabolism is increased, heat production is increased. Consequently, a person with a hyperactive thyroid gland (hyperthyroidism; hyper, meaning “excessive”) generally feels warm, while the opposite condition (hypothyroidism; hypo, meaning “less than normal”) results in a sensation of coldness. It is estimated that up to 70% of the heat produced by some homeotherms is attributable solely to the actions of thyroid hormones on metabolic rate.

The fact that thyroid hormones cannot be made without iodine creates some interesting and unique features for these hormones. The availability of iodine in the diet of most animals is variable. As a consequence, the thyroid evolved the ability to store large amounts of thyroglobulin in the colloid. In this way, during times when iodine ingestion is high, many thyroglobulin molecules have their tyrosine amino acids bound to iodines, one of the first steps in forming T4 and T3. During times of low iodine availability, this reservoir of iodinated tyrosines in thyroglobulin molecules can be tapped. Humans, for example, have at least a two-month supply of thyroid hormones even in the absence of ingested iodine. In most industrialized countries, iodine deficiency is rarely a problem since the introduction of iodized salt in the mid-twentieth century. However, in some regions of the world this is still a major health problem.

The decreased T4/T3 levels remove the source of negative feedback on the hypothalamus and anterior pituitary gland, resulting in elevated TSH levels. The thyroid gland responds to the increased TSH by increasing the cellular machinery needed to produce more and more thyroglobulin, even though in the absence of iodine no additional T4 or T3 will be synthesized. What results is an overgrown gland that is nonetheless incapable of making thyroid hormone. This condition is known as an iodine-deficient goitre. In humans, the problem can be alleviated either by adding iodine to the diet or by taking T4 pills. Goitres are not unique to humans. Iodine deficiency is relatively common among vertebrates, and goitres are found frequently in reptiles and birds, particularly those that subsist on seeds, a diet generally low in iodine.

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Thank you soooo much. I really appreciate all the help.