June 18, 2000
Thyroid
Question from Massachusetts, USA:
My 15 year old son has Type 1 diabetes, diagnosed at 20 months. Basically all is well except that he was recently diagnosed with hypothyroidism, and his doctor said that it happens to 5% of people with diabetes. What is the connection between them? He is taking a thyroid hormone pill once a day now. i would like more info on teens with hypothyroidism.
Answer:
There is a well recognised association between diabetes and hypothyroidism. Both are autoimmune diseases. Like diabetes, hypothyroidism occurs as a result of destruction of the thyroid gland from the immune system. This results in an inability to make thyroid hormone, a basic metabolic hormone, important to keep your body ticking over. However, unlike diabetes, it is much simpler to treat, needing simple thyroid hormone tablets to replace the thyroid hormone that is not being produced. The condition is lifelong, so needs regular thyroxine to make sure any patient remains well.
JS
