How to support your thyroid

You feel tired. You have hot flashes. Your hair falls out in the shower. Is it menopause or your thyroid? Or is it both? The hormonal changes that plague your entire body during perimenopause and menopause can mimic thyroid symptoms and vice versa. And menopause, with its drop in key hormones, can wreak havoc on your thyroid—whether you already have hypothyroidism or have never had thyroid problems. The truth is, your thyroid problems and menopause share a complex connection that can have a significant impact on your health and well-being.

Let’s take a look at this connection and determine if menopause is making your thyroid problems worse or possibly hiding thyroid problems.

Most importantly, we’ll talk about how to support your thyroid health during perimenopause,

menopause and beyond.

Women are 5-8 times more likely than men to develop thyroid disorders and an estimated 1 in 8 women will struggle with their thyroid at some point in their lives. (1)

The most common form of thyroid dysfunction is hypothyroidism. This happens when your thyroid doesn’t make enough thyroid hormone. Hypothyroidism is most commonly caused by Hashimioto hypothyroidism, an autoimmune disease. (2)

Your thyroid gland produces hormones and helps regulate your metabolism. It plays a role in many important systems in your body, from your heart to your bones and brain. To say it’s vital to your hormone health is a huge understatement.

As you enter middle age, your sex hormone production begins to decline, and this affects the delicate balance between your hypothalamus, pituitary gland, and thyroid—sometimes referred to as the HPT axis. (3)

This is probably why research suggests a link between menopause and changes in your thyroid. (4,5) And probably because the prevalence of hypothyroidism (underactive thyroid) tends to increase with age, especially during menopause. (6,7) Lower thyroid function also appears to be associated with osteoporosis and fractures in postmenopausal women. (8)

During menopause, we often talk about how estrogen declines.

But usually, your progesterone declines at a faster rate than your estrogen.

And that can lead to what we call estrogen dominance, where your estrogen is not controlled by progesterone. Estrogen dominance causes a whole host of uncomfortable issues, but let’s talk about your thyroid and estrogen dominance.

You see, estrogen suppresses thyroid hormone and progesterone stimulates it. So too much estrogen and not enough progesterone is a recipe for hypothyroidism.

Progesterone helps your body convert thyroid hormones – thyroxine (T4) to triiodothyronine (T3) more efficiently. T3 is the most active form of thyroid hormone. So when you don’t have enough progesterone, your thyroid function slows down.

Additionally, when estrogen is dominant (higher than your progesterone), this can promote the production of thyroid-binding globulin (TBG), a protein that binds to thyroid hormones, making them less available to the body. Essentially, even if the thyroid is producing hormones at a normal rate, excess TBG keeps those hormones tied up and inactive, leading to symptoms of hypothyroidism. This is why you will often see thyroid hormone levels that appear adequate when thyroid symptoms are present.

Low progesterone worsens the condition by failing to provide adequate support for thyroid hormone conversion. Not only does this imbalance favor estrogen dominance, but it also removes a key layer of support for thyroid hormone action within the body. The result is a double whammy where thyroid hormones are both produced less (due to increased TBG from estrogen dominance) and less effective (due to lack of progesterone support).

In this hormonal tug-of-war, the thyroid often ends up underactive, which could lead to hypothyroidism.

As you can see, many of the signs of thyroid problems in women are often very similar to the signs of menopause. This is one of the reasons so many perimenopausal and menopausal women with hypothyroidism go undiagnosed.

Where else do hypothyroidism and menopause collide?

Both can cause hot flashes. While hypothyroid hot flashes and night sweats are not the most common symptoms of Hashimoto’s disease, research suggests a link between thyroid health and menopausal symptoms, including hot flashes. (10)

When your thyroid isn’t working properly, it’s important to treat the problem. Because as I said earlier, problems with your thyroid lead to problems in your entire body – including your bones and heart!

The problem I often see is that women often struggle for years with vague thyroid symptoms like fatigue, low mood, and brain fog before they can get their doctor to run tests. Or their doctor only performs a cursory thyroid panel that doesn’t give an accurate picture of what’s going on with your thyroid.

Then, the “normal” ranges for many of these labs are woefully inaccurate, leaving women in an empty state of subclinical hypothyroidism.

This approach means you won’t find out your thyroid is at risk until a significant part of it has been destroyed by Hashimoto’s. Not a good strategy if you ask me.

If you suspect you have thyroid problems, try to find a doctor who will listen to you and order a complete, comprehensive thyroid panel > or order one yourself here.

The great news is that it appears that treating your thyroid disorder can help reduce menopause struggles. (11)

And, when you are able to increase progesterone, you can increase your thyroid hormone levels. In fact, one study saw women taking progesterone supplements increase their FreeT4. (12)

It is extremely important to note here: you need thyroid hormone to live. Therefore, if you are prescribed thyroid medication, it is not optional. You can always support your thyroid function with proper diet and lifestyle interventions, but you must take your thyroid medication if your doctor has prescribed it.

Let’s take a look at some supplements for low thyroid and talk about how to support progesterone to encourage hormone balance and ultimately regulate your thyroid function.

Your thyroid needs a wide variety of minerals and vitamins to function properly. One of the most important things you can do to help your thyroid is to eat a healthy, well-rounded diet full of nutrients.

Here are some of my favorite ways to make sure your thyroid is getting everything it needs to feel its best, especially when you’re a perimenopausal or menopausal woman.

At the top of the list of thyroid health supplements is bioidentical progesterone. As we’ve discussed, progesterone is critical for supporting your thyroid and making sure your body can oppose estrogen—because estrogen suppresses thyroid hormone and progesterone stimulates it.

My favorite bio-identical progesterone is Balance formula, a special blend of skin-loving, anti-aging ingredients and progesterone that is exactly the same as what your body makes, down to the last molecule.

A list of thyroid supplement recommendations would not be complete without mentioning the importance of supporting inflammation.

Since Hashimoto’s is an autoimmune condition, inflammation is often a factor. And, animal studies show that omega-3 supplements can help regulate thyroid function. (13)

Omega 3s are my secret weapon when it comes to supporting healthy inflammation levels. This is the one I use and recommend.

It is important to give your thyroid a variety of nutrients. These are the three at the top of my list:

• Iodine: Your body needs iodine to make thyroid hormones, and for most of us, iodine isn’t a big part of our typical diet. It is found in abundance in foods such as seaweed.

I use the Mighty Maca blend to make sure I get just the right amount of iodine (and tons of other essential nutrients!) for thyroid support on a daily basis. Plus, the extra adrenal support this drink offers is great for helping your thyroid as well.

• Selenium: Selenium is one of those essential trace elements on your thyroid essentials list. You can get about enough selenium by eating a few Brazil nuts daily.

• Zinc: Zinc is one of the unsung heroes of thyroid and hormone health. I use and recommend mine Bright & Beautiful formula that combines the perfect zinc and selenium ratio for thyroid support and thicker hair and nails.

Finally, if you have an existing thyroid disorder, entering menopause can make things even more difficult. Your doctor may need to adjust the dose of your thyroid medication during this time.

And if you’re experiencing symptoms related to hypothyroidism, such as fatigue, brain fog, weight gain, constipation, or hair loss, especially if you’re under 35, be sure to explore thyroid disorders with the help of your doctor.

For ultimate thyroid support, especially during menopause, make sure you:

👉 Boosting your progesterone levels

👉 Support healthy levels of inflammation

👉 Getting plenty of vitamins and minerals daily

And always, remember to prioritize connection and joy to get plenty of sweet oxytocin coursing through your body — because you deserve it!