Your endocrine system is an extremely important part of your body because it actually affects your heart beats thereby ensuring a healthy cardiovascular health. Besides that, it influences how your bone and tissues grow, ensuring that you do not fall under any cancer risks. In some cases, your endocrine system can affect your body’s ability to make a baby as well while it makes a difference on whether you could develop diabetes, any growth disorders and other disorders related to your body’s hormones.
Prevalence
Anyone at any age can suffer any form of endocrine disorder because it relates to the hormones. As such, this condition relates to certain types of hormones being channelled into your bloodstream which will then travel to other cells which can influence body processes. If any of your glands are affected, then you would suffer some form of endocrine disorder. This includes your adrenal glands which are the 2 glands above your kidneys involved in releasing cortisol while the part of your lower middle brain is known as the hypothalamus. Other types of endocrine disorder could affeec tthe likes of your ovaries, parathyroid and your pineal gland, among others. You will suffer endocrine disease when your gland produces abnormal levels of this hormone. It can be too much or too little but when that happens, you will experience hormone imbalance, which if not treated could lead to some fatal diseases. This is one major cause of concern, particularly in developing countries like Malaysia where it has been reported that this condition has caused more than 1,500 lives recently.
Prevention
Being a hormone-related disorder, preventing endocrine disorder is quite difficult as there is no single way of doing so. However, you must ensure that your body is constantly supplied with certain minerals like salt. This is where your body needs to be performing at the best conditions at all times while recognizing the symptoms of this disorder would be extremely helpful because you will be able to take any quick actions and diagnose the condition as soon as possible.
Diagnosis
To determine the severity of your condition, your doctor will naturally run certain tests and examination to diagnose the problem. The first thing that needs to be determined would be to ascertain which gland is involved. Your doctor will ask you certain questions pertaining to your condition where fatigue and constant weakness in the body would be very helpful information. Besides that, your doctor will carry out blood and urine tests. This is to determine the hormone levels while imaging tests might be required as well.
Symptoms
The symptoms that you might have an endocrine disorder can be quite confusing because they are somewhat similar to other type of common diseases. You will need to have it checked and further examine in order to fully ascertain which gland is affected. There are however, certain symptoms that can be clearer like swelling in the lips or tongue, hands or feet or sleep apnea when your pituitary glands produce too much growth hormones. Meanwhile, common symptoms include fatigue and unusual weakness around the body or you could even experience vomiting and nausea which are all signs of endocrine disorder.
Specialists
Your family physician will only be able to carry out first level diagnosis and treatment like pain relieving medication. If there is a need for further treatment stemming from urine and blood tests, you might need to be referred to a specialist. This is where you will need to consult an Endocrinologist who is a doctor who is trained specifically to treat gland-related diseases. Besides that, the endocrinologist is involved in treating hormonal imbalance as he is educated in the hormone-related system of your body. This doctor will try to restore your body’s hormones back to the balanced situation.
Medication
If your body is lacking in production of hormones, you might need to be injected with synthetic thyroid hormones which include the likes of liothyronine and levothyroxine. This is used in endocrine disorders like hypothyroidism while you could be given antithyroid drugs if you are diagnosed with hyperthyroidism. This includes the likes of Carbimazole, radioiodine and Propylthiouracil, among others. This is to help to suppress excessive amounts of your thyroid hormones.
Home Remedies
The best home remedy you can adopt in overcoming endocrine disorder is to change your lifestyle. Excessive stress will usually be your first obstacle because it is a major factor that can cause problems to your endocrine system. When you are stressed, it invokes your adrenals that can then cause fatigue and start producing cortisol which can lead to all types of medical conditions. If possible, you should avoid exposure to toxins in the environment like chemicals from cigarette smoke and exhaust fumes. In terms of food, a type of very effective Chinese herb is the astragalus which can help to relieve stress on the adrenal gland. Meanwhile, you can restore your endocrine system health by taking another herb called the ashwagandha. Licorice can help to enhance your adrenal gland health and you must ensure that you have a consistent rest and relax cycle as well.
Contact us now on how we can help you with Endocrine Disorders. +60126725888(SMS or whatsapp for international)
References
http://www.cedars-sinai.edu/Patients/Programs-and-Services/Endocrinology/Treatment/
http://www.herbalremediesadvice.org/endocrine-system.html