How to Understand Thyroid Levels

The thyroid plays an important part in regulating metabolism and releasing hormones, but some people have problems with their thyroids that negatively affect them. In most cases, your doctor will be able to detect if there is anything wrong with your thyroid by doing some simple tests known as TSH or thyroid-stimulating hormone test. Also, thyroid levels known as T3 and T4 will be measured to ensure proper thyroid function.

• Understand what normal thyroid levels look like. The thyroid test could show that nothing is wrong with your thyroid, but you should know how to read the tests. Normal TSH levels will be between 0.4 and 4.0 mIU/L along with no symptoms of an abnormal thyroid. For people that are already under treatment for a thyroid condition, their TSH levels will be between 0.5 and 3.0 mIU/L.


• Compare your tests to determine if you have proper thyroid levels. If your TSH are unusually high, but you have normal results for your T3 and T4 tests, then you most likely have a mild case of hypothyroidism. This means that your thyroid is not very active and is not producing the hormones you need as well as a slow metabolism. This can cause weight gain, fatigue and many other symptoms.


• Determine whether or not your thyroid levels are to low because this can be a sign of hyperthyroidism. This occurs when your TSH levels are low, but your T3 and T4 levels are high. This means that your thyroid is producing too much hormone. This can cause you to lose weight regardless of how much you eat. Other symptoms include irritability, sensitivity to heat and rapid heartbeats.