ZINC
Amidst the pandemic, I’ve had a tiny bit of time to dive back into something I am passionate about.
Cellular biology, health and wellness.
You may have heard from several tv/media sources, news and health officials that zinc can help combat sickness associated with the virus.
However, pandemic or not, I have found zinc to be one of the most essential supplements to consider incorporating if you have an autoimmune disease and or even just a suppressed immune system.
Think about it this way-What makes it possible for the body to carry out DNA synthesis, immune function, protein synthesis and cellular division? Is there one key component that could prevent this from properly happening? How do I know if this is actually happening on a daily basis inside my body?
Lately, I have been thinking a lot about two specific thyroid hormones-T4 & T3. The primary function of the thyroid gland is to produce T4 & T3. T3 is THE active thyroid hormone responsible for all of the biological actions of the thyroid hormone. There are two sources of T3, one is from the conversion of T4>T3 in the tissues and the other is directly from your thyroid gland.
What could be an underlying reason for an under conversion from T4>T3, leading to a suppressed immune system, autoimmune disease or low thyroid?
There are many answers to this question but one could be as simple as Zinc.
The pituitary gland regulates thyroid hormone production by producing TSH. Zinc is essential in the formation of TSH (thyroid stimulating hormone). If there is a deficiency in zinc, this can prevent the body from covering T4 into active T3.
When the pituitary gland senses the level of T3 and deems it as either normal, low or high, it then reacts by producing TSH in an inverse manner.
See how this can create a small unseen issue that can snowball into larger issues when conversion is low due to a nutritional deficiency?
I will continue to search for the unobvious answers as to why the thyroid gland can go awry.
Zinc (specifically picolinate due to it’s absorption) has been a new addition to my happy supplement family.
*Be sure not to exceed doses higher than 30mg which could lead to a copper deficiency.*