What are the symptoms of an underactive thyroid gland?
The thyroid gland is in your neck and sometimes when there is a problem with it, it swells. You’ve probably heard the word ‘goitre’ before – that’s the name for a swollen thyroid gland – one of the symptoms might be a swelling in front of the neck. The thyroid releases a hormone called ‘thyroxine’. This hormone controls the rate at which all the cells of the body work. This means that an underactive thyroid can produce very vague symptoms; weight gain, chilliness, dry skin, dry eyes, constipation, etc. The only way to know if your thyroid is underactive is to have a blood test which your GP can do for you.
