On the 2nd of July, the program “Domingão” on SIC
The Association for Thyroid Diseases (ADTI) will hold an awareness-raising action next Sunday (July 2) which will be broadcast live on the Sunday afternoon program on SIC, “Domingão”.
With the aim of highlighting the importance of the genetic factor in thyroid-related diseases, this initiative intends to continue the awareness and sensitization work that ADTI has been promoting following the International Awareness Week for Thyroid Diseases.
For Celeste Campinho, president of the Association of Thyroid Diseases, «These actions are essential for us to make the disease known among our community since it affects, in our country, about 1 million people, many of whom do not even realize that they suffer from it. Given that there is still a great lack of knowledge about thyroid-associated diseases and how they manifest themselves, we intend to raise awareness, not only of the consequences they can bring to health but also of the signs that we should all be aware of, namely if we take into account symptoms such as fatigue, muscle weakness, sleep disturbances, anxiety, depression, vision problems and problems related to the menstrual cycle. It was aware of this reality that we chose for this action the phrase “Take care of your thyroid, do not ignore the alerts” because these can save lives.»
On the other hand, the president of ADTI also underlines the importance of early diagnosis «since this can lead the patient to undergo a more adequate and effective treatment, which translates into an enormous benefit in terms of recovery of the quality of life affected in the sequence of sequels left by thyroid problems. It is in this sense that ADTI has also been developing various screenings with the aim of increasingly facilitating access to diagnosis and, in this way, informing and alerting to the relationship between family health history and the risk of thyroid disease. . It should also be noted that we are talking about a very simple diagnosis to make and that can be done through blood analysis or hormone levels. Above all, what we want is for more and more people to be informed and aware of the reality of thyroid diseases and their consequences for health in general.»
Hypothyroidism
It is estimated that worldwide, 200 million people live with a thyroid disorder, and often undiagnosed. In Portugal, it is expected to affect 1 million people, although there is still a great lack of knowledge about the diseases associated with this gland, as well as how they manifest themselves.
The thyroid is an endocrine gland, shaped like a butterfly, located in the front of the neck. This gland is responsible for producing several hormones that regulate the body’s metabolism and affect personal growth and development. In this way, when their production is compromised, they affect the most diverse organs, which results in the most different health problems.
An imbalance of this gland results in symptoms such as fatigue, muscle weakness, sleep disturbances, anxiety, depression, vision problems, and menstrual cycle problems. Thus, its diagnosis is made through thyroid function tests, which can be performed from a simple blood test or by analyzing hormone levels.
Although they are diseases that can have more impact on women and appear at all stages of life, from childhood to old age, there is evidence that this can be a hereditary problem, so it is common to appear in different members of the same family.
The most common cause of thyroid disease is autoimmune, a process in which the immune system itself attacks the thyroid cells as if they were foreign cells.
Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Youtube, and TikTok and see the exclusive content for social networks.
