The thyroid gland is a butterfly-shaped gland that is located at your throat’s base and is responsible for regulating your energy levels, appetite and also, your body temperature. The thyroid gland keeps functioning without making its presence felt but once it starts malfunctioning, you would come across a number of symptoms that you simply cannot ignore. The thyroid gland may malfunction in many ways. However, the two common ways are hypothyroidism and hyperthyroidism. Hypothyroidism is all about low hormone production while hyperthyroidism involves excessive hormone production. Here are some common symptoms associated with thyroid gland disorders.
Skin Appears Thin or Rough to Touch
The thyroid gland is responsible for controlling the rate and intensity at which you would be shedding your skin. People suffering from an overactive thyroid would be shedding their skin faster resulting in a thinner-looking and relatively smoother skin. In the case of a patient having an underactive thyroid, there is a massive slowdown in skin cell turnover so the skin would be feeling quite rough to touch.
There are several other skin issues manifested by thyroid disorders. Hyperthyroidism leads to warm or moist skin, and your hands and face would be looking redder. People with hypothyroidism may experience pale and cold skin; their wounds would be taking relatively longer to heal. Moreover, in such cases, the skin may get an orange-yellow tint that is caused by carotenaemia. It is important to examine if there are thyroid issues and so you must opt for an ELISA Testing since it has been approved as a clinically useful technique in the evaluation of thyroid function.
Drastic Weight Loss or Slight Weight Gain
Hyperthyroidism could result in drastic weight loss while hypothyroidism would not be resulting in any major weight gain. Even though hyperthyroidism involves substantial weight loss, it also results in an increased appetite, as such, despite a relatively faster metabolism; you would be actually gaining weight by overeating. The same is true in the case of people suffering from hypothyroidism that involves slight weight gain accompanied by a decreased appetite, as such, there is a dramatic slowdown of your metabolism and you also do not feel like eating, resulting in shedding pounds.
Feeling Hot or Feeling Cold
Hyperthyroidism would be speeding up all your normal body processes resulting in relatively higher metabolic rate. As you would be burning up energy much faster, it would be natural for you to feel excessively hot. You may end up waking up at nights wet with sweat as a result of a boost in energy burn accompanied by a really rapid heartbeat. Hypothyroidism, on the other hand, could make you feel cold and you may be looking for a cover or an extra sweatshirt as the metabolic rate of your body has really slowed down.
Messed Up Emotions
The hyperthyroid or overactive thyroid is known to cause hyper-emotionality, anxiety and also psychosis. Hypothyroid or underactive thyroid may lead to depression and withdrawal from social activities and situations. You tend to become a recluse. Hypothyroidism could even cause cognitive issues such as decreased motor skills and forgetfulness.
Conclusion
Always be alert and if you see any symptoms related to thyroid issues, get an assessment done for early detection and appropriate treatment.
Author Bio: Evans Walsh is a freelance content writer. He has written many good and informative articles on different categories such as technology, health, fashion, beauty, education, career, travel etc. He is very responsible towards her job. He loves to share his knowledge and experience with his friends and colleagues.