Thyroid Disease

It has come to my attention that a good number of individuals suffer from Thyroid Disease, of some sort or another, and it appears as though women are more likely to have difficulties than men. Weather it is an underactive thyroid, or an overactive thyroid the imbalance in the endocrine system is simply devistating to ones health. This ailment faces my mother and one of my co-workers as well, so it really hits home for me.

As I work through my studies of Kundalini Yoga I am researching the human endocrine system, and outlining some thoughts for chakra-neuroendocrinology, (a science that the yogis have understood for some time, but requires additional Western study.)

My study now takes me to the Thyroid. I seek to gain an understanding of its function and make the case for Kundalini Yoga as a Preventative Maintenance program to keep thyroid disease and disorders away. (Yoga is a maintenance program for the body, mental, emotional and spiritual, as well, but let’s stay focused on this aspect for the time.)

In my previous post on chakra-neuroendocrinology I referenced a resource book that is helping me understand the system. My high level overviews of the tyroid, based on the book, and other insights are as follows:

The thyroid is related to the 5th chakra, or center of communication located around the throat. It is good to keep in mind that the element associated with the 5th chakra is ether. Technically speaking all of our chakras are rooted on the subtle plane of the ethers and bridge the vital gap into physical manifestation. But the 5th chakra is of much interest to etheric relations. It makes one ponder upon the etheric implications of under active and over active 5th chakras.

The human thyroid is the gland that is very closely associated with metabolism. “A primary role of the thyroid is to increase energy expenditure and thermo-genesis.”
That being said the pituitary gland, (or Master Gland,) is responsible for stimulating the thyroid hormone secretion. An imbalance in the thyroid or pituitary gland can lead to challenges in the system.

Hypothyroidism- Underactive thyroid

This implies an individual has thyroid hormone levels that are too low for proper flow in the endocrine system. A common cause of this is the presence of antithyroid antibodies. A common symptom of this is sluggishness, (yoga helps make the body move.)
Hyperthyrodism- Overactive thyroid

This implies that an individual has thyroid levels that are higher than appropriate for the proper flow of energy. There are technically 2 types of this disorder, the type that is caused from within the body and the type that is caused from outside of the body. A common symptom of this is weight loss. This dis-ease can also lead to increased speed in mental processes, but with the propensity to create errors within the thinking. Again, one cause of this is a mis-aligned anti body within the system.

Preventative Thyroid Maintenance

It is my thinking that Yoga, (I am partial to Kundalini but all forms of Yoga are appropriate,) is the optimal means of preventing thyroid disease and disorders. It’s kind of like a car, one takes in their car on a regular basis so that maintenance work can be done. The result of this maintenance is a car that runs smoother, lasts longer and is less likely to die on you. The same is true of the human body and they thyroid.

Kundalini Yoga provides lovely specific means to maintain proper balance within the thyroid. The best way to cure thyroid disease is to never allow the root cause to develop in the first place, thus I stress maintenance.

Food that nurtures the Thyroid

Eating the right foods is also important for proper flow through the thyroid.  Mark Hyman M.D. has noticed that thyroid disorders are on the rise, and he brings an interesting and valid perspective as to the cause.  He focuses more on the environmental and dietary factors that enter into the thyroid system:

“For example, food allergies, like sensitivities to gluten and other foods, also negatively affect thyroid function-and are frequently undiagnosed.  Likewise, deficiencies in nutrients important to good thyroid function-like selenium, zinc, omega-3 fatty acids. and iodine and tyrosine-can trigger thyroid problems.”

Fight Thyroid Disease

Mark Hyman has very sound tips for fighting thyroid disease.  I would suggest that we focus on preventing them in the first place.

But if you find yourself in a situation where you need to fight the dis-ease review his suggestions and might I suggest integrating a strong Kundalini Yoga practice into your life cycle.

I have another future proposed test for testing the validity of healing via chakra-neuroendocrinology. There are a couple tests that can be done to measure the levels of thyroid hormones in ones system. I propose a controlled test with 3 groups:

1. Group of people with over active thyroid (n=60)
2. Group of peoplw with under active thyroid (n=60)
3. Control group (n=60)

Measure the levels of thyroid hormone prior to testing. One half of each group will live out their lives normally, or under go the typical Western treatment. The second half will practice Kundalini Yoga on a Daily basis with a strong focus on 5th chakra exercizes and a little 6th chakra work here and ther. (We could add thyroid specific eating into the equation at a future date perhaps.)

I find it interesting that one of my first major energetic blockages in this life time, that I was consciously aware of, was in my throat center. (Sarah, thanks again for the release.)

The timing of this post is also rather interesting, as I am 18 days into a 40 Kundalini Yoga kriya that focuses on the 5th chakra.

It is my sincere hope that this info gets shared with others.  Should you know someone that may benefit, please pass this along to them!  Please let me know what you think of this article?

I hope it is of value.

Sat Nam

Hershel