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Risk Factors For Hypothyroidsm
Hypothyroidism, or underactive thyroid, creates a variety of different health problems for suffers who are
untreated. One of the most noticeable of these is a sufferer’s tendency to become obese even when eating healthy
and low-fat foods. After all, one of the functions of the thyroid hormones is to regulate the body’s metabolism,
which is the speed at which the body burns calories. When the body’s metabolism slows down for any reason, the
potential for gaining weight is increased.
A person whose metabolism is not working at peak efficiency can consume the same amount off calories they did last
week and gain a substantial amount of weight because of the body’s inability to burn the calories at the same
speed. What this means for people who have untreated hypothyroidism is they must either consume less calories than
usual or be destined to a lifetime of obesity until the hypothyroidism is under control.
In addition to obesity, hypothyroidism can increase the potential for heart attacks and angina, especially for
patients who suffer from heart disease. Other risk factors include an increased risk of osteoporosis because of the
body’s loss of calcium from the bones because of the disease. Of course, all of these risks can be reduced once the
hypothyroidism is tested, diagnosed, and the proper regimen of treatment started.
The sooner treatment begins, the sooner the risk factors can be removed, and the patient can begin his journey to
recovery. One of the most noticeable signs of hypothyroidism besides obesity is fatigue, so a person will notice a
difference in his or her energy level once the proper amount of thyroid hormone is prescribed.
Infants are at the greatest risk when it comes to untreated hypothyroidism. An infant with hypothyroidism may be
unable to thrive, thus opening the possibility of mental retardation as well as malnutrition. The early years of an
infant’s life are the most important ones in establishing a growth pattern, and therefore, infants who suffer from
the disease in infancy may fail to grow to a normal stature if it remains untreated for a period. How long it takes
the damage to become irreversible is unknown, so the best course of action is to make certain that the infant is
treated as soon as possible.
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