Causes of Hypothyroidism

(Released: Jan 3, 2017)

Drs. Eric Balcavage and Erica Riggleman review some of the most common causes of Hypothyroidism.

Hypothyroidism impacts about 10 million in the US. The most common cause of hypothyroidism is an autoimmune condition called Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis. It is estimated that over 90% of all hypothyroid cases are caused by Hashimoto’s.

Autoimmune attack on the thyroid gland is largely ignored in the allopathic model. The primary focus is on normalizing TSH and T4 regardless of the what is causing the hypothyroid condition.

In the case of Hashimoto’s, knowing you have an autoimmune attack is still not enough. To reduce the attack on the thyroid gland one must identify the trigger or triggers that induced the immune dysregulation that drove the autoimmune attack.

Autoimmune attack on the thyroid gland is often caused by an excessive or chronic  stress response. Physical, emotional, chemical, and microbial stress can all drive an autoimmune attack.

Other causes of hypothyroidism include: inflammation, estrogen, high or low iodine levels, excessive bile salts, goitrogens, nitrates, daily use of resveratrol, medications, and chemical toxins.

The doctors discuss all of these causes and provide some recommendations for the listeners.