Hypothyroidism and low body temperature

Low body temperature is an indication of hypothyroidism. All the books I've read say that more than one degree Farenheight below normal indicates hypothyroidism and treatment.

One thing I've struggled with is infection. Microbes tend to like warm moist environments, however, they do have an optimal growth temperature, depending on the microbe. If you test for bacteria, they do a culture and grow it in an incubator for a couple of days. The temperature of the incubator is 37 degrees C because that is human body temp. The body is designed to be able to fight off microbial infection and body temp is part of that. If the body temperature is too low, it could allow microbial growth that would not survive in a higher temperature. A difference of one degree can make a huge difference in the microbial balance of your body. Because while infection is bad, we live with certain amounts of bacteria in our body as a normal process. It's when certain microbes become overgrown, that what we call an infection occurs. A deviation from optimal body temperature could favor a less desirable bacterial population or could allow other microbial population to thrive in a way it would not under normal body temp. Worse, if you test for microbial growth  at 37 degrees and your body is cooler, you could get a substantial difference in yoir lab results from what's actually happening in the body.

I have found traditional Chinese medicine and herbs to be most helpful when dealing with opportunistic infection not detectable by normal methods.

The other thing to consider is that when the body becomes so weak and down that you cannot exercise, you are in REALLY big trouble. Exercise helps the body circulate and eliminate more efficiently. So it's super important to find some sort of exercise that you can do when you're in pain or whatever. In the US,  we have many exercise shows available to us on PBS, of course most people have no idea, and many of these exercise programs are designed to address illness and injury, because it is known that staying active is a huge part of staying healthy.

Rule #1.. don't believe everything you read on the internet.  Most websites are just out to make money from selling books and commission off vitamins and supplements that they try to push you.  They want to make everyone think that they have hypothyroidism, despite blood test, and to buy their books on how to fix it and supplements from the links on their pages and you'll be all better.  I have had a low body temperature ALL my life.  It was always below 97 degrees , and did not get hypothyroidism until 6 years ago.  Yet had a low body temp for as long as I can remember, as do a lot of other people I know that are healthy and have never been had hypothyroidism.  It's very normal for body temps to go below 98 degrees.  It's normal, your not sick, you do not have hypothyroidism, as if you did, your blood test would show this..  Your fine...  I hope this helps makes you feel better..   Best wishes...

What is your body temp and what exactly are your symptoms? Nutritional deficiencies, toxicity, diabetes and other endocrine system problems can look like hypothyroid disease, or cause hypothyroidism.

Hypothyroid disease can often be difficult to diagnose. If you read through the posts here, you'll find the majority fall into two categories: 1) questions about getting a diagnoses, 2) questions about medications.

Hyoothyroid disease can go undiagnosed for decades. 

I live in California and I'm finding thyroid disease is epidemic, though still extremely difficult to get treatment. My own experience includes decades of undiagnosed thyroid disease, another five years messing around with meds, years of research and trial and error with alternative and natural treatments. So I've read a lot. Most of the supplements marketed for thyroid disease will not help.

Iodine and kelp deficiencies are traditionally believed to be the problem, so here in the US, they've added iodized salt to everything.  But the thyroid disease epidemic indicates this did not solve the problem. 

I'm in California and we have issues with radiation exposure from nuclear power plant problems, as it is common practice here not to notify the public when a power plant overloads and releases radioactive iodine into the environment. This contributes greatly to the thyroid disease epidemic. And in fact over the last few years, many famous actors and models in Hollywood have come forward with their thyroid disease struggles.

While there is a lot of misinformation, there is a lot of help. It's a matter of sorting through everything and having a sense of what works for you.

Thyroid patients often keep journals on their symptoms so they can track what works and what doesn't. For most people this is difficult because a common symptom in thyroid disease is brain fog, plus most people don't have the analytical skills to troubleshoot their own symptoms.

Do read through the many posts here on thyroid disease, as there are many on how to   Manage thyroid disease, what sorts of tests to have done, how to understand your test results, etc.

Meanwhile, if you feel strongly that you have hypothyroid disease, start by improving your diet,  take good quality multiviatamin and mineral supplements, change to a gluten-free-paleo style diet: you'll have to research these. Both Hashimoto's and Graves' disease are autoimmune at the source, so the diet is helpful incalming the immune system. Eat plenty of good quality, lean animal protein, as protein dificiency can also contribute or exacerbate thyroid disease. I've found I get more relief from amino acid supplements than anything else I've tried. I feel the medications made  my thyroid symptoms worse, and caused additional autoimmune disease. 

Next time you go in for an annual physical, ask for a full thyroid panel, not just TSH. An ultrasound can show cysts or other growths, which would render a diagnosis. Antibody tests of various sorts can be used as a diagnostic tool if positive, but mean nothing if negative since they have a 50% false negative rate.

Hope that gives you some direction.