by Moira Holden
Obese youngsters may be at risk of damaging their thyroid irreversibly, according to new research by Italian scientists.
Previously it had been thought thyroid disorders could cause weight gain, but now this theory is being challenged following tests on children.
Doctors at the Regional Hospital of Bolzano, Italy, have monitored youngsters with thyroid problems. Now they think obesity might be causing the thyroid malfunction, not the other way round.
They fear obesity might alter the structure of the thyroid gland, which is crucial to growth and metabolism.
The thyroid is a gland in the neck which releases hormones controlling metabolic rate and child growth.
The results of ultrasound tests on 186 children – published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism – suggest their weight could be linked to structural changes in the thyroid.
One fifth of children in Britain are overweight or obese, and it's estimated that by 2050 60 percent of the population will be obese.
Research leader Dr Giorgio Radetti said general inflammation caused by obesity could be responsible.
He said: 'The ultrasound findings are a bit mysterious, but do suggest the existence of a low-grade inflammation state, which has been known to characterise obesity.
'Our study shows that alterations in thyroid function and structure are common in obese children and we may have uncovered the link.
'We found an association between body mass index and thyroid hormone levels which suggests that fat excess may have a role in thyroid tissue modification.'
