Your Safety is our Priority! Masks May Be Required at Millennium Offices. Those few extra post-holiday pounds could be a sign of a more serious issue than just overindulgence. It could be a symptom of thyroid issues. But the good news is a simple blood test can let you know for sure. Millennium Physician Group Family Medicine Physician Nektarious Demetriou, D.O., was featured on WFLA’s Daytime to shed some light on the issue.
FULL TRANSCIPTION:
Maggie Rodriguez:
If you’re still working off your post-holiday weight gain, our next guest says it could actually be a sign of something else. Here to explain is Dr. Nektarios Demetriou with Millennium Physician Group. Doctor, welcome back.
Dr. Nektarios Demetriou:
Thank you very much.
Maggie Rodriguez:
So this is alarming because everybody assumes, ‘Oh, it’s just the holiday weight gain’. What else could it be?
Dr. Nektarios Demetriou:
Well, it could actually be a metabolic issue or an endocrine issue. Or it could be a thyroid issue, either one of those. So I would recommend just go and get it checked. Go to your primary-care physician and run some simple blood tests to determine whether or not it is indeed just post-holiday blues or there’s actually a medical issue going on.
Maggie Rodriguez:
Are there some signs that you can tell yourself that it could be a thyroid issue?
Dr. Nektarios Demetriou:
Typically, when the thyroid is under functioning, you’ll have symptoms of fatigue, weakness, maybe even fogginess in your thought process as well. Your metabolism will completely slow down. And it’ll be just like when somebody has eaten a lot of food and they just can’t move. It will give you that same feeling.
Maggie Rodriguez:
So, you mentioned this is diagnosed with a simple blood test.
Dr. Nektarios Demetriou:
That is correct, yes. If you go to your physician, he can order a simple blood test called a TSH, which will basically look at the thyroid and see whether or not it’s functioning properly or not. It’s very, very simple, very quick to do. And based on that, we can and go ahead and advise treatment as indeed if it is abnormal.
Maggie Rodriguez:
Well, that’s how my thyroid issue was found. I have an underactive thyroid and all I do is I take a pill every single day and they keep monitoring the dosage. Is that what the treatment entails for everybody? Just a medicine that you take regularly?
Dr. Nektarios Demetriou:
Absolutely, yes. It’s typically just giving them a thyroid pill, which it can come in multiple different forms, multiple different names, but typically it is the same thing. And you would take it daily prescribed. And then you would have frequent monitoring with your physician about let’s say every three months or so just to check to make sure that it’s actually functioning normal, and that’s the correct dosage for you. As you increase in weight, as your age goes on, or you don’t work out, you might need a higher dosage. Or if you lose weight, you might need a lower dosage. So it’s extremely important to keep that monitored.
Maggie Rodriguez:
Does your lifestyle affect the dosage that you might need? So if you’re not a fit person, but suddenly you become one, will that affect maybe the functioning of your thyroid?
Dr. Nektarios Demetriou:
It can do. Yes, absolutely. There is cause to decrease the dosing if somebody let’s say was 350 pounds, that is now let’s say 150. So the metabolism’s completely different at that point. And so, yes, absolutely.
Maggie Rodriguez:
I guess what I want to know is can thyroid function come back once it’s gone?
Dr. Nektarios Demetriou:
No.
Maggie Rodriguez:
Oh.
Dr. Nektarios Demetriou:
Well, there is actually a caveat to that. Yes, there is, but it’s a little bit more complex. That involves your immune system.
Maggie Rodriguez:
Okay.
Dr. Nektarios Demetriou:
And whether or not it’s a true hypothyroid condition.
Maggie Rodriguez:
Okay.
Dr. Nektarios Demetriou:
And we can run additional tests to determine that.
Maggie Rodriguez:
And so should you see an endocrinologist or just your regular physician to help you at the beginning diagnosis?
Dr. Nektarios Demetriou:
Yeah. Your primary-care physician should be able to assist you in not only diagnosing, treatment, and monitoring of you.
Maggie Rodriguez:
And when do you know it’s time to go and make that appointment?
Dr. Nektarios Demetriou:
Which appointment?
Maggie Rodriguez:
Just with your primary.
Dr. Nektarios Demetriou:
When you start feeling like your body’s different. Or just being at the beginning of the year is a good time to use that as a benchmark, just to go and see your doctor and run some tests just to see if there’s anything abnormal.
Maggie Rodriguez:
I think that’s a good idea. Doctor, thank you very much.
Dr. Nektarios Demetriou:
You’re very welcome.
Maggie Rodriguez:
And if you would like more information on how to find the right physician for you or schedule an appointment, this is a great time of year to do that. Visit millenniumphysician.com. “Daytime” will be right back.