Controversies in the Diagnosis and Treatment of Hypothyroidism

Hypothyroidism is a common disorder characterized by an inadequate cellular thyroid effect to meet the needs of the tissues. Typical symptoms of hypothyroidism include the following: fatigue, weight gain, depression, cold extremities, muscle aches, headaches, decreased libido, weakness, cold intolerance, water retention, premenstrual syndrome (PMS), and dry skin. Low thyroid causes or contributes to the symptoms of many conditions, but the deficiency is often missed by standard thyroid testing. This is frequently the case with such conditions as depression, hypercholesterolemia (high cholesterol), menstrual irregularities, infertility, PMS, chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS), fibromyalgia, fibrocystic breasts, polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), hyperhomocysteinuria (high homocystine), atherosclerosis, hypertension, obesity, diabetes, and insulin resistance.