Obesity Due To Metabolic Hypothyroidism

Obesity Due To Metabolic Hypothyroidism

This article was originally posted in Nutricula Magazine, on October 28th, 2013

Are you experiencing an overweight problem, and nothing you do to try to lose weight , no matter how you diet and exercise, is making a difference?

Often, doing the standard thyroid panel tests, the results may indicate that your thyroid hormone levels are normal, however you may still experiencing, all the clinical symptoms of a person that is hypothyroid.

You may find that you cannot lose weight even with starvation diets and excessive amounts of exercise, and you are easily chilled and may even be subject to developing chronic colds and flu.

Even if you demonstrate normal thyroid hormone levels, and you still have all the clinical symptoms of being hypothyroid, take your temperature in the morning before rising and if your basal metabolic temperature is below 97.6 degrees, this will be the first indication, that you may have metabolic hypothyroidism.

What is metabolic hypothyroidism?

This is a condition that can occur even when your thyroid hormones are normal but cannot be used by the body.

Why does this happen? What is the cause?

This condition of metabolic hypothyroidism occurs due to an adrenal thyroid imbalance.

The imbalance stems from the middle layer adrenal cortex producing improper amounts cortisol, or a bound cortisol or a defective cortisol.

The medical profession must realize that just because a hormone appears in the body in proper amounts, never guarantees that the body can use the hormone without comparing it to what its actual functions are!

This can only be determined by doing comparative tests and relating those comparative tests to the actual regulation of the immune system.

For more information on these comparative tests, please go to www.drplechner.com and under Article/Others and view Plechner’s syndrome.

So what is actually occurring?

Normal cortisol production acts as a negative feedback with the pituitary gland and if the cortisol production is normal, as soon as it regulates the immune system and is used for its other functions, the liver breaks down the cortisol and is excreted by the kidneys. When this occurs, and the cortisol levels are now decreased in the body, the pituitary gland senses this and produces its hormone called ACTH which in turn, causes the middle layer adrenal cortex to release more active cortisol. This negative feedback mechanism will continue to work as long as the cortisol production remains normal and produces 30 to 35 units of active cortisol daily.

When the middle layer adrenal cortex production of cortisol is deficient, bound, or defective, the negative feedback mechanism to the pituitary will be damaged.

When this occurs, the pituitary gland will continue its production of ACTH and since the middle layer adrenal cortex cannot respond appropriately, the inner layer adrenal cortex responds with a direct feedback mechanism and causes excess production of adrenal estrogen.

The increased production of adrenal estrogen can cause the production of a Reverse T3 which will block the receptor sites for both T3 and T4.

When this occurs, your thyroid hormones will not be able to function in the body and will cause a state of metabolic hypothyroidism even with normal T3 and T4 values.

NOTE: Even if you are diagnosed with low levels of T3 and or T4, but your elevated level of total estrogen has not been measured but is elevated, taking a T4 supplement may cause the transformation of that supplemental T4 into more reverse T3, and cause your hypothyroid condition to worsen.

In this case a T3 supplement, instead of a T4 supplement, may be of more value in helping your situation!

This imbalance will cause you to show all the clinical symptoms of hypothyroidism even if your physician may tell you that your test results indicate that you are perfectly normal!

Besides doing the basal metabolic temperature in the morning, at least a Reverse T3 and a total estrogen blood tests should be performed, and their test results reviewed, before you are told your thyroid is perfectly normal!

Having the Reverse T3 test done is simple, and having your total estrogen checked is also simple, however is not done routinely and possibly may be the major reason for missing a diagnosis of metabolic hypothyroidism.

It is a fact that total estrogen is not routinely measured in humans.

In men, only one type of estrogen is measured, called estradiol.

In women, only three types of ovarian estrogen are measured but with both men and women their estrogen measurements normally do not include inner layer adrenal estrogen which I refer to as total estrogen.

Unfortunately, as the condition of metabolic hypothyroidism continues so does the weight gain and all the other signs of true hypothyroidism.

As your weight increases so does your body fat and as this happens it increases the amount of Aromatase found in the fatty tissue.

Aromatase has the ability to transform male hormone in females, called androgen and testosterone in men, into more total estrogen casing a further imbalance and a further increase in clinical symptoms cause by metabolic hypothyroidism.

Males taking testosterone supplements need to be careful when overweight, that the Aromatase in their fatty tissue does not cause the estrogenic transformation beside being concerned about the effects the testosterone supplement may have on their prostate.

If there is a concern about the estrogenic transformation occurring while taking a testosterone supplement whether oral or transdermal, have a baseline total estrogen test performed before and after taking the supplement in order to determine if what you are doing is harmful or not!

For further information, please go to www.drplechner.com and under Articles/Others please read about Metabolic Hypothyroidism and for the actual test you may want to request from your health care professional, please go to Get Help and view the Human Protocol.