Cold, tired, weight gain, hair loss? Your thyroid may be culprit

The United States has one of the highest obesity rates in the world, but an increase in increased waistlines isn't completely due to fast-food diets and sedentary lifestyles.

Hypothyroidism is another disease on the rise in America, with more than 5 million people experiencing problems due to irregular levels in their thyroid glands.

Though the butterfly-shaped neck gland is only 12-15 millimeters in average length, the thyroid produces powerful metabolism-regulating hormones that, when lowered, can cause weight gain, depression, fatigue, memory loss, chronic pain, hair loss, brain fog and anxiety.

Particularly at risk of hypothyroidism are yo-yo dieters, people with high-stress lifestyles and women older than 30. Pregnancy and menopause also cause low thyroid levels.

Still, some doctors tell patients symptoms like weight gain and depression can be resolved with regular exercise and healthy eating habits — cures that are ineffective in the case of hypothyroidism.

So, the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists designated January as Thyroid Awareness Month, hoping to increase public knowledge about the disease. Oprah Winfrey has also discussed hypothyroidism on her television show and in her magazine after her diagnosis with the ailment.

"An educated patient is the key [to proper thyroid diagnosis]," said Dr. Kent Holtorf, a leading endocrinologist who founded the National Academy of Hypothyroidism.

Poor-quality health care results in shorter doctor's appointments and fewer tests for hypothyroidism, and the single thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) test usually conducted by doctors is an unreliable indication of thyroid levels, Holtorf said.

The Los Angeles-based doctor said environmental toxins like Bisphenol A (BPA) found in polycarbonate water bottles are potent thyroid receptor blockers and a normal TSH does not necessarily dictate the body's overall thyroid status.

Thus, anyone with continuing symptoms of hypothyroidism should find a doctor who is willing to take more time, conduct more tests, and clinically diagnose patients.

"Finding a doctor who is willing to analyze your symptoms and look at new test studies that are out — that's 90 percent of the battle," Holtorf said.

But Dr. E. Dale Abel, chief of endocrinology and metabolism at the University of Utah School of Medicine, said Holtorf's theories are controversial in the medical field.

The Endocrine Society and the American Thyroid Association both hold to the belief that a TSH test is an adequate initial screen for thyroid disease, based upon research supporting that the pituitary gland is a master regulator of other glands in the body.