Discovering the Connection Between Thyroiditis and Lyme Disease
Greetings friends, I’m Dr. Nik Hedberg, and today’s Hashimoto’s tip of the day relates to Lyme disease. This was a really fascinating discovery that I made years ago! While conducting some research, I discovered that there was a good connection between Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis and Lyme Disease. The bacteria that causes Lyme disease is known as Borrelia burgdorferi, and studies have shown that Borrelia can trigger Hashimoto’s via what we’ve talked about before – a process known as molecular mimicry.
Molecular mimicry is just that fancy term that basically means that your body’s immune system not only attacks the infection, but it also affects self-tissue that looks like the infection. So as a result, you get a Borrelia infection that causes Lyme. The body doesn’t just attack the Borrelia, but it also attacks the thyroid gland as well.
Are you at Risk of Lyme Disease?
Lyme disease is not just an issue of the Northeast. It actually occurs in all 50 states. If you do have Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis, and you also have some kind of history of tick bites, do a lot of outdoor activities and things like that, you should definitely get checked for Lyme disease to see if it’s there because it could be connected with your Hashimoto’s. It’s worth looking in to!
Check out my video with more on this Hashimoto’s tip of the day, and we’ll see you next time. Take care.
