Personally I plan on taking an at home test kit to find out.
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Undiagnosed low thyroid epidemic affects possible 70% of population, causing serious health problems
A new study by Dr. E. Chester Ridgway, the University of Colorado’s chief endocrinologist, says that an estimated 13 million Americans may have undiagnosed thyroid problems, up from previous estimates. He says that even mild thyroid problems might cause serious consequences. Pregnant women with underactive thyroid are in jeopardy of having children with lower IQs. Research shows that low thyroid levels can raise cholesterol levels, thus raising the threat of a heart attack. In his April 10, 2000 news release, Dr. Ridgway said that people don’t realize what a big problem this is and how important it is to get the word out.
wow, your symptoms match mine exactly.. where did you get the home test kit? it's almost impossible to get a dr. to test you for something like that if THEY don't think of it first..
Don't count on thyroid problems being the cause of your acne. My dad had an over active thyroid, we found out because he was losing mass ammounts of weight and sweating 24/7. Turns out his thyroid gland was about 150x over active and making his heart and metabolism work that much harder.
They used some sort of radiation to kill his thyroid gland and now hes on hormonal replacement pills called synthroid, which basically mimic his thyroid. Throughout all of this, he hasn't had acne....sooo I dunno?
It really depends on the person because several things together are probably causing the acne. Plus I read that an underactive thyroid cause results in skin problems, not overactive.
I wish I can tell you where to get the thyroid test but they dont let you post links on here. Just search "thyroid test" at HOTBOT. Then at the top of the list there will be a link for the cheapest kit they say is FDA approved for 39.99 or something. Then you take the test and mail it in to them and their doctors tell you the results.
Yes I know how it is with doctors. You'll get the runaround for everything else until you get to the problem. Or if they don't feel you have that problem, they won't let you take that test or even think you are crazy or something.
I dont understand. Isn't testing for thyroid problems routine???? I found out about my underactive thyroid through a routine blood test. I didn't think there was anything wrong and I didn't suggest it to my Dr.
If someone feels they have thyroid disease, they must have tests specifically for that to find out for sure. The minimum tests you need are TSH, free T4, free T3, and thyroid antibodies.
Anyways, I might order that test kit and see what happens.
They say that some of the reasons for having hypothyroidism is a deficiency in iodine or selenium.
Funny cause I started taking selenium as one of my daily supplements about a week ago. I hate to say it but I doubt I get much nutrition or anything in the foods I eat daily. I eat quickly to fill the need of food and don't really have the time to focus on nutrition. How hard is it to stay on a good diet and actually have the time to shop for the right things?? Seems hard to me.
It's a sad thing but when you are a fairly young person going into the hospital, the doctors consider you healthy and feel not much is wrong with you. They attribute your problems to "stress". That might very well be the case, but I feel there is something underlying causing my problems and I just wish I knew what it was.
Just because you have a thyroid problem doesn't mean you'll have acne, and just because you have acne doesn't mean you have a thyroid problem. But with that said, I think my acne was directly because of my underactive thyroid.
I always had mild acne, but nothing really bad until I went to college and it got much worse. This was around the time I started having other symptoms of underactive thyroid. My dr blew off my symptoms as stress. And I began going to a derm. Finally last year I was diagnosed with hypothyroidism after my dr realized my thyroid was enlarged and because of bloodwork. I started on synthroid and have been on it for over a year. My face is now almost completely clear and has been for many months. Granted, I am still on antibiotics from my derm, but I had been on different antibiotics for 3 years with no results, until starting synthroid.
So if you have symptoms of hypo or hyper other than just acne, you should talk to your dr. You do have to push to get tested. Thyroid testing really isn't standard for young people. You're acne may have nothing to do with your thyroid even if it is under or over active, but it is worth checking out for other health reasons if you have several symptoms. I can't express how much better I feel since being put on meds, and my face clearing is just a small benefit compared to not feeling tired all the time and not being depressed.
Check out the thyroid message boards here, they're pretty informative and helpful.
Do on a search on this acne board and the thyroid board for experiences of other people. I went to the doctor ( a D.O. instead of an M.D. because they are supposed to generally be more understanding that giving a pill to solve a problem is not always the answer). Anyway, I told him that I've tested normal for thyroid in the past but I have freezing hands and feet, headaches, low sex drive, acne, and other things that make me think that I'm not able to UTILIZE my "normal" thyroid readings. I'm still waiting for the results. My mom and most of her sisters take thyroid medicine.
I also switched my birth control from Ortho Tri Cyclen to Demulen 1/50..., just in case anyone cares :/ The increased estrogen is supposed to help sex drive and also help acne.
THYROID PROBLEMS??? 
