Hashimoto’s thyroid disease is named for Dr. Hakuro Hashimoto who in the early 1900s was the first to determine that an autoimmune subset to hypothyroid disease. Little did he know that his discovery would turn out to be one of the greatest in all of medicine, as we now know that 90-95% of all hypothyroid cases are the type he first discovered/described in the 1900s.

Hashimoto’s is unlike traditional hypothyroid in that antibodies are produced by the bodies immune system against the thyroid cells themselves, most specifically the globulin backbone protein used to make thyroid hormone and thyroid peroxidase enzyme, used for the synthesis of thyroid hormone by attaching iodine to the globulin backbone protein. In Hashimoto’s thyroid disease the antibodies attack the backbone and production enzyme such that the thyroid loses its ability to produce thyroid hormone – thus causing a hypothyroid condition.

Symptoms of Hashimoto’s Autoimmune Thyroid:

As we now know that 90-95% of all diagnosed hypothyroid disease is Hashimoto’s you need to understand that Hashimoto’s feels just like traditional hypothyroid disease:

• Weight Gain
• Fatigue
• Forgetfulness
• Infertility
• Hair Loss
• Anxiety
• Dry Skin
• Brain Fog
• Cold Intolerance
• Join Pain
• Constipation
• Slow Heart Rate

How To Differentiate Hashimoto’s From Traditional Hypothyroid:

Because they both present with similar symptoms, blood tests are needed to determine if Hashimoto’s is involved and it’s quite simple – are antibodies present to the Thyroid Globulin Protein and/or Thyroid Peroxidase Enzyme? Normal ranges for Thyroid Globulin Antibodies is <1.0 and normal for TPOab is <6.

If Thyroid Globulin antibodies are higher than 1.0 and TPOab is higher than 35 it means excessive amounts of antibodies are present against both the production enzyme and thyroid hormone itself and you have diagnostic conditions for Hashimotos thyroid disease. Note: If TPOab is higher than 6 but less than 35 and Thyroid Globulin protein is normal you may have Type 2 diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, adrenal fatigue, lupus or other autoimmune disorders that if left unchecked will eventually become Hashimoto’s disease.

How to fix Hashimotos Thyroid Disease:

If you have been taking thyroid medications for hypothyroid please know that there is an extreme likelihood you have the antibodies present that indicates Hashimotos and the medications are useless infixing the underlying cause. They may make your labs look good, and your doctor will be happy, but I can tell you from my experience you will still feel symptomatic despite having normal labs.

Hashimotos is an autoimmune disease, which means you need to lower the antibody response against your thyroid hormones. To do this you must under-stand where antibodies come from. Plasma cells produce antibodies in response to a foreign substance being present – in this instance its almost alwaysa virus (EBV) or a biotoxin (mold, yeast etc.) Studies indicate that the majority of people with Hashimotos also have increased intestinal permutability (leaky gut)which is also known to create an elevation in antibody production through the GALT (gut assisted lymphoid tissue). Therefore the first step towards healing Hashimoto’s is fixing your intestine and removing the causative infections.

Healing Your Gut: Remove foods creating chronic inflammatory response(corn, wheat, dairy, soy oats and sugar). Consume fermented foods and take a probiotic on 2-week rotations. Replace hydrochloric acid and digestive enzymes in stomach and use bone broth (beef/chicken) with extended fasting 3-4days followed by intermittent fasting.

Vitamin D: Lack of Vitamin D can lead to autoimmunity through improper immune modulation. Vitamin D can easily be tested via blood examination and the desired range for healing Is 80-100 ng/ml which often requires supplementation with 30-50,000 IU daily for a minimum of 90 days to confirm sufficient elevation by lab testing.

Selenium: Selenium activates the thyroid peroxidase enzyme and is also vital in the conversion of T4 inactive to T3 active in the liver via deiodinase, peroxidase enzyme that remove iodine from thyroid globulin. 200-400mcg is often needed daily to also lower the antibody response found in Hashimoto’s disease.

Chiropractic care is also essential to ensure the thyroid, gut and liver have proper nerve supply as any irritation or interference in the brain to organ connection can also severely limit thyroid function. Remember, it’s often not the organ itself that is to blame but rather underlying roots of interference, in this case nerve, gut and toxicity issues cause Hashimotos Thyroid Disease.