How People With Graves’ Disease Can Avoid Radioactive Iodine Treatment

If you have Graves’ disease, or any other form of hyperthyroidism, and are considering the use of radioactive iodine to treat your condition, you may want to look at other types of treatment methods first. Many people do not realize the possible consequences of receiving radioactive iodine treatment. As a healthcare professional and someone diagnosed with Graves’ disease, I can tell you that avoiding radioactive iodine was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.

To better understand why you should avoid this type of harsh treatment, it is important to have at least a basic understanding of what this treatment does, as well as the possible consequences if you choose this method of treatment. The thyroid gland contains iodine, which it needs to make thyroid hormones. Radioactive iodine is usually administered orally to the patient. It then moves through the bloodstream to the thyroid gland and essentially destroys many of the cells in the thyroid gland to prevent it from making thyroid hormone.

If you go to Google and type in “radioactive iodine,” one of the first articles listed talks about how there are few side effects to taking radioactive iodine, and that these side effects don’t happen very often. But then the author casually tells the reader the following: “Once the thyroid becomes underactive, a single daily pill of thyroid hormone, T4, should be taken for life. Although most patients are completely cured, some people will need a second treatment.”

Radioactive iodine is NOT a cure for Graves’ disease

To summarize what this doctor said, by receiving radioactive iodine you will be completely cured of hyperthyroidism, but you will have hypothyroidism for the rest of your life, and you will be forced to take synthetic or natural thyroid hormone daily… Live. Call me crazy, but this doesn’t sound like a cure to me. And when treating a disorder like Graves’ disease, you should be aware that radioactive iodine does nothing to address the immune system component of this autoimmune disorder, which is extremely important.

So when someone with Graves’ disease is treated with radioactive iodine, it will most likely stop the overproduction of thyroid hormone. Of course, this will eliminate the symptoms of hyperthyroidism. But here are the following disadvantages of receiving radioactive iodine for Graves’ disease:

1) You will most likely have hypothyroidism for the rest of your life. So, once again, this means you’ll probably have to take natural or synthetic thyroid hormone every day… forever. Now, to be honest, this is not the case for everyone, as while some people will need to take thyroid hormone daily, others who are told they will have to take it forever may be able to regain their health if they undergo natural treatment . protocol. This of course depends on how much damage has been done to the thyroid gland.

2) It does nothing to address the immune system component. Although radioactive iodine should help reduce or stop the production of thyroid hormone and thus help with the symptoms of hyperthyroidism, it will do nothing to help strengthen your immune system. This will leave you more susceptible to future autoimmune disorders.

3) It does nothing to address the underlying cause of your disorder. In addition to not addressing the immune system component, if other areas of your body have caused your condition to develop, such as the adrenal glands, gastrointestinal system, etc., receiving this type of treatment will do nothing to address the problem. cause and/or contributing factors of your disorder.

If you have hyperthyroidism but not Graves’ disease, then while you may not need to worry about addressing the immune system component, you should understand that receiving this treatment can still have serious consequences. Sure, I’ll admit that most cases of hypothyroidism aren’t usually life-threatening, like a severe case of hyperthyroidism can be. On the other hand, when you understand how the thyroid gland affects every cell and tissue in our body, you still need to think twice before having this therapy.

When is radioactive iodine really necessary?

I am not suggesting that RAI is never needed under any circumstances. What I am telling you is that it is an extreme form of treatment, and in most cases it should be considered as a last option. After all, once the thyroid gland is destroyed, it is difficult and sometimes impossible to undo the damage. To be sure, there are situations where someone might need radioactive iodine treatment, such as in certain cases of thyroid cancer. Others may need this type of treatment when symptoms are severe and have not responded to any other type of treatment.

Around the time this article was written, a Major League Baseball player was recently diagnosed with hyperthyroidism (not Graves’ disease). Fortunately, his doctor recommended rest and a change in diet. While his condition is considered mild at this time, don’t think that mild cases of hyperthyroidism are always treated conservatively. As proof of this, I recently saw someone who received radioactive iodine many years ago for a mild case of hyperthyroidism, although he did not experience any symptoms. He has been taking synthetic thyroid hormone every day ever since, when initially a conservative approach might have worked.

What other options do you have?

So what other treatment options are available besides radioactive iodine for people with Graves’ disease, or just a hyperthyroid condition itself? There are basically three options:

Option #1: Antithyroid medications. Methimazole is a common antithyroid drug recommended by some endocrinologists. Many will also recommend a beta blocker, such as propranolol, to help control symptoms.

Option #2: Natural treatment methods. Most people with Graves’ disease are unaware that there are natural treatment methods that could restore their health to normal. Of course, not everyone can be helped by natural treatment methods. And due to the severity of this condition, many people still need to use prescription medications to help manage symptoms when they begin the natural treatment protocol.

Option #3: No treatment. Choosing not to receive any type of treatment when you are diagnosed with Graves’ disease can be quite risky. This condition can become life-threatening, so you need to choose some kind of effective treatment, be it conventional treatment methods or a natural treatment protocol.

Of course, it is up to you to decide which treatment method is right for you. When I was diagnosed with Graves’ disease, I knew of the possible consequences of receiving radioactive iodine treatment. Fortunately I had a somewhat conservative endocrinologist, as she recommended me to take Methimazole, plus a beta blocker to help control my symptoms. And although I considered taking the medication, I decided to consult with a natural doctor first.

To make a long story short, I decided not to take the prescription drugs and started a natural treatment protocol. And finally I ended up getting great results. The treatment protocol not only relieved my symptoms, but my follow-up blood tests (TSH, Free T4, Free T3, etc.) looked great! I also had my adrenal glands tested early on and these levels (which were not good to begin with) also improved.

And while I am a natural health practitioner, like many people who have Graves’ disease and hyperthyroidism in general, I was skeptical about whether or not natural treatment methods would help with such a serious condition. And I’m in no way suggesting that you don’t take medication for your disorder, as some people with really severe symptoms need to take prescription medication to control symptoms. And as I mentioned earlier, some people will even need to receive radioactive iodine.

The goal here was simply to let you know that there are other treatment options besides radioactive iodine and that you should, at a minimum, get a second opinion before receiving this extreme treatment. After all, you only have one thyroid gland, so before you get this treatment you need to be 100% sure that this is what you really need.