# Hyperthyroidism and bowel problems?



## 2btrue (Jul 22, 2003)

I have again been diagnozed with hyperthyroidism and was wondering how this would effect bowel problems - pain, constipation, gas etc.I have heard that most people with this condition have diarrhea but if anything, I have become more constipated.Its hard to know where to draw the line between having severe chronic pain 24/7 and the symptoms of hyperthyroidism. My weight is steady, I dont feel heat all that much. Sleep is always a problem with non relenting pain, so is anxiety.I'm just wondering if I should just do nothing and hope that it "goes away" like it did when I had it 4 yours ago. Most meds cause more abdominal pain and I dont think I could deal with that.


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## K9Mom (Sep 20, 1999)

YES, hyperthyroidism absolutely effects your GI system. If I were you, the first thing I would want to know is what is the CAUSE of your hyperthyroidism....is it Graves disease (autoimmune hyperthyroidism)?If you choose to ignore it please realize that you can be putting yourself in danger. Hyperthyroidism does damage to your bones, heart and other body systems.Typically diarrhea is a symptom of hyperthyroidism. Do you know which lab tests were done on you and what your results were that diagnosed you?I highly recommend the book "Thyroid for Dummies" by Dr. Alan Rubin for anyone that is newly diagnosed.


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## 17176 (Mar 31, 2005)

i was wondering if there is a chance that the results can be wrong for thyroid testing? strange question i know, but ibe been tested before and it came back negative, but im not sure..


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## 13853 (May 2, 2005)

Always a possibility. There are at least 3 items they test - TSH, T4 and T3. It would seem odd all 3 items are "wrong" unless the lab just totally messed things up.http://thyroid.about.com/library/howto/htthyroid-test.htm


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## 17176 (Mar 31, 2005)

hi ZZ i dont know if they tested for the 3 things you mentioned, but to be honest i have suspected for years that i am having probs with my thyroid, i think ill ask my doc to test me again..


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## K9Mom (Sep 20, 1999)

Joolie, if you do ask to be tested, you may want to know that if you take birth control pills or HRT then you will want the "Free T4" and "Free T3" tests instead of the plain T4 and T3. Estrogen competes with thyroid hormone for the same receptors. The Free T4 and Free T3 blood tests are more accurate because the estrogens do not interfere with the "Free" levels.







Thyroid levels can and do change at any given time. Often patients will feel symptoms before the blood tests show that there is a problem. Adding to the confusion is the fact that most doctors only to a TSH test to screen for thyroid disease. The TSH test has a WIDE normal range. There is much disagreement amongst professional organizations and researchers about lowering the normal range for the TSH test. When they tested masses of people who had NO history of thyroid disease in their family, and that tested negative for thyroid autoantibodies, 95% of the people tested between 0.4 to 2.0 but our current normal range in most labs is 0.5 to 5.0. This means that anyone that tests between a 2.0 and 5.0 on the TSH test is most likely HYPOthyroid and most likely would benefit from treatment, but will have a hard time finding a doctor to treat them.Even subclinical hypothyroidism can cause carpal tunnel syndrome, high cholesterol, constipation, etc.


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## 2btrue (Jul 22, 2003)

K9Mom,How does one know what causes Hyperthyroidism? Is there a specific test to determine whether it is Graves or any other? I have had this before and it resolved itself without meds.I have been under incredible stress and my pain has worsened. I have been going to Physical Therapy for the pain and was thinking that was why I'm getting worse but it could be the Hyperthyroidism however I dont know when it started. I just a routine physical and it was picked up.My internist did TSH free which is .03 but the T4 is within normal range. The T3 was not done. I asked my internist to refer me to an endocrinologist but she said its not necessary and wishes to ignore it. I dont know what to do because the Endo wont see me without a referral.I am amazed that one can get more constipated with this problem - just everything is worse, especially the pain. My mood is terrible but has been since the removal of my colon.


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## K9Mom (Sep 20, 1999)

Hi 2btrue,There are antibody blood tests to find out if the cause of your hyperthyroidism is due to autoimmune thyroid disease (Graves disease). Specifically these tests are called:TSI - Thyroid Stimulating ImmunoglobulinTPO - Thyroid PerioxidaseThe constipation thing has me baffled because when hyperthyroid your metabolism is GREATLY speeded up and most often causes diarrhea.There are also other causes of hyperthyroidism, such as a pituitary problem, but I am not as familiar with how to diagnose those.With your T4 within normal limits (I still would get a hard copy and look for yourself to see where it falls within the normal range) and your TSH being low, that would be categorized as "subclinical hyperthyroidism" and yes, they generally just watch this unless the T4 rises out of range...then they will treat.


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## 13853 (May 2, 2005)

> quote:Originally posted by K9Mom:you will want the "Free T4" and "Free T3" tests instead of the plain T4 and T3. Estrogen competes with thyroid hormone for the same receptors. The Free T4 and Free T3 blood tests are more accurate because the estrogens do not interfere with the "Free" levels.
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Thanks for posting the details K9. My wife is hypo but I couldn't recall all the info since I didn't have her info handy.I could almost pinpoint a 3 month time period around 3 years ago that it "seemed" her thyroid stopped producing anything before being diagnosed. Constant sleep/fatigue and lots of weight gain regardless of food intake. She has high cholesterol (but could have been high before), takes synthroid and is anemic (I give her b12 shots). She doesn't have any IBS issues but is experiencing the fun of menopause. Blood panel done every six months due to hypo and taking a statin.Of course is someone has hyperthyroidism, its another set of issues.


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