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The thyroid gland is situated in the front of the neck, on the either side of the windpipe. It produces thyroxine, a hormone, which it pours into the blood. Thyroxine controls the speed at which the body works.
With excess the body speeds up- the heart beats faster, weight is lost and etc. On the other hand, a lack of thyroxine the body slows down. If there is too little the patient is always tired and the body may become fat and sluggish. Hypothyroidsm is a disease which is caused due to the under secretion of thyroxine by the thyroid gland.
When this disease is manifested in children, it's known as 'cretinism'. You need not panic as hypothyroidism is not a very rare condition as it affects 3% of the general population.
Also, in some cases the problem may not always be in the functioning of the thyroid gland. The hypothalamus and the pituitary gland secrete a hormone called Thyroid Stimulating Hormone which is simply called TSH. The TSH in turn activates the thyroid gland, which consequently results in the formation of thyroxine and triiodothyronine(T3). Thus, hypothhyroidism can also be caused by a malfunctioning hypothalamus or pituatory gland. Also, in some cases this disorder can be heriditary. More often than not, it is the lack of iodine in the diet of the patient that is responsible for this condition. Iodine is the substratum for thyroxine and is hence, very vital in its secretion. In recent times, exposure to radioactive Iodine which is known as Iodine-131 is also known to cause hypothyroidism.
The early symptoms of hypothyroidism include an increased sensitivity to cold, general fatigue, and a substantial decrease in the rate of the heart beat. It may also result in goiter, in which the thyroid glad is enlarged. In some cases, it can also result in arthritis and a decrease in libido. When manifested in children, it can cause short stature with or without mental retardation. The general treatment consists of thyroxine tablets, which may be consumed only under the guidance of a medical doctor. It is quite often seen that there is a high incidence of hypothyroidism in the hilly areas which don't have access to sea salt. Sea salt generally, is found to have more iodine than rock salt. These days common salt available in the market contains Iodine in it and is called, 'iodized salt'. One must only consume iodized salt.
If you are a non-vegetarian, you can also consume salt-water fish. But most importantly, the salt that should be consumed in your household must strictly be iodized salt. If any of the above mentioned symptoms are exhibited, one must see a medical doctor immediately.
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