There is nothing more important when deciding upon a provider for your Private Thyroid Tests than reliability and trust. At Blue Horizon we have been providing a reliable postal thyroid testing service for more than 10 years, and firmly believe we have always offered good value and reliability.
Recently we added both Cortisol and Magnesium tests as standard across our Thyroid Premium range of tests. Both the hormone Cortisol, and the mineral Magnesium, are integral to optimal thyroid function. I shall explain each role in relation to thyroid hormones.
Cortisol and Thyroid.
Cortisol – the essential hormone produced by the adrenal gland, responsible for our ‘stress response’ and a host of other functions, has been suspected for some time to exert an effect on thyroid function too.
Thyroid Stimulating Hormone (TSH) decreases when Cortisol is sustained at a high level – either naturally (stress, or Cushing’s disease) or if given in high doses therapeutically. The hypothesis is that in times of high stress – when your body cannot help but push out too much cortisol from the adrenal glands – the high level of circulating hormone ‘switches off’ other hormones made in the pituitary gland that trigger release of cortisol.
This is known as negative feedback, and it ensures that there is control in place. The thought is that other hormones in the pituitary are also affected by this process, including TSH which will decline too. The whole process of thyroid regulation then suffers, including conversion of T4 to T3. More Reverse T3 (the dormant version of T3) is made than Free T3 – which results in a hypothyroid state. In this indirect way, Cortisol may affect thyroid function.
Magnesium and Thyroid.
Magnesium – it has been widely reported that iodine and selenium are essential for thyroid health. Fortunately, both substances are abundant in most standard diets, and deficiencies are rare therefore in the UK.
The reliance of the thyroid on magnesium has not been so obvious until fairly recently. Magnesium deficiency does occur in the western world, and perhaps more commonly than previously thought – for example PPI drugs such as omeprazole which are in widespread use for acid reflux disease are well known to cause magnesium deficiency if used in the long term.
Studies have shown that low levels of magnesium are positively associated with increased risk of autoimmune thyroid disease (Hashimoto’s thyroiditis and Graves disease) and increased likelihood of Thyroglobulin antibodies being present. Correction of magnesium levels through the diet may then be sufficient to turn the situation around, which must be preferable to a lifetime of taking thyroid medication.
How Blue Horizon Premium Thyroid Tests Make a Difference.
If stress or high steroid intake, or a risk of magnesium deficiency (maybe from long term anti-acid medication), apply to you, then the addition of these two tests to the our thyroid profiles may be of particular interest and worth investigating further.
