When it comes to the association of iodine with people, one key part has to be mentioned – the thyroid gland. This mysterious little thing has been the subject of many jokes. The Greeks thought of it as an organ with an “enlarged trachea that protrudes into the neck”. Because its role was unknown for a long time, in the seventeenth century, the thyroid was used as a natural “accessory” to “fill the space in front of the larynx, so that the neck does not sink”. In the nineteenth century, some people even believe that the thyroid is a “blood buffer”, to avoid the sudden rush of blood from the heart to the brain when excited. An even more nonsensical idea was “the thyroid is a bag for worms, from which worms or eggs can enter the esophagus to aid digestion” …… A little bag full of hormones While these jokes from the history of science have gotten colder, do you know what it really does? That’s where our mystery guest – thyroid hormone – comes in. First of all, let’s talk about its life: the thyroid gland first secretly stores a large amount of hormone precursors in its own body (enough for the human body to use for 100 days); then, it takes the iodine absorbed by the intestines and stomach (20-30% of the iodine absorbed by the human body is taken up by the thyroid gland every day); finally, under the incitement of various enzymes, iodine and thyroid hormone precursors are magnificently combined, and thyroid hormone is produced. The amount of thyroid hormone in the human body is very small, only measured in “μg” (micrograms, 1 μg = 1/1000000 grams), but the role is very large: to promote material and energy metabolism, to promote growth and development; it can be said to be the basis of all physiological activities of the human body. These roles seem difficult to understand, we might as well look at the thyroid hormone once out of balance will be what “three stars pile of strange people” are from hyperthyroidism? In 2008, the world’s largest bronze human mask – “longitudinal eyes” – was unearthed at the Sanxingdui in Guanghan, Sichuan. This mask looks peculiar: the eyes are cylindrical and extend forward, the tip of the tongue is exposed, and the lower jaw is slightly extended forward. This strange image has caused many people to speculate: is this strange mask depicting aliens? It is no coincidence that there are also bronze standing figures unearthed at the same time in Sanxingdui, which also have protruding eyes and a thick neck and slim figure. According to these characteristics, some people infer that this may be a manifestation of “endemic goiter” suffered by the ancient Shu people due to iodine deficiency. In fact, the speculation that the ancient Shu people suffered from goiter is not all a catch-22. In ancient times, the Shu people ate a lot of rock salt and well salt because of the lack of iodine in the local soil and minerals, and it was not easy to supplement iodine through other food channels, so it was likely that the lack of iodine caused endemic goiter. Later, the Shu people came out of the mountains and expanded their activities, so they had more iodine intake, and perhaps because of this, the image of “longitudinal eyes” was no longer seen. Sleepy in spring? Beware of hypothyroidism! In contrast, there is another type of thyroid disease that is easily overlooked – hypothyroidism, or “hypothyroidism” for short. It is the opposite of hyperthyroidism, which is caused by the thyroid gland “slacking off”: a decrease in hormone secretion, or tissue underutilization, resulting in a decrease in systemic metabolism. The prevalence of hypothyroidism is about 1.0% and increases with age. A recent survey by the Endocrinology Branch of the Chinese Medical Association showed that the prevalence of hypothyroidism has increased significantly to 6.5% among the residents of 10 major cities in the current survey. For example, if you are often “spring sleepy”, lazy, easily sleepy, the whole person can not be energetic, may be a symptom of hypothyroidism. Because of the insidious onset and long duration of hypothyroidism, early patients with mild disease may not have specific symptoms. In other words, you may not feel anything, but you already have hypothyroidism! Unlike fatigue or other illnesses that cause drowsiness, hypothyroidism can’t go away easily. Even if you take a few days off work, hide at home and sleep, or ignore the leader’s blank stares, sleep until the sun is shining and then get up, or go to a timely tonic, it will not relieve the feeling of sleepiness. There are many hypothyroid patients, due to hypothyroidism caused by drowsiness and fatigue, resulting in the inability to go to work, the inability to clean, the inability to tutor children to do homework, and even the inability to squeeze the bus to grab a seat, affecting the normal work and life, was forced by the family to go to the hospital for examination, only to find that they have hypothyroidism. The symptoms of hypothyroidism are not obvious Just like the “spring sleepiness” that cannot be relieved, most of the other signs and symptoms of hypothyroidism are similar to many diseases and are often missed, such as: fear of cold, memory loss, weight gain, depression, constipation, menstrual disorders or infertility, joint or muscle pain, thinning and brittle hair or nails, or dry, flaky skin, etc. Dry, flaky skin, and other kinds of metabolic slowdown, the whole body as if to “hibernate” like conditions. Of course, this alone does not mean that you are hypothyroid, but you need to go to the hospital to be checked. If the disease continues to develop, mucinous edema will appear, whether cardiovascular system, digestive system, nervous system, reproductive system, etc., the major systems will appear obvious pathological state, and even cause coma, dementia or lethargy, etc.. Even if it is not the severe hypothyroidism mentioned above, but only subclinical hypothyroidism, it can still be very harmful to human health. Especially for women during pregnancy, this stage of thyroid health is particularly important: in addition to short-term hazards, it is also likely to affect the intellectual development of the offspring. Therefore, if you feel unwell, go to the endocrinology department of your hospital for a check-up!