Thyroid is a butterfly-shaped gland in neck. It is one of endocrine glands, which make hormones. Thyroid hormones control the rate of many activities in your body. These include how fast you burn calories and how fast your heart beats. All of these activities are your body’s metabolism. If your thyroid gland is not active enough, it does not make enough thyroid hormone to meet your body’s needs. This condition is hypothyroidism. Hypothyroidism during pregnancy can be a common problem since hypothyroidism often affects women during child bearing age. In fact studies have found that 2.5% of women experience hypothyroidism during pregnancy.
Risk Factors of Hypothyroidism During Pregnancy
The most common cause worldwide of hypothyroidism during pregnancy is iodine deficiency. In countries where iodine rich foods are plentiful, however, the most common cause is Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis. The main risk factors for hypothyroidism are past thyroid problems, a history of hypothyroidism in your family and autoimmune disorders such as type 1 diabetes.
Potential Effects of Hypothyroidism on Baby and Mother
Because thyroid hormones are so important to your baby’s brain and nervous system development. During the first twelve weeks of pregnancy the baby does not have a functioning thyroid gland. This means he must rely on his mother for his thyroid hormones. So if you have hypothyroidism it can greatly affect your baby. Studies have found that babies whose mothers had hypothyroidism may have low IQ, Learning disabilities and Motor disorders.
Severe hypothyroidism which is left untreated can cause serious problems for mothers such as anemia (low red blood cells), pre-eclampsia, post-birth hemorrhage (bleeding), placental abruption, and heart failure. These problems occur most often with severe hypothyroidism.
Main Signs of Hypothyroidism During Pregnancy
Symptoms of an underactive thyroid are often the same for pregnant women as for other people with hypothyroidism. Symptoms include:
- Extreme tiredness
- Problems with memory or concentration
- Muscle cramps
- Unexplained weight gain
- Brittle fingernails or hair
- Puffy skin
- Pale skin
- Depression
Treatment for Hypothyroidism During Pregnancy
If you have hypothyroidism while you are pregnant it’s important that you get treatment as soon as possible. Many experts advise that all pregnant women or women who intend to have a pregnancy test thyroid. Your doctor will treat hypothyroidism by regularly monitoring your thyroid hormone levels through blood testing and by giving you synthetic T4 medication to replace missing T4 hormone.
Reference:
https://hypothyroidmom.com/maternal-hypothyroidism-and-fetal-brain-development
https://www.thyroid.org/thyroid-disease-pregnancy/
https://academic.oup.com/jcem/article/86/6/2349/2848391
https://medlineplus.gov/hypothyroidism.html
http://hypothyroidisma.com/hypothyroidism-pregnancy.php
https://www.endocrineweb.com/conditions/thyroid/pregnancy-your-thyroid
