Dr. Tracy McAlvanah's Wellness Blog

Some women find they end their  pregnancy  with not only a new baby but a new hypothyroid condition as well. That’s because normal immune shifts during pregnancy can trigger an autoimmune disease such as Hashimoto’s hypothyroidism, depending on genetics and other predisposing factors. The immune system can be looked as having two primary roles, one that reacts immediately to an invader (such as pus surrounding a splinter), and one that reacts later to produce antibodies (such as to build immunity to a virus). The part of the immune system that reacts immediately is TH-1 while the delayed response is TH-2. When one of these arms of the immune system becomes overly dominant it can trigger an  autoimmune disease  such as Hashimoto’s disease. Researchers are increasingly finding factors that lead to immune imbalance and trigger autoimmune diseases. They can include not only a genetic predisposition, but also food sensitivities (gluten and dairy being the most common o...

Popping in a DVD for a baby or toddler can provide a brief but blessed break for the harried parent, and playing an educational video takes some of the sting out of the guilt. Unfortunately, even an educational video featuring classical music, shapes, colors, and early words may do more harm than good according to researchers. A child’s brain needs constant physical activity and interaction with the environment to develop properly, and time in front of the screen suspends that development, even if it’s an educational video or computer game. Research shows the younger a child begins spending time in front of the screen, the lower they score on language tests, despite being taught language on educational videos or television. Unfortunately, almost 90 percent of children spend two to three hours per day in front of a screen by the time they are two years old. Educational videos overlook brain development basics A parent who wants her child to read or learn numbers early overlooks some...

While practitioners of functional medicine have long understood the link between the health of a mother’s immune system and the risk of giving birth to a child with autism, asthma, allergies, and other disorders, it is validating to see this information in the New York Times : An Immune Disorder at the Root of Autism . In this article, the author reports one-third of autism cases are the result of an inflammatory disease that began in the womb, thanks to the mother’s imbalanced immune system. Looking back through 20 years of data, researchers discovered that infections during pregnancy increase the risk of autism. Hospitalization for a viral infection (i.e., the flu) during the first trimester tripled the odds for autism, while a bacterial infection (including urinary tract infections) during the second trimester increased the risk by 40 percent. Maternal autoimmunity increases risk of autism in children While viral and bacterial infections have declined over the last 60 years, au...

Couples trying to conceive may want to add a gluten-free diet to their regimen. Research shows a clear link between celiac disease (gluten intolerance) and infertility in both women and men. Infertility affects about 10 percent of couples wanting to have children, or more than 6 million Americans. Several studies have shown the prevalence of celiac disease is higher in women with unexplained infertility . Also, women with celiac disease are three times more likely to miscarry and four times more likely to experience complications in pregnancy. Gluten’s effect on the reproductive system extends beyond fertility. In a 2011 Russian study, women with celiac disease generally began menstruating a year or more later than their peers, and suffered significantly more menstrual irregularities and amenorrhea (lack of menstruation). Knowing whether gluten intolerance is a pregnancy risk can be difficult as symptoms aren’t always obvious. Studies have shown women with undiagnosed celiac dise...

A new study shows hypothyroidism during pregnancy may be more common that previously thought, thanks to new clinical guidelines for evaluating thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH). The study revealed hypothyroidism in one in six pregnant women, a 10 percent increase after using a narrower TSH range. The new guideline for normal TSH is now 0.3 to 3.0, narrower than the former guideline of 0.5 to 5.0. In functional medicine we use a range of 1.8 to 3.0. Gestational hypothyroidism poses a number of risks, including miscarriage, hypertension, gestational diabetes, low-birth weight, and risk for lower IQ in the baby. Hashimoto's hypothyroidism screening important during pregnancy This study illustrates the importance of screening for hypothyroidism during pregnancy. Only about a quarter of the more than 500,000 women in the study were tested for TSH, meaning many more may have gone through pregnancy with an undiagnosed thyroid condition. TSH shouldn't be the only marker ordered...

A calm, healthy pregnancy and postpartum period could reduce the risk of allergies in your baby, according to a new Swedish study . Researchers found infants with lower levels of cortisol, an adrenal hormone released in response to stress, developed fewer allergies than other infants. Stress hormone cortisol triggers allergies The researchers believe environmental and lifestyle factors during pregnancy and early infancy raise adrenal cortisol levels, which increases the risk of allergies. Studies show high cortisol in a pregnant mother raises levels of the hormone in the fetus. In functional medicine, we see many women enter into pregnancy with high cortisol. Common symptoms include excess belly fat, insomnia, insulin resistance (high blood sugar), hair loss, and an irregular menstrual cycle. Stress isn’t just about too much to do on too little sleep (although that is certainly a factor). Factors that cause high adrenal cortisol Common factors that elevate cortisol are...

Question Why did pregnancy trigger my hypothyroidism? Answer Natural immune shifts during pregnancy, together with a genetic tendency and other predisposing factors, can trigger hypothyroidism in some women. Hypothyroidism is an immune disease for most For 90 percent of Americans, hypothyroidism is caused by Hashimoto’s, an autoimmune disease in which the immune system attacks and destroys the thyroid gland. The immune system has two major arms of function, one that reacts immediately to an invader, and one that reacts later to produce antibodies. When one of these arms of becomes overly dominant it can trigger an autoimmune disease. Going into pregnancy predisposed Pregnancy and the postpartum periods naturally polarize the immune system. In the third trimester the delayed immune response is dominant. Postpartum the immediate immune reaction is stronger. If a genetically predisposed woman goes into pregnancy with an existing immune imbalance, these natural immune shifts could be the t...