Dr. Weeks Comment: Auto-immune thyroiditis – like Hashimoto’s is a disease which endocrinologists around the world have no good treatment for. People with this thyroid problem suffer According to doctors who offer only the standard of care, there is no cure! “There is no cure for Hashimoto’s thyroiditis. The timeframe of the autoimmune process and inflammation will continue is not predictable. … The treatment of choice for Hashimoto’s thyroiditis is typically synthetic T4 or thyroxine (levothyroxine).”
That is the best that conventional doctors can offer. But you deserve better! So let’s think together about this illness. In its essential nature, it is simply an inflammatory process of the thyroid gland.
“Inflammation from Hashimoto’s disease, also known as chronic lymphocytic thyroiditis, often leads to an underactive thyroid gland (hypothyroidism). Hashimoto’s disease is the most common cause of hypothyroidism in the United States. It primarily affects middle-aged women but also can occur in men and women of any age and in children.“
And we know how to treat inflammatory processes using the safe and powerful organic and non-GMO anti-inflammatory synergetic seed blends of black cumin, raspberry and grape seeds and now we have even more scientific validation about the power of seed nutrition:
“We have demonstrated beneficial effects of Nigella sativa in improving thyroid status, reducing VEGF and body weight in patients with Hashimoto’s thyroiditis”.
TITLE OF PAPER: The effects of Nigella sativa on thyroid function, serum Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor (VEGF) – 1, Nesfatin-1 and anthropometric features in patients with Hashimoto’s thyroiditis: a randomized controlled trial
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Background
Hashimoto’s thyroiditis (HT) is an organ-specific T-cell mediated disease that affects the thyroid glands and is one of the most common human autoimmune disorders [1]. The disease affects 2% of general population and is ten times more prevalent in women than in men [2, 3]. A significant proportion of patients have asymptomatic chronic autoimmune thyroiditis and 8% of woman (10% of woman over 55 years of age) and 3% of men have subclinical hypothyroidism [4].
Hashimoto’s thyroiditis is characterized by the presence of thyroid auto-antibodies such as anti-thyroid peroxidase (TPO-Ab) and anti-thyroglobulin (TG-Ab) antibodies in the serum while these antibodies have potential ability to deteriorate thyroid cells [5, 6]. The disease is characterized by gradual thyroid failure and occasional goiter development and the untreated forms of Hashimoto’s thyroiditis can ever lead to papillary thyroid cancer and thyroid carcinoma [7, 8].
From pathological point of view, thyroid enlargement and hyper-function in Hashimoto’s thyroiditis is accompanied by a markedly increased blood flow and increased vascularization [9]. A number of growth and vasoactive factors are produced in thyroid and are considered to be potentially responsible for changes in thyroid microvasculature and blood flow; vascular endothelial growth factors (VEGF) is a hemodynamic glycoprotein with potent angiogenic and vascular permeability enhancing activities [10]. It has been proposed that VEGF and its receptors are present in epithelial cells of the thyroid and contribute in regulation of development and function of thyroid epithelial cells [10]. In fact VEGF is unique among angiogenic factors because it is both vascular endothelial cell-specific mitogen and is secreted by thyroid cancer cells and high thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) concentrations in Hashimoto’s thyroiditis promotes VEGF secretion from thyroid cancer cell lines [11]…..
Results: At baseline, there was no significant difference in general characteristics among groups. Nigella sativa supplementation significantly reduced anthropometric variables including weight, BMI, WC and HC in patients with Hashimoto’s thyroiditis (P < 0.05); while no significant change in placebo-treated group has been occurred (Table 1). Dietary energy and nutrient intakes before and after intervention are presented in Table 2. Energy and nutrient intakes were similar between groups before intervention and no significant change was observed after intervention. Serum TSH and anti-TPO concentrations reduced while serum T3 increased in Nigella sativa treated group (P < 0.05). Moreover, serum VEGF reduced significantly after 8 weeks of Nigella sativa supplementation (P = 0.02, Table 3). In stepwise multiple linear regression analysis when change in serum VEGF concentrations was entered as dependent variable and change in anthropometric variables and thyroid hormones as independent variables (Table 4) one model was obtained indicating change in WHR as predictor of change in VEGF concentrations. In similar procedure when change in serum Nesfatin-1 was entered as dependent variable, change in WHR, TSH and T3 were its predictors (P < 0.05)…..
Discussion
In the current study we showed a meaningful impact of 8 weeks treatment with Nigella sativa on thyroid function, anthropometric features and serum VEGF concentrations in patients with Hashimoto’s thyroiditis. However changes in serum Nesfatin-1 concentrations were not significant. These findings were in accordance of findings of two animal studies; in one study by Khalawi AA [25] Nigella sativa oil improved hypothyroid status and decreased serum TSH concentrations in rats; in other animal study by Al-Asoom et al. [28] daily oral administration of 800 mg/kg Nigella sativa in male Wistar rats reduced serum thyroxine concentrations. However in our study, for the first time, we clearly demonstrated its beneficial role on improving thyroid function in human.
The seeds of Nigella sativa known as black seeds or black cumin have long been used in folk medicine in the middle and Far East as a traditional medicine for a wide range of disease including infections, obesity, hypertension and gastrointestinal problems [21]. Its most prominent constituent with well- known antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer properties is thyimoquinone [29]. Thyimoquinone has potential cytoprotective and anti-inflammatory effects; it has been reported that its anti-inflammatory effects are induced by up-regulated expression of heme-oxygenase-1 and suppression of the cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) expression in different cell lines [30]. Thyimoquinone also differentially modulated thyroid hormones and improved thyroid status in rats [31]. Therapeutic effects of Nigella sativa against hypothyroidism is mostly attributed to its antioxidant effects which have been proved in numerous studies [32–34]. It has also been suggested that Nigella sativa protects the hyperplasic changes of thyroid parenchyma in hypothyroid rats [25]. Accordingly, increment in T3 concentrations after treatment with Nigella sativa in the current study, has also been reported in the study by Ismail et al. [35] and the authors concluded that Nigella sativa could raise the lowered serum triiodothyronine concentration without changing the concentration of serum TSH because of its potential ability in repairing the thyroid gland and resynthesizing the thyroid hormone; therefore its therapeutic action could be in part due to antioxidant defense system. Accordingly, reduction of serum anti-TPO concentrations after treatment with Nigella sativa could be explained by its immunomodulatory effects approved previously by its protective roles against several autoimmune disease including type 1 diabetes mellitus and experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) [36, 37]. The possible underlying mechanisms of immunomodulatory effects of Nigella sativa are reduced synthesis of auto-antibodies, reduced innate and acquired immune cell markers and reduction in transforming growth factor (TGF)-β and interleukin (IL)-23 concentrations [36–38].
Conclusions
We have demonstrated beneficial effects of Nigella sativa in improving thyroid status, reducing VEGF and body weight in patients with Hashimoto’s thyroiditis. Although no significant change in serum Nesfatin-1 concentrations has been observed, change in anthropometric variables and thyroid hormones were significant predictors of changes in serum Nesfatin-1 concentrations.