Thyroids are a very vital part of the body considering the fact that they produce thyroid hormone. The thyroid is located in the front of the neck and if you have thyroid inflammation, you can feel it. The hormone produced by thyroid are paly a crucial role in your body and makes sure that many functions of the body is running perfectly.
This hormone ensures that the skin, muscle development are balances and the functionality of the brain is stabilized. So what is a thyroid nodule? It is a lump or growth that develops in the thyroid gland. In some cases, the swelling can just be solid while other it can be filled with fluid.
What Causes Thyroid Nodules?
In some cases, it can also be due to cancer while others it can just be a simple lump or growth in your thyroid. It is important to know what causes thyroid nodules. This is because even though thyroid nodules might not cause you problems, in some cases it can turn out to be a nuisance.
Knowing what causes it will help you stir clear of it because you will always be keen to avoid anything that might cause infections. One thing that you should know is that thyroid nodules are very common especially in women and in recent studies it is mostly cancerous.
In most cases, thyroid nodules can go undetected and will not even cause any symptoms. Most people have thyroid nodules and they don’t even know it. The only way for you to know for sure if you have thyroid nodules is if the symptoms start showing or if the thyroid nodules become big. This will cause difficulty in breathing and even a lot of pain in your throat.
What Is a Thyroid Nodule?
(youtube.com) Gabriela Sanchez, M.D., an Otolaryngologist at Swedish Medical Center in Seattle. Wash provides some information about being aware of thyroid nodules or growths that may occur on your neck.
So What Causes Thyroid Nodules?
In simple terms, thyroid nodules are an overgrowth of the ordinary thyroid tissue. This means that you should beware of what causes this overgrowth. It is not very clear what causes thyroid nodules, but there are a number of factors that influence this unpleasant growth. These are the basic conditions that are known to cause this growth:
- Iodine Deficiency. Thyroid gland actually requires iodine to function properly. Lack of iodine in your diet can cause the growth in your thyroid glands. The deficiency is actually very rare because iodine is readily available in table salt which is accessible to almost everyone.
- Thyroid Adenoma. This is the overgrowth of the thyroid tissue which result into the development of the thyroid nodules. It is usually not a serious infection and rarely does it turn out to be cancerous.
- Thyroid Cyst. This is fluid-filled cysts that develop in the thyroid, it forms as a result of disintegrating thyroid adenomas. These degenerating cysts are what in the end cause thyroid nodules.
- Protracted Thyroid Inflammation. It is commonly caused by Hashimoto's disease. This is a disorder which cause inflammation of the thyroid and in the end result into an overgrowth of the thyroid tissue. It’s commonly linked to reduced thyroid activity which is medically referred to as hypothyroidism.
- Multinodular Goiter. An enlargement of the thyroid gland can be referred to as goiter. It is commonly caused by thyroid disorder or iodine deficiency. A multi nodular goiter means that there are numerous thyroid enlargements which appear to be numerous distinctive nodules.
- Thyroid Cancer. This is also one of the major causes of thyroid nodules especially if there is a family history of endocrine cancer. It can be brought about by exposure to radiation exposure, age, and hereditary diseases.
Knowing what causes thyroid nodules will help you preventing you from future infections. Some of these causes are easy to avoid so that you don’t find yourself in the position you never imagined yourself in.
