Check Your Thyroid Hormone Level

[Jingthing]

Well, here is my two satangs.

If you seem to gaining weight rapidly, yet you are also eating a healthy diet and exercising, get a thyroid hormone level test whether your doc thinks its a good idea or not.

If your hormone level is low, it is easily treated for a few baht a day (really that cheap).

Untreated hypothyroidism will eventually kill you, and it makes you get fat quite quickly.

[Ijustwannateach]

Thanks, Jingthing. Is it an expensive/involved test, or just a blood sample?

[Jingthing]

Just blood. Not expensive in Thailand. Low level is easy to treat. You have to get more tests to fine tune the exact dosage needed if the level is low. The pills are just to replace the hormone so you are on the pills for life (no other cure available).

Weight gain is one of many symptoms of hypothyroidism.

http://www.umm.edu/endocrin/hypot.htm

Also

Hypothyroidism may affect between 4% and 9% of the general population, and between 9% and 16% of people over age 60.

I am one of those people that think obesity is a medical condition, not a moral fault.

Edited January 24, 2007 by Jingthing

[bendix]

I am one of those people that think obesity is a medical condition, not a moral fault.

A medical condition limited to western world where people eat too much and live a too sedentary lifestyle?

If it's a medical condition, why does this condition affect nearly half the American population, increasing numbers of Brits and Germans and yet miraculously not seem to be such a common medical condition in Sudan, Cambodia and North Korea?

I'm confused.

If, as iwannateach says, this sub-forum is a mutual support and help group, surely the first part of the solution is understanding the problem, not hiding behind excuses.

Sure, abnormal thyroid levels can cause obesity but to make such blanket statements is very misleading and does more harm than good.

Edited January 25, 2007 by bendix

[Ijustwannateach]

It could have something to do in those nations with a bad food culture, Bendix. The problem is that socially it's often hard to avoid the problematic foods. Unless you become a hermit in some of the countries you mention and sit at home cooking your brown rice, your public alternatives are often scarce. But anyway, we're not discussing those countries or masses of people- we're discussing *individuals*, presumably who frequently live in Thailand.

As someone who has struggled with weight all his life, despite a reasonably active lifestyle (I can do 15km over 1 hr on the cross trainer machine at my gym- can you?), I can assure you that with some of us it's not a matter of not trying. And with us, YOUR comments are not helpful. No fat person is going to be unaware that one of the frequent suggestions is "eat less, exercise more." But how much less, and how much more? Obviously some people have different metabolisms; some people even have to give up things like rice and bread altogether- other people can eat seemingly endless quantities of these things and have no problem.

You may not have a weight problem. Congratulations. That doesn't entitle you to be self-righteous or snide in your ignorance about how difficult it may be for others. Anyway, we're off-topic on this thread. I hope you will become less confused soon, Bendix, because your kind of confusion is not wanted here.

"Steven"