The Dr. Westin Childs Podcast

Thyroid nodules are incredibly common and impact up to 65% of people! The number of people who have thyroid nodules goes up as they age as well leaving a huge number of people with these bundles of joy toward the end of their life. Why should you care about thyroid nodules? Because sometimes (rarely) they may be cancerous. Luckily, 95% of the time they are benign and don’t do much except cause str...

Armour thyroid is one of the most popular natural desiccated thyroid medications on the market. For that reason, we are going to be taking a close look at both the inactive and inactive ingredients found inside of this thyroid medication to see what it’s actually made of. I plan to do this for all thyroid medications and if you’d like to see my previous video on levothyroxine ingredients you can f...

Is Hashimoto’s considered a fatal disease? Technically, yes, but the reality is that most people will not die directly from Hashimoto’s. In order for this to happen you must neglect your health and thyroid for decades which is very unlikely to happen in developed countries like the United States. But does that mean you are free from risk if you have Hashimoto’s? Not at all. We know from twin studi...

Is Hashimoto’s a genetic condition? The short answer is yes but what’s key here is that just because you may have the underlying genetics associated with developing Hashimoto’s doesn’t guarantee that that the disease state will manifest in your body. And this is key. Understanding this genetic component will allow you to live your life in such a way as to avoid certain factors which have the poten...

Ever wonder what is actually in levothyroxine? This medication is one of the most prescribed medications in the United States and yet so many people have no idea what they are actually consuming every day. Understanding what’s in this medication is important because some of the ingredients may be causing you problems. When it comes to thyroid medications there are two types of ingredients you shou...

Many thyroid patients with autoimmune thyroid disease like Hashimoto’s and Graves’ don’t realize this but the antibodies that cause thyroid problems (that are associated with these disease states) also cause problems in other tissues in your body. These antibodies are like heat-seeking missiles that target various proteins and receptors in your thyroid gland which results in abnormalities in thyro...

Early research suggests that up to 30% of thyroid patients currently taking thyroid medication may not need it. That’s great and all but what does that mean for you? How can you tell if you are in that lucky 30%? Well, if you’ve ever wondered about that I’ve got some good news for you: We have some signs that, if present, indicate that you have a higher likelihood of getting off of your thyroid me...

Contrary to popular belief, hypothyroidism doesn’t have to be a disease that lasts forever. While there certainly are irreversible causes of hypothyroidism there are also plenty of reversible causes as well. And today I want to focus on just that: Reversible causes of hypothyroidism. If any of these underlying causes of hypothyroidism have caused your thyroid disease then there is hope that you ma...

Does it feel like everyone is getting thyroid disease right now? When you look at the numbers, it’s clear that the amount of people getting diagnosed with thyroid diseases like Hashimoto’s thyroiditis and hypothyroidism is increasing. The question is why? Well, no one knows for sure but I have some ideas as to why this might be the case. Let’s take a look at what conventional doctors say about thi...

I’ve been helping patients with Hashimoto’s for a long time and throughout that time I’ve seen a lot of bad information, misinformation, and just plain wrong information. What I want to do today is just set the record straight. Here are 4 things that I wish every patient with Hashimoto’s knew either early on in their diagnosis or right when they were diagnosed. Understanding these facts will help...

Thyroid conversion is one of the most important aspects of thyroid function that thyroid patients need to be aware of. Thyroid conversion refers to the ability that your body has to take inactive thyroid hormone and turn it into active T3 thyroid hormone. Throughout your time as a thyroid patient, you may have heard others mention that they have issues with thyroid conversion. Have you ever wonder...

Did you know that with the clever use of some over-the-counter supplements and one prescription medication you can re-create all of the benefits found in natural desiccated thyroid hormone formulas? Doing this allows you to make whatever thyroid medication you are using even more effective by mimicking what makes NDT so great. Why is this important? Because when Nature-throid and WP Thyroid were r...

Adthyza is a relatively new thyroid medication that was released within the last 1-2 years. I say new because that’s still pretty new in the grand scheme of things especially when it’s so rare to see a new thyroid medication. *note: I am not paid by Adthyza or any pharmaceutical company! I don’t even have a very favorable opinion of this medication and I’m just sharing what I think. How does Adthy...

Can certain exercises help your thyroid gland function? Not in a direct way but perhaps in an indirect way! And that’s exactly what these neck exercises are designed to do. You can indirectly support thyroid function by exercising your neck which can help in a number of different ways: #1. Neck exercises can help improve blood flow to the area of your neck. Working out the muscles in your neck wil...

A new study of over 600,000 thyroid patients from Taiwan suggested that thyroid patients taking levothyroxine have a 50% increased risk of developing cancer at any site. While concerning, the results of this study certainly do not prove that levothyroxine causes cancer but every thyroid patient taking levothyroxine should be aware of this potential connection. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/1...

Do you feel like your thyroid medication just isn’t working as it should? Do you still have symptoms of low thyroid even though you are taking your thyroid medication faithfully? It could be that your dose is just not high enough and that you need to increase it. This problem is actually more common than you might think. It’s been estimated that as many as 25-30% of thyroid patients may be taking...

Thyroid gland massage is something that has gained momentum and attention lately. And when I talk about thyroid gland massage I am not talking about massage therapy for your thyroid gland. I’m talking about actual massage of the thyroid gland itself. Why are some people considering thyroid gland massage as a treatment for hypothyroidism? Well, the reason is as follows: Because the thyroid gland is...

Did you know that your gut and your thyroid are connected? If you have a problem with one you will almost always have a problem with the other. Your thyroid helps to control how quickly your gut moves and how much stomach acid you produce. When your thyroid is low it slows down how quickly your intestines move and lowers how much stomach acid you produce. The result? Constipation, overgrowth of ba...

One of the best ways to naturally treat Hashimoto’s is by increasing glutathione. Glutathione is the master antioxidant in your cells and a master detoxifier. The production of glutathione prevents thyroid gland damage and can help clean up free radicals after your thyroid gland creates thyroid hormone. We know that some patients with Hashimoto’s are not able to produce enough glutathione which is...

Having trouble getting iodine supplements into your body? If so, this episode is for you. While most people who take iodine supplements will have absolutely no issues, there are a handful of people who may experience negative side effects. But what causes these side effects? Why do some people react negatively to something that your body needs and uses on a daily basis? Even though iodine is requi...

These hypothyroid supplements for women may help improve estrogen balance, enhance libido, help with weight loss, improve thyroid function, and more. Women can benefit from a number of different supplements because of the interaction that thyroid hormone has with other sex hormones. If you’ve listened to my other videos then you know I’m a big fan of supplements for thyroid patients so if you don’...

This video outlines how to optimize your thyroid medication so that you can get back to feeling 100%. There’s no question that many thyroid patients continue to suffer with low thyroid symptoms despite taking their thyroid medication faithfully. As a result, this has prompted some thyroid patients to believe that perhaps the issue is related to the treatments for hypothyroidism. I’ve been getting...

Want to know the best protein powder if you have Hashimoto’s thyroiditis? Stay tuned to find out what I recommend most frequently to thyroid patients! I’m a big fan of protein powder for thyroid patients because it provides so many benefits. Some of these benefits include: - Helps with weight loss - Provides you with a quick an easy meal - Helps control your appetite - Easy way to get extra nutrie...

Over the past 6 years, I’ve had the opportunity to help thousands of thyroid patients. I’ve seen and responded to thousands of emails, I’ve personally helped many patients 1 on 1, and over 70,000 thyroid patients have used my supplements to date. I’m not saying this to brag but just to let you know that I’ve done nothing but eat, breathe, and sleep thyroid-related things for the last 6 years! And...

These Hashimoto’s flare up symptoms will help you determine if your symptoms are related to a flare up or related to something else. Those with Hashimoto’s may experience what is referred to as a Hashimoto’s flare up. This occurs when something triggers your immune system to flare up and increase its attack on your thyroid gland. These flare ups are often associated with very specific symptoms tha...