Thyroid

 Importance Of Thyroid:

The thyroid is a small gland located below the skin and muscles at the front of the neck, just at the spot where a bow tie would rest. It's brownish red, with left and right halves (called lobes), which is similar to a butterfly's wings. It's light like a butterfly, too, and usually weighs less than an ounce.
1. Thought small but thyroid has an enormously important job to do, especially for teens.
2. Thyroid produces the hormones that help control metabolism and growth. To do its job, the thyroid needs a chemical element called iodine that the body absorbs from the foods you eat and the water you drink.
3. The entire body contains about 50 milligrams of iodine. About 1/5 to 1/3 of that supply is stored in your thyroid.
4. The iodine has been combined with tyrosine (an essential amino acid) to make important hormones by the thyroid.
5. Thyroid hormones are released from the gland and travel through the bloodstream to the body's cells.
6. They help control the growth and the structure of bones, sexual development and many other body functions.
7. By helping your cells convert oxygen and calories into the energy they need to work properly, these hormones are important in determining if your body will mature, as it should.
8. Thyroid hormones also directly affect how most of your organs function.
9. So if your thyroid isn't operating properly, you can have problems in lots of other parts of your body.
10. Its primary function is to control the body’s metabolism (rate at which cells perform duties essential to living).
11. To control metabolism, the thyroid produces hormones, which tell the body’s cells how much energy to use.
12. A properly functioning thyroid will maintain the right amount of hormones needed to keep the body’s metabolism functioning at a required rate.
13. As the hormones are used, the thyroid produces replacements for that.
14. The pituitary gland controlles and monitors the quantity of thyroid hormones in the bloodstream.