Treating Thyroid Disease with a Functional Medicine Approach

Thyroid disease is typically diagnosed and managed based on levels of thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), which may not be a reliable marker for thyroid health. Dr. Izabella Wentz, PharmD, bestselling author of Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis: Lifestyle Interventions for Finding and Treating the Root Cause, believes thyroid patients must find and address the root cause of their symptoms to best treat their illness, using a functional medicine approach.

Functional medicine focuses on finding the root causes of illness and disease, using a systems-oriented approach and creating a partnership between patient and practitioner. A functional medicine approach takes into account diet and lifestyle factors that determine whether you will be healthy or sick, such as inflammatory foods and food sensitivities, stress levels, and gut function.

Dr. Wentz notes that irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a precursor to autoimmunity and chronic disease. She personally was diagnosed with IBS years before developing Hashimoto’s disease. Once she learned the connection between gut function and health, she was able to connect her earlier IBS and reflux symptoms with the root cause of her own thyroid issues. Some examples of root causes of IBS may be a parasite, an overactive stress response, or a result of bacterial overgrowth in the intestine. Dr. Wentz believes practitioners who are able to catch IBS in its early stages may be able to prevent thyroid and other autoimmune conditions. By treating the root of the IBS symptoms, she says, patients often find their autoimmune condition goes into remission.

For those who are suffering with thyroid symptoms, Dr. Wentz recommends consulting a clinician trained in functional medicine or participating in her 12-week self-guided course to help identify individual root causes.