Thyroid Disease

[Guest guest]

---Graves' Disease JoAnn Guest

Sep 05, 2002 18:42 PDT

 

 

Graves' Disease

(Hyperthyroidism)

 

Delving into the literature, I came up with *bugleweed* as one of the

most promising alternatives. Months later, the very same lady came

back to tell me that she had stopped her medication and was drinking

mint teas with plenty of bugleweed. After she'd been off her

medication for a month she dropped by my office beaming. She had just

had a checkup and her blood level of thyroid-stimulating hormone

(TSH, one of the things that goes off-kilter in Graves disese was

fine. The same was true a month later.

 

Thyroid Set on High

With hyperthyroidism, there are abnormally high blood levels of

thyroid hormones circulating in the body. These hormones are secreted

by the thyroid gland, which is located in the neck just behind and

below the Adam's apple. The disease was named after an Irish

physician, Robert James Graves, who lived in the early 1800s and was

the first to identify its telltale pattern.

 

Levels of circulating thyroid hormones depend on several things,

availability of the mineral iodine, levels of TSH released by the

pituitary gland (located in the center of the brain) and the health

of the thyroid gland itself.

TSH levels are further regulated by yet another part of the brain,

the hypothalamus. All of this translates into a simple formula in a

healthy individual. As TSH levels increase, the levels of thyroid

hormone also increase, until a balance is reached. If the thyroid is

malfunctioning, it's attempts to regulate hormone levels will throw

the system further out of balance.

 

Thyroid diseases affect about 2.5 percent of Americans, or some 6.5

million people, most of whom are women. There are several types of

hyperthyroidism, but Graves disease is by far the most common.

It's an autoimmune condition, meaning that it's thought to be caused

by the immune system attacking the body, and it affects about one

million Americans.

 

Doctors treat Graves disease by trying to suppress thyroid hormone

production. Any of several drugs may be prescribed and sometimes,

usually in drug-sensitive elderly people, radiation may be used to

disable a portion of the thyroid gland itself.

 

 

Green Pharmacy for Graves'Disease

 

Bugleweed (lycopus)

has a considerable folk history for treating thyroid conditions and

modern medicine supports this use. This herb inhibits iodine

metabolism and reduces the amount of hormone that's produced by

thyroid cells.

Leaf extracts are more active than root extracts. The recommended

oral preparation is a tincture (alcohol extract) rather than a tea.

In one study using laboratory animals, bugleweed tincture resulted in

a significant decrease in thyroid hormone levels.

Bugleweed is widely used in Europe as an herbal treatment for Graves

disease, often in combination with lemon balm.

 

Lemon Balm (Melissa officinalis)

In Europe, lemon balm, also known as melissa, is often recommended

along with bugleweed for treating Graves disease. Studies show that

lemon balm causes a decrease in blood and pituitary levels of TSH

after a single injection, thus reducing thyroid hormone production.

 

Self-heal (Prunella vulgaris)

A quarter-pound serving of self-heal greens with bugleweed tubers,

spiced up with basil, oregano, rosemary and spearmint, should contain

significant quantities of the compound rosmarinic acid, which helps

suppress thyroid hormone production.

 

Kelp (Lanimaria, various species)

 

Herbal pharmacologist Daniel Mowrey, Ph.D., author of " The Scientific

Validation of Herbal Medicine " and " Herbal Tonic Therapies " , notes

that among the Japanese who consume a great deal of kelp, thyroid

disease is practically unknown, but among the Japanese who have

become westernized and eat little kelp, thyroid disease is on the

rise.

You can buy powdered kelp is health food stores to sprinkle on your

food as a seasoning.

 

Verbena

Often called vervain, verbena seems to have properties similar to

those of self-heal. Extracts have been shown to suppress thyroid

hormone production by influencing levels of TSH in the body.

 

Broccoli (Brassica oleracea)

Remember how George Bush hated broccoli? His aversion to that

wonderful vegetable deprived him of something tht might have helped

treat his Graves disease. Broccoli contains naturally occuring

substances called isothiocyanates, which help restrain the thyroid

from producing too much hormone. When Bush was diagnosed with Graves'

Disease, several alternative health authorities urged him to eat

broccoli. One even published a book titled " Why George should eat

Broccoli. "

 

Radish (Raphanus Sativus)

All of the cruciferous vegetables gently and naturally suppress

thyroid hormone production, but radishes do it best, according to

medical anthropologist John Heinerman. Ph.D., author of " Heinermans

Encyclopedia of Fruits, vegetables and Herbs " .

 

Cruciferous vegetables include broccoli, brussels sprouts, cabbage,

cauliflower, kale, mustard greens, radishes, rutabagas and turnips.

Radishes are used in Russia precisely for this purpose!

 

From " The Green Pharmacy "

Author: James A Dukes Ph.D.

 

 

JoAnn Guest

jogu-

Friendsforhea-

http://canceranswer.homestead.com/AIM.html

theaimcompanies

" Health is not a Medical Issue "

 

In Gettingwell, " Sheila Ealey " <sheilaealey@h...> wrote:

>

> I have already obtained so much good information from this group, I

was

> wondering if any of you had any suggestions about supplements for

Graves

> Disease. My husband has it. For some reason they can't get his th

levels

> down enough for radiation or surgery. He has already maxed out on

the

> medication and I'm afraid it could be doing loads of damage to his

liver and

> other vital functions. His pulse rate remains high and he's gained

lots of

> weight because they don't want him doing any form of exercise. We

are

> puzzled as to what we should be doing. Before all of this, he was

extremely

> healthy. In the 13 years we've been married, he's never had so much

as the

> common cold. He was exposed to TB while traveling in China and

remained on

> medication to prevent onset for 6 months. Well, 18 months after

this, his

> problems began.

>

> Any advice or suggestions will be most appreciated!

>

> Thanks

>

> Sheila