By naturopath Margaret Jasinska

Vitamin D isn’t only important for strong bones. Research shows it helps lower thyroid antibodies that can cause an under active thyroid gland.

Hashimoto’s thyroiditis is the world’s most common autoimmune disease. It occurs when the immune system produces antibodies that attack the thyroid gland, mistaking it for a harmful invader. Over time, the antibodies cause destructive damage to the thyroid gland, leaving it unable to manufacture sufficient hormones. At that point most patients need to start taking thyroid hormone replacement, the most common ones being thyroxine, tertroxin and porcine thyroid extract.

Research published in the Hellenic Journal of Nuclear Medicine investigated the relationship with this disease and vitamin D status. A total of 218 patients were studied. They all had Hashimoto’s thyroiditis (confirmed by the presence of antibodies in their bloodstream) but they still had normal thyroid hormone levels. If nothing was done about the antibodies, they would eventually develop an under active thyroid gland.

The findings were interesting. The majority (85.3 percent) of the Greek Caucasian individuals with Hashimoto’s thyroiditis had low blood levels of vitamin D [25(OH)D]. The lower their vitamin D, the higher the anti-TPO thyroid antibodies in their blood. Four months of vitamin D supplementation produced a significant drop in anti-TPO antibodies. This means the disease process can be arrested and these people can prevent developing an under active thyroid and requirement for lifelong medication.

Vitamin D is very important in the management of Hashimoto’s thyroiditis. It offers many other health benefits for your immune system and hormone levels. Despite being a mostly sunny country, many Australians have below optimal  vitamin D levels in their bloodstream. We make vitamin D in our skin from the sun’s UV B rays, which are strongest around midday.

Many people lead indoor lifestyles or avoid sunshine because of concerns about skin cancer. It’s important to ask your doctor for a vitamin D blood test because you may be surprised with the result. Nutrient deficiencies are extremely common, even in our patients with a healthy diet and lifestyle. Having a blood test is the best way to determine if your body is receiving sufficient nutrients.

For more information about thyroid health see our book Your Thyroid Problems Solved. Thyroid Health capsules contain nutrients that support healthy thyroid gland function.

Reference: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26637501/