Is Your Thyroid Slowing Down Your Metabolism?

In our first blog about hypothyroidism, we talked about why the thyroid is important, how it affects your metabolism, symptoms of hypothyroidism, and how to test for it (we recommend checking that one out before you read this one). 

 

We mentioned that hypothyroidism limits weight loss and slows digestion – but you might be wondering why and how it does that! Let’s take a look.

 

Why Hypothyroidism Limits Weight Loss

 

Let’s dive a little deeper into why a lack of thyroid hormones limits weight loss. 

 

Thyroid hormones stimulate your basal metabolic rate (BMR) by increasing cellular energy production – meaning thyroid hormones keep your metabolism high by encouraging the use of energy in your cells. 

 

If for some reason you don’t have enough thyroid hormone (hypothyroidism) or your thyroid hormones can’t get into your cells (cellular hypothyroidism, which we’ll get to later!), your BMR (metabolism) will go down.

 

We usually quantify metabolism in calories, which are units of energy. If your metabolism goes down, that means the amount of calories you need to sustain your daily activities goes down too. 

 

Let’s look at a quick example. Say your metabolism requires about 2000 calories a day, so you eat about 2000 calories a day. If your metabolism drops to 1700 because of a thyroid issue, you’d then be eating 300 extra calories a day without noticing it, which could subsequently lead to weight gain. 

 

Hypothyroidism Stalls the Use of Fat for Energy

 

Hypothyroidism also limits weight loss by restraining the body’s ability to use fat cells for energy. Why?

 

Well, when you’re in a caloric deficit – meaning you’ve eaten fewer calories than what your metabolism requires – your body will convert fat cells into energy to make up for the lack of food. Pretty cool right? For this reason, a caloric deficit is needed to lose weight. 

 

But guess what magical gland is needed to convert those fat cells into energy? Yup, you guessed it! The star of the show, little miss thyroid.

 

Since thyroid hormone is needed to break fat down for energy, hypothyroidism patients have a harder time losing weight and “toning up” their body composition. 

 

Hypothyroidism also leads to insulin resistance – which makes it difficult for your cells to use energy from your food. In turn, energy from your food may be left over, which gets stored as fat. 

 

But don’t lose hope – hypothyroidism is treatable! But before we get to treating it, let’s take a look at what hypothyroidism does to the digestive system. 

 

Hypothyroidism and Digestion

 

Like we talked about in the first blog, hypothyroidism slows down every system in the body, resulting in a myriad of symptoms. But one of the most noticeable symptoms, for many, is slowed digestion.

 

Symptoms of slowed digestion that may be due to hypothyroidism include:

 

1. 1. Constipation, bloating, abdominal pain and in rare cases diarrhea: slowed movement of food through the intestines
   2. Heartburn: food may not move out the stomach quickly enough, or production of stomach acid is lacking, which is another side effect of hypothyroidism

 

• Skewed hunger cues: slowing of digestive process and dysregulation of blood sugar may create oddly-timed hunger cues, or loss of appetite

 

 

If that wasn’t enough, hypothyroidism can also lead to other no-fun digestive issues, like SIBO (small intestinal bacterial overgrowth – read below) and infections.

 

Hypothyroidism and Digestive Infections

 

Why does hypothyroidism predispose patients to digestive infections?

 

Well, for one, hypothyroidism can reduce immune function – and 70% of the immune system is in the gut – making it easier for infections to occur within your digestive system (and everywhere else). 

 

Hypothyroidism also reduces the production of stomach acid – which is important for killing off any pathogens that enter your body through your mouth (like germs in your food)! 

 

Not having enough stomach acid or immune function in the gut makes it easier for bad bacteria and pathogens to slip through the cracks, making SIBO and infections more likely.

 

SIBO, or small intestinal bacterial overgrowth, happens when bacteria grow in the wrong area of your intestines. Check out our blog about SIBO to learn more about it! 

 

If you have digestive issues and suspect that you have hypothyroidism, we highly (highly highly!) recommend getting tested for SIBO. 

 

That’s because SIBO can cause hypothyroidism, too. Yup, it goes both ways! Your hypothyroidism could have caused your SIBO, or your SIBO could have caused your hypothyroidism. It’s a chicken or the egg scenario.

 

If you do have SIBO, it’s important to get it treated so that your hypothyroidism doesn’t come back or worsen. 

 

Next Steps for Hypothyroidism

 

Okay, so you’ve got the information under your belt and think you might have hypothyroidism. What now?

 

Testing for Hypothyroidism, Key Vitamins, and Gut Issues

 

Your first plan of attack should be to get tested for it (check out our first blog to learn how to comprehensively test your thyroid hormones). 

 

We also recommend testing your vitamin d, iron, ferritin, vitamin b12, folate, selenium and zinc levels. That’s because deficiencies in these vitamins may be related to cellular hypothyroidism, which means your thyroid hormones can’t get into your cells (which causes just as much of an issue as traditional hypothyroidism does). 

 

Next, check out your gut. Getting a SIBO test is a great idea (cough cough please get one) if you have any digestive issues. Why? Because SIBO can cause hypothyroidism! If you treat your hypothyroidism without treating your SIBO, your hypothyroidism could come right back due to your SIBO. 

 

Treatment

 

There are several routes for treatment of hypothyroidism. Don’t lose hope – it’s treatable! So are vitamin deficiencies and SIBO. 

 

Medication for hypothyroidism exists, but treating vitamin deficiencies and gut issues can make a world of a difference in the medication’s effectiveness.

 

The way hypothyroidism manifests in your body is highly individualistic. Because of that, it’s extremely important to work with a professional when treating it!

A good first step is following our Key3 Method which optimizes your gut and allows for better thyroid function. Learn more about it here.

 

Co-written by Lana Schwartz