The Dr. Westin Childs Podcast

Today is all about exercising when you have thyroid problems. First, you need to understand how exercise impacts calorie burn in your body. There are 2 main ways that your body burns calories... The first is through your metabolism (of which about 60% is controlled by your thyroid) which accounts for around 70% of total calories burned and the other 30% is controlled through other activities such...

This is lesson #13 and today is all about Optimal vs Normal ranges for thyroid lab tests. You can find the link to the complete article here as referenced in the video: https://www.restartmed.com/normal-thyroid-levels/ What is the difference between optimal and normal ranges when it comes to your thyroid? Normal refers to the standard reference range that the laboratory company creates based on th...

Today is lesson #12 and it's all about what causes thyroid disease. Why does it matter what causes thyroid disease? If you can find the cause you can better target your treatment. Most doctors are only concerned with lab tests and not the causes of those problems, which means you may be unnecessarily treated for something that could be reversible. Thyroid Dysfunction vs Hypothyroidism: What's the...

This is episode #11 in my thyroid video series and today is all about thyroid lab patterns! Lab patterns can give you important insight as to how your thyroid gland is functioning and they can be very confusing, especially for patients. In this video I go over 6 lab patterns which tend to be the most "confusing" because they may seem "normal" even though you may experience hypothyroid symptoms. 1....

Today is lesson #10 in my thyroid beginner series and it's all about Hashimoto's thyroiditis. This lesson is designed for those who are recently diagnosed and for those who want a basic overview of the disease! Hashimoto's thyroiditis is an autoimmune disease which means that your body is attacking itself. This will eventually result in the entire destruction of your thyroid gland (if left untreat...

This is lesson #9 in my thyroid beginner series and today it's all about NDT or natural desiccated thyroid! So what is NDT? Stands for Natural Desiccated Thyroid. This thyroid medication is porcine-derived which means it comes from the thyroid gland of pigs. It contains both the active T3 thyroid hormone and the inactive thyroid hormone T4. The ratio of T4 to T3 is around 76% T4 to 23% T3 which is...

This is video#8 in my thyroid beginner series and it's all about T4 thyroid medication. T4 thyroid medications like Synthroid, Levothyroxine and Tirosint are among the most commonly prescribed thyroid medications but they don't always work. But why don't they work? Doctors make the assumption that your body will be able to convert T4 into T3 (to activate the hormone) at 100% efficiency. The proble...

This is lesson #7 in the thyroid beginner series and it's all about the thyroid lab test known as reverse T3. Reverse T3 is a routine thyroid lab test that can be ordered by your doctor which is incredibly sensitive at identifying thyroid dysfunction. Compared to almost all other thyroid lab tests, reverse T3 becomes abnormal the soonest in thyroid disease which makes it very sensitive at identify...

This lesson is all about what thyroid function and weight gain and what I call the thyroid weight gain paradox. The paradox is easily explained in this way: We know that hypothyroidism leads to weight gain but why doesn't taking thyroid medication lead to weight loss? At least in the majority of the cases. You have to accept that we either don't treat thyroid patients correctly or that hypothyroid...

This is video #5 in my thyroid beginner series and today is all about T4 to T3 conversion. The process by which your body creates T3 is perhaps one of the most important functions to understand. Why? Because it is within your power (through your actions) to improve this process. You will learn about what blunts or reduces T4 to T3 conversion and how to improve this conversion process. We'll also d...

This is episode #4 in my thyroid beginner series and today is all about T3. T3 is actually a name for 3 different things: a medication, a hormone produced by your thyroid gland and a test which you can order. T3 is the most powerful thyroid hormone in your body and the hormone that does all of the heavy lifting when it comes to thyroid function. Your body naturally produces 80% T4 and 20% T3 but i...

Thyroid Beginner series #3! This video will walk you through the basics of T4. T4 is 3 things in one. It's a medication, it's a hormone and it's a lab test. Medications that contain T4 include levothyroxine, Synthroid, and Tirosint. You can test for T4 by checking your free T4 levels in the blood. The T4 hormone, under normal conditions, is secreted by your thyroid gland and 80% of all thyroid hor...

Why is there so much controversy surrounding thyroid treatment? In this video, I discuss the conventional approach to thyroid management as well as the integrative approach and how they differ. You will find if you have thyroid disease, that you may hear conflicting information about how your thyroid should or shouldn't be treated. Don't let this information confuse you! If you are symptomatic, st...

This is video #1 in my thyroid beginner series. This series includes videos which are only 5-10 minutes in length and designed to get you up to date on thyroid basics. Video #1 in this series focuses on what your thyroid does and the basics of how it actually works. Your thyroid is influenced by signals from the brain which tell your body to produce thyroid hormone which then acts on your cells. A...

This question and answer will focus on a blog post about natur ethroid. Naturethroid is an NDT medication which contains T4 + T3 thyroid hormones. Many people believe NDT is one of the best medications, and this video addresses some of the issues that people have when starting this medication. Questions include: - How to deal with hair loss on naturethroid - How to transition from T4 to NDT - How...

Hey everyone! This is Q & A #2 in my series. Thanks to all those who left comments and questions. I will send out another email for you to leave comments on another post and go over new questions next week. Questions this week included: - What to do after thyroidectomy - What to do about normal TSH and low T4 - What happens when T4 is high - How to add T3 to your medications - & More If you have a...

Why do so many women struggle with weight loss in the postpartum period? Much of the reason has to do with hormone imbalances that may occur as a result of pregnancy. Pregnancy is a time of great hormone flux which can exacerbate conditions such as thyroid disease, insulin resistance and estrogen dominance. Losing weight in the postpartum period is about finding out about these hormone imbalances...

This is the first in a (hopeful) long of Q and A videos. These questions come from real people on my blog who are struggling with real problems. I know that many of you have the SAME issues because I see the same comments posted each and every day. If you guys like it let me know and if you want to have your questions featured then leave them below or leave them on my blog. I plan to take question...

Euthyroid sick syndrome is a condition which causes thyroid dysfunction due to illness or chronic stress. This stress can either be from an acute source (such as illness) or from a chronic source (such as chronic illness or stress). Euthyroid sick syndrome may result in certain lab changes to your thyroid such as low t3, low t4 and high reverse T3. This condition can be missed because the TSH is o...

This video will teach you everything you need to know about low estrogen (for both young and older women). Estrogen is a critical sex hormone found in both men and women. When we talk about estrogen we are almost always referring to estradiol (the most powerful estrogen). This hormone helps regulate important functions in the body such as your weight, how much fat you store (and where), heart dise...

Today we are going to talk about LDN or low dose naltrexone. This medication is often prescribed to treat medications such as weight loss, autoimmune disease and chronic pain. But does it actually work? Will taking LDN actually help you lose weight? Will it help you reduce your antibodies or improve your thyroid function? Will it actually take away your pain? I discuss all of these questions in th...

PCOS, at the heart, is really a hormone disease. The manifestations, including hair loss, associated with PCOS stem from these imbalances. Women with PCOS tend to have estrogen:progesterone ratio problems, an increased risk of thyroid disease as well as high testosterone and DHEA. All of these imbalances can lead to hair loss in women with PCOS. Learn tips and tricks to help treat these imbalances...

Iodine deficiency is more and more common even in iodine-replete areas such as the United States. The only way for humans to get iodine is through their diet and unless you are eating sea vegetables or kelp frequently you are probably not getting enough. Iodine deficiency manifests as hypothyroid symptoms, goiter formation, pregnancy-related problems and more. Learn more about how to know if you a...

There is a known connection between hypothyroidism and depression. If you are suffering from depression and you have thyroid disease then you need to learn more about this connection. T3 can be added to your thyroid medication regimen to help reduce the symptoms of depression. Some conditions such as the DIO2 polymorphism can reduce how much T3 is produced in neurological tissues. Hashimoto's can...

Your thyroid produces T4 and T3 thyroid hormones, but each is different in how it works and functions. Understanding how these hormones function will help you understand how your thyroid works and if you are taking the right medication, T3 is the most powerful thyroid hormone and it is known as triiodothyronine, but the majority of hypothyroid patients take a medication known as Thyroxine which co...